that she was in the room across the hall and down a little ways from where Erica was standing.
She motioned for Clausen to check the master while she checked the other room. With a nod, he moved past her down the hall.
The curtains of the last bedroom were closed, so as Erica walked in, it was hard to see much of anything. She activated the screen of her phone and swept it across the room like a flashlight.
There was a bed, a dresser, and some toys on the floor. Though the bed was unoccupied, its covers were pulled back. It was apparent from how the blankets were disturbed that whoever had been in the bed had not been very tall. A toddler, at best.
She put her hand on the sheet covering the mattress. Warm, but it was a warm night, so that didn’t necessarily mean anything.
Clausen appeared in the doorway. “Empty,” he said, not bothering to even whisper. “No one’s home.”
“Then where the hell are they?” she asked.
“Movies, maybe. Out to dinner.”
“They had dinner.” Erica checked her watch. It was going on eight thirty. “And I doubt they would have taken a kid that age out to a movie at this time of night.”
Clausen shrugged. “Maybe they just went for some ice cream or something.”
“Maybe.” Wherever they’d gone, she was confident they’d return soon. “We’ll wait.”
Though the ultimate satisfaction of closing this problem was delayed, Erica was actually feeling pretty good. The girl was close. Soon she’d have possession of her, and it would all be over.
“Go get Markle and our guests, and bring them in,” she ordered. “We can tie up the two and lock them in the hallway bathroom for now.”
As Clausen started to turn down the hallway, there was thud in the backyard, followed almost instantly by a low groan and what sounded like a hushed voice.
“Wait,” Erica whispered.
She went to the window and carefully moved the curtain just enough so she could see out, but spotted nothing unusual.
“The dog?” Clausen suggested.
If it had only been the thud and the groan, perhaps, but Erica was sure she’d heard a human voice, too.
She let the curtain fall back into place. “We need to check.”
CHAPTER SEVENTY — SEVEN
“Harp!” Barney jumped out of the Jeep as Harp and Alan walked up.
Barney held out his hand, but Harp, being in a hugging mood, wrapped his arms around his old friend.
“I…wasn’t sure we’d see you again,” Barney said once they’d separated.
“Yeah. I wasn’t sure you would, either,” Harp confessed.
“What happened? How did they get you?”
“I’ll tell you in a minute. I need your phone first.”
“Uh, sure.” Barney ducked back in and retrieved his cell from the car.
Before he could hand it over, Harp said, “You have Callie’s number, right?”
“Yeah. Is that who you want to call?”
Harp nodded.
Barney fiddled with the buttons for a moment, then gave the phone to Harp. “It’s ringing.”
Harp listened as it rang for a second time.
“Hello?”
“Callie? It’s Harp.”
She drew in a quick breath. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m with Barney now.”
“And Logan?”
“I saw him a minute ago.”
“So what’s happening?”
“Logan wanted me to tell you to call the police and your friend at the FBI, and have them get here as quickly as they can.”
“All right,” she said quickly.
“Wait!”
“What is it?”
“You might want to send an ambulance, too.” At the very least, they’d need it for the jerk on the curb, but he thought it best to be prepared for the worst.
“Oh, God,” Callie said, and clicked off.
“What was that all about?” Barney asked.
“Come on,” Harp said, handing the phone back to Barney. “The three of us have something to do.” He turned to include Alan in the conversation, but Alan wasn’t there. “Where’d he go?”
Barney looked around. “I don’t know. He was here just a moment ago.”
“Alan?” Harp called out as loudly as he dared.
No answer.
“Maybe he went back to the other car,” Harp said. “That’s where we’re supposed to go.” He took a step toward the curb, then stopped and looked back. “I want to get something out of the back of the Jeep first.”
CHAPTER SEVENTY — EIGHT
Now that Harp and Alan were free, and Emily was out of harm’s way, Logan’s only goal was to keep Dr. Paskota and the man with her at the house until the authorities arrived-something he knew would be a hell of a lot easier said than done.
If it hadn’t happened already, the doctor would soon discover no one was home. Once that happened, there were two possibilities-either she would stay in the house and wait, thinking that Rachel and Kurt would return with Emily soon, or she would leave.
If it was the first, great; there was little Logan would have to do. So he concentrated on the second possibility. Better to be prepared than not.
The choke point was the front door. That was the way they’d gone in, and the most logical way they’d come out. So the primary goal would be to keep her from using it.
“Set up in the bushes on either side of the porch,” Logan whispered to Dev and Pep as they ran across the street. “If they try to leave, you make sure they understand that’s not an option. I’ll find a spot in the backyard to make sure they don’t go out that way, either.”
Logan handed Dev his own gun, keeping the one with the suppressor for himself.
He looked at Pep. “Sorry, I only have the two.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll get ’em if they run.”
Logan hoped it wouldn’t come to that. Pep might have been mentally prepared to chase the others down, but his broken ribs would have something to say about it.
They crossed the lawn and paused just shy of the porch.
“The idea is not to kill them, but to detain,” Logan whispered.
“At all costs? Or only if possible?” Dev asked.
“If possible. I’m going to-”
A muffled
