He pounded on the door. “Help! We’re in here.”
Hannah joined him and banged her door. “Help us!”
“Hannah? Layke?” Corporal Bakker.
“Elias! We’re here.” Relief flooded through his bones, and his shoulders relaxed. God had heard his plea.
“We’ll get you out. Hang on!”
Hannah grabbed his hand. “God answered my prayer.”
“He did.” Layke pulled his hand away.
She turned her head but not before he saw the tears.
An hour later, the officers had been able to dig them out. They had detected the signal shortly after they’d gotten out of the avalanche’s path and returned with a snowplow and lots of workers to free them.
He now sat at the detachment going over topical maps. He had to find the ranch before more harm came to the children.
Hannah opened the door and peeked her head in. “Can I come in?”
He sat back. “Of course. You okay?”
“I just took some meds for the pain in my shoulder. It’s throbbing.”
Silence stifled the air between them.
“Listen, I wanted to thank you for your quick thinking back in the Jeep,” she said.
“What do you mean?”
“You kept a clear head and remembered the locator device. My mind was mush and racing with thoughts of terror. Some Christian I am.”
He had faced his fear of being buried alive. Plus, he had said a prayer, and now he had a bargain to live up to.
“Don’t be hard on yourself. God understands.”
“Look at you, talking about God.”
“Right?”
“Doyle is taking me back to the ranch. I need sleep.”
“Of course.” He stood. “Listen, I—”
Doyle burst into the room. “You ready, Hannah?”
“Talk to you later?” she said.
“You got it. Sleep well. I’ll be back soon. Just trying to figure out some things here first.”
“Don’t work too late. You need rest, too.” She followed Doyle from the room.
He wanted to tell her how he felt but knew the timing wasn’t quite right.
For the next two hours, he studied the region’s maps trying to figure out how they could locate a ranch and multiple cabins. How did this gang hide so easily?
The Martells still hadn’t made a move toward taking down Broderick. As far as local authorities knew, of course. And the avalanche had covered any chance of them finding evidence among the rubble the gang had inflicted.
“God—”
His cell phone rang. He grabbed it and noticed the time. One thirty in the morning. He glanced at the caller—Hannah.
He bolted out of his chair as goose bumps skirted across his arm. “What’s wrong?”
“They’re here,” she whispered.
“Who?”
“The gang. We’re under attack. Come—”
The call dropped.
Fear sliced through him and his legs weakened. He grabbed the table to steady himself as dread overtook his weary body.
He had to save Hannah and Gabe.
Before the gang stole them from him forever.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Layke pulled onto his half brother’s road, heart pounding. Hannah’s Jeep fishtailed at his sharp turn. He struggled to keep the vehicle on the road with a new storm pummeling the area. Lord, keep them safe. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he approached the ranch in stealth mode by turning off the lights.
Silence greeted him. Stillness. Where was everyone?
Was he too late?
He stepped out of the vehicle and removed his gun. He had to stay on high alert. Lives depended on him. He approached the police officer detached to guard the place. Layke peeked in the window of the cruiser. The constable was slumped forward. Layke opened the door and checked for a pulse.
Weak.
The gang had subdued him first. He was out cold.
“Hannah!” Layke took the front steps two at a time in spite of the falling snow. He checked the door. Unlocked. He eased it open, slipped inside and listened.
Once again, silence greeted him.
No laughter. No conversation. No barking dogs. Where were the huskies?
He raced to the living room with his weapon raised. “Police!”
Murray and Natalie lay still on their stomachs gagged with their hands tied behind their backs.
“No!” Lord, I just found my family. Don’t take them from me. Layke rushed over and fell to the floor. He felt Murray’s wrist for a pulse. Steady. Natalie. Steady.
Thank You.
He gently shook them. “Wake up!”
They both stirred.
Murray squirmed and moaned behind the duct tape on his mouth.
Layke untied and removed their gags, helping them to sit. “What happened?”
“They took Hannah and Gabe!” Murray’s eyes darted back and forth.
“Slow down. Tell me what happened. Where are your dogs?”
“Tranquilized. It was feeding time and I called them, but there was no answer. That’s when I knew something was wrong. They always come running. I found the officer outside unconscious and discovered the dogs inside the barn, all alive but sleeping.”
Thank heavens. His brother would be crushed if something fatal happened to his dogs. They were family, as well as his livelihood.
“What about the officer inside?”
Natalie sobbed. “They tranquilized him, too, and stuffed him in a closet.”
“Hannah tried to stop them, but they knocked her unconscious.” Murray rubbed a welt on his forehead. “That’s when some of them took her and Gabe away. The rest gagged us. I tried to stop them, but they hit me on the head. Next thing I knew, you were at my side.”
“How many were there?”
“Five or six,” Natalie said.
“How long ago did they leave?”
Murray glanced at his watch. “About ninety minutes.”
Layke stood. “Do you know where they took them?”
“No. They just said everyone would pay for interfering. That’s what he wanted.” He held his hands over his face and sobbed. “I failed you, brother. Now Noel, Hannah and Gabe are lost to us.”
Layke eased Murray’s hands down. “You didn’t, man. There was nothing you could do. Pray and pray hard.”
He nodded and grabbed his wife’s hands, bowing their heads.
Layke pulled out his cell phone and punched in Elias’s number. He didn’t care that he was getting him out of bed. He hurried outside and grabbed his laptop from the Jeep along with additional weaponry. The wind created a vortex of snow circling in front of the ranch house.
“What’s going on, Layke?” Elias’s groggy voice reminded Layke of the hour.
Could he trust this corporal or was he
