“What is it?”
“They’re still in there,” Bridge replied.
“But there’s no other roads, and we didn’t see their van anywhere.”
Bridge looked at her. “Which means there’s another road. Maybe it’s hidden. There’s no other way. If they didn’t come out, and we didn’t see a car, then they have to still be in there.”
Nicole nodded, agreeing. They then got Steve’s attention, pulling him away from his conversation.
“Listen, if they didn’t come out, they obviously still have to be in there,” Bridge said. “There must be some type of side road in there that’s hidden.”
“Hidden?” Steve said.
“Maybe there’s a bush or a tree or something lying on the side of the road to mask the entrance. It’s the only explanation. Even if they ditched the car, we would have seen it. So the only logical conclusion is that they still have it. And they’re using it.”
“So what do you suggest?”
“We go back in there and see if we can find it. While we’re doing that, see if the others can get satellite footage of this area and see if they can find a car moving.” As Steve thought about it, Bridge tried to hurry up his decision. “It’s the only play we got.”
Knowing they had no better options, Steve quickly agreed to the plan. They all got back in their cars and started up the dirt road again. They drove slowly, getting out periodically when they found something they thought might have been a side road. While they did that, Steve had the team back at the substation looking at the satellite footage. A few minutes later, he heard back from them.
“Team one, we’ve got footage of a car moving west of your position.”
“How far up?” Steve asked.
“About a hundred yards from your current location.”
Bridge was now driving and floored it, getting to the spot in no time. They quickly got to the spot and got out of the car, looking around for the road. There was a medium-sized tree on the side of the road, lying on the ground. Bridge and Steve each grabbed one end of it and moved it further along the road.
“There it is,” Nicole said. “Another dirt road.”
“Just small enough to fit a car through,” Steve said.
Bridge sighed and rubbed the back of his head. “Question is where’s it going and how far is it gonna take to get there?”
“Only one way to find out,” Nicole said. “Let’s finish this thing.”
22
The van finally came to a stop as it pulled up to a small cabin. It was about thirty minutes west of the bank. As the members of the gang got out of the car, a few of them weren’t so sure about what they were doing there. As Kanelos started taking the bags out of the van and into the house, Kenny wanted some answers.
“What exactly’s going on here? This wasn’t the plan.”
“This was my plan,” Dalton answered. “I just never shared it with you.”
“You wanna explain this?”
“Did you really think we were just gonna come out of that bank without having eyes on us? Once we got out onto that main road, there was probably a fifty-fifty chance we’d be followed. Or at least seen.”
“You know that for sure?”
“No. But I’d rather take extra precautions than assume we’re just smarter than everyone.”
“So what’s this about?”
“We’re gonna wait here for a helicopter to arrive. Should be within half an hour.”
“What is this place?”
“What’s it look like?”
“How’d you know about it?”
“I didn’t,” Dalton said. “This is why Argus was needed. He knew of it. And he also knew of a chopper pilot who could get us to a place where questions wouldn’t be asked. For a small fee of course.”
Kenny looked at Kanelos taking the last of the bags inside. He nodded. “OK.” His eyes then went to Abbott. “He’s not going with us, I assume.”
“We’ll talk about it.”
“There’s nothing to talk about, Zara. You wanna say you were right about Kanelos, fine, go ahead. But there ain’t no right about Abbott. He’s gotta meet his brother. And now.”
“And what happens if we get out of here and we find a welcoming party for us, huh? If he’s gone, we have nothing left to bargain with. Nothing. You think that little bag of money is gonna stand between you and a bullet? Think again.”
“You’re stalling. Just do it. Do what needs to be done. If you won’t, then I will. Just like last time.”
Kenny walked past her, brushing Dalton in the shoulder. She turned her head to make sure he wasn’t putting a bullet in Abbott’s head right then and there. Kenny marched right inside, where everyone else was already, and Dalton feared what he might have been planning. She quickly went after him, getting there just in time to see him take his pistol out and point it at Abbott.
“No!” Dalton shouted, grabbing Kenny’s arm. “You’re not gonna do this.”
“He’s dead weight, Zara. We all know it except for you. Get your head out of your ass and stop dicking around.” Kenny then pushed Dalton away.
Dalton wasn’t gonna let the brother of the man she loved get killed right in front of her. Not if she could help it. She quickly rushed to get in front of Abbott, standing in front of him.
“If you’re going to kill him, then you’re going to have to kill me first.”
Kenny smiled, then laughed as he put his gun down by his side. “Really? You’re gonna try that trick on me? C’mon, Zara.”
“I’m not letting you kill him. I let you do that once before. I’m not letting you do it again.”
Kenny shrugged. “I guess you win, then.” Kenny raised his arm, pointing his gun at Dalton’s chest. “It’s been nice working with you, but, you know, things happen. Anyway, splitting all the money two ways is
