Was Annalise right? Had Sadie been taken because she was so gifted with her ability regarding computer science? Had Jacob had inside information about the students? Or had they taken her to use as a human shield if needed when they had escaped? If the latter was true, then they would probably dump Sadie the first chance they got. The real question was if they’d dump her dead or alive. The pressure in his chest increased.
“Hendrick,” he said once he’d connected with the tech. “What have you got for me?”
“Not much. They must be traveling on back roads, and there are a hell of a lot of mountain roads without cameras in that area,” Hendrick replied. “Since we don’t know what direction they fled, I’m watching the available traffic cameras within a twenty-five-mile radius in each direction. But so far I’ve got nothing. I’ll let you know the minute I do.”
“I need you to also be on the lookout for any report of a child found,” Evan said. “It’s possible Sadie will be dumped on the side of the road somewhere if she’s no longer useful to them.” Hopefully, if that happened, they would dump her alive.
“Got it,” Hendrick replied.
“Also, Annalise had a feeling Jacob had some inside information on the girls. I need you to do thorough background checks on all the employees and see what you find.”
“I’m on it.”
As Evan disconnected, Nick stuck his head in the doorway. “Hey, man, we’ve got a live one out here. He’s not hurt and he’s singing like a bird.”
Maybe they would finally get some answers that had eluded them so far. Evan followed Nick to the back of a patrol car where a tall, blond-haired, handcuffed man stood. “I’m Special Agent Evan Duran,” he said to the prisoner. “What’s your name?”
“Ben... Ben Hanson. This...this all wasn’t supposed to be like this.” He looked utterly shell-shocked. “This is the very last thing we all wanted.”
“So, what exactly did you want when you came into the school?” Evan asked. “Why are you here?”
“We were supposed to get in, grab one of the genius students and then get out. We didn’t intend to fire a shot. There wasn’t supposed to be a standoff. Nobody was ever supposed to get hurt.”
“So, what made it go south?” Evan asked.
“First of all Jacob told us nobody would be in the school except a teacher and a few of her students. Somebody panicked and started shooting. Then I guess the security guard managed to ring the alarm and the cops started showing up way before we expected.”
“What did you want with the student?” Evan asked.
Ben frowned. “Jacob said the kids in the school were smart enough to break into the World Bank. He said when that happened there would be all kinds of financial chaos, and during that pandemonium he’d transfer enough money to distribute to the poor and hungry. We all knew it was illegal, but we believed it was for the greater good. He said we would help to stop hunger all over the world.”
“Did you all know that Jacob and his wife own some property in the Caymen Islands along with a healthy bank account in their names only?”
Ben stared at him for a long moment and then slowly shook his head and released a deep, bitter laugh. “I don’t know why that should surprise me now. In the end they only saved their own skins and left the rest of us here to die. He even fired at Tim. He shot him in the back when he was giving himself up.”
Ben’s eyes filled with tears. “I saw the ambulance pull away after he got shot. Is...is he okay?”
“He didn’t make it,” Nick said curtly. Evan knew Nick had gotten the information from the hospital. Despite Evan’s and Davis’s best efforts to save the man, he had been DOA.
Ben’s eyes glazed over with emotion. “Damn Jacob for killing him. We thought Jacob was a great leader for change in society, but he turned out to be nothing more than a greedy monster.”
“What was the plan? Where was Jacob planning on taking the child?” Evan asked.
“The plan was for all of us to return to the compound, but now I have no idea where they might have gone.”
“Has Jacob or Gretchen ever talked about any other property they own?” Evan asked. “Does anyone close to them own someplace where they might go?”
Ben shook his head. “As far as I know, neither of them had any family. None of us own any property. If anyone had any, we all sold it and donated the proceeds to the group before we moved into the compound with Jacob. I’ve never heard either of them talk about any property they might own, especially a place in the Caymen Islands,” he finished bitterly.
Evan sighed in frustration and turned to Nick. “Go ahead and get him processed and out of here.”
Everything that could be done was being done. His men were processing the crime scene, and Jacob’s thugs had been rounded up. The wounded were being attended to, and officials all over the area were looking for the black panel van. Law enforcement at all the nearby airports was also on the lookout for the fugitives.
Maybe Annalise was right and somehow Sadie would manage to contact them and be able to tell them where she was. With this thought in mind, he decided to head to the hotel.
As Rowan drove him to the room his head filled with thoughts of Annalise. Seeing her again, even so briefly, had been surprisingly good and difficult at the same time.
He was relieved she was safe, but he couldn’t be content until Sadie was also safe. Right now, Annalise was a means to that end.
“Try to get some rest,” Rowan said as she pulled up in
