”This is old technology,“ Kelly says. ”We use transmitters a quarter this size now.“
”Do you have one with you?“ I ask the rearview mirror.
”Not on this trip.“
”I don’t know about this scheme,“ Logan says. ”I mean, I see the upside. But this girl’s life is at risk. Let me play devil’s advocate for a minute. Even if Marko tells the Reynolds girl to bring Mia to him, we have no idea where that might be. We’ll be trying to follow her in two cars. If she loses us, Mia’s on her own.“
”Tracking device,“ says Kelly. ”I did bring one of those in my bag of tricks. It’s a GPS model. We won’t lose their car.“
”Okay,“ says Logan. ”But even if we manage to stick with them, Marko will have all the advantages. He’ll know the layout and the terrain. The home-court advantage, I guess I’m saying. And look at Penn: he’s at half strength, if that. So, it’s basically you and me, Mr. Kelly. You look like you know what you’re doing, and I’m sure you do. But just the two of us?“
”We’ll be fine,“ Kelly says with self-assurance. ”Don’t sweat that part of it.“
”I’m just saying, if we do find out where Marko is, why don’t I just call in backup and raid the place?“
”Because then we’d have a hostage situation,“ Kelly says. ”We want Mia to walk in and out of this place under her own power.“
”Plus,“ I add, ”if we raided the place, Marko would just lawyer up, and we’d never get a thing out of him about Kate’s murder.“
Chief Logan nods dejectedly.
”The risk to me isn’t that great,“ Mia insists. ”If it was, I wouldn’t go, you know?“
”If Marko finds that wire,“ says Kelly, ”he won’t be happy. Don’t kid yourself about that.“
”I’ve thought about it. But he
”Hostage situation again,“ says Logan. ”What then?“
Kelly looks the chief in the eye. ”Then I take him out.“
Logan glances at me. I nod once.
”You feel that confident?“ Logan asks Kelly.
Kelly smiles. ”I’ve been there before, Chief. Many times.“
”That’s not the outcome we want,“ I tell Logan. ”We want a confession. But if Mia’s in real danger, Kelly will have no choice.“
Logan looks unconvinced. ”I’d feel better with a SWAT team, Penn.“
I glance at Kelly, and he gives me permission with a nod.
”Daniel was a Delta Force operator for eight years,“ I explain. ”He’s worth more than any SWAT team we have around here. He’s the only reason I’m willing to let Mia go in there-wherever ‘there’ is.“
Logan processes this slowly. ”I see. So basically, I’m here to make this all legal after the fact.“
”That’s right, Don.“
Logan looks at me. ”What are you here for?“
”For the unexpected,“ Kelly says.
The chief chuckles softly. ”I don’t know if we’re the Three Musketeers or the Three Stooges.“
”The winners write history,“ I murmur. ”We’ll know which we are after this is over.“
”Aw, hell,“ says Logan. ”We don’t even know if Marko will take the bait.“
”He’ll take it,“ says Mia.
”How do you know?“
She smiles in the gathering dusk. ”Wouldn’t you?“
Kelly laughs. ”She’s got you there.“
Chapter 39
”She’s been in there awhile,“ says Chief Logan.
It’s full dark on Lindberg Street, the location of Alicia Reynolds’s parents’ house. Mia disappeared inside an hour ago, after calling Alicia and saying she had to talk to her about a matter of life and death. Logan, Kelly, and I have sat huddled in Logan’s Crown Vic all that time, trying not to let second thoughts sway our plan. Logan and I are in the front, Kelly in back. The Reynolds house is forty yards away.
”You don’t think Marko could be hiding in the Reynolds’s house?“ Logan suggests.
”That’s a scary thought,“ I reply, ”but no.“ I change positions, trying to keep my feet moving. They’ve been burning badly for the past twenty minutes. If Mia doesn’t emerge soon, I’m going to have to get out and walk around a little.
”If Marko was in there,“ Kelly says, ”Mia would have switched on the transmitter.“
”You’ve got a lot of confidence in her,“ says Logan.
Kelly nods. ”Girl has her shit together.“
Earlier tonight, when Logan tried to tape the transmitter to Mia’s inner thigh, she shook her head and said, ”Marko’s hands will wind up there, I promise you. He’s that kind of guy.“
”Then where?“ asked the chief.
Kelly picked up Mia’s handbag, pulled a knife from his pocket, and slit open the inner lining of the bag. Then he slipped the transmitter into the lining. While Logan stared, Kelly took the duct tape from him, made a loop of it, and neatly sealed the slit he’d made in the bag from the inside. He made Mia practice switching the transmitter on and off through the lining until she could do it smoothly by touch alone. Mia seemed encouraged by Kelly’s professionalism.
”Where do you think Marko’s hiding?“ Logan asks, peering at some approaching headlights.
”Lots of possibilities,“ I answer, not taking my eyes off the lighted window on the side of the Reynolds’s house. ”He could be staying in an empty house up at Lake St. John. He could be in an empty building downtown.“
”Plenty of those.“
”He could be at somebody’s deer camp. He could be at one of the other empty factories, like Cyrus. The bottom line is, without somebody like Alicia, we’d never find him.“
Logan nods. ”So, he’d be stupid to take the bait.“
”Or arrogant,“ Kelly says.
”Good point.“
My cell phone rings. I snatch it up before it can ring again. ”Hello?“
”Any idea where you’re going?“
”No! Have you got the tracking device on the car?“ Mia sounds panicked.
”We didn’t know which car you were taking.“
”Hers, I think. Shit, I don’t know! She’s coming. Don’t lose us!“
She hangs up.
”Which car?“ asks Kelly.
”She thinks Alicia’s, but she’s not sure. They’re leaving soon.“ My heart thumps against my sternum. ”Marko’s still here. Jesus.“
”Put the tracker on Reynolds’s car,“ says Logan, visibly tense.
”Not until we know for sure,“ says Kelly.
”It’ll be too late then!“
Kelly shakes his head. ”I’m gonna wait.“
”If the girlfriend sees you, it’s over.“
Soft laughter. ”Nobody’s gonna see me, Chief.“
Kelly gets out of the car and quietly closes the door. When I look out my window, he’s vanished.
”Where’d he go?“ asks Logan. ”I don’t see him.“
”He’s there. Just be glad he’s on our side.“
Logan leans over and begins fooling with something. The seat between us is littered with gear: walkie-talkies;
