can’t wrap my head around it being a cop. Never in a million years would any of us have suspected Danny.”
“If it’s any consolation, Danny’s a real smooth talker. I’m not surprised he never drew any suspicion.”
“So, the two of you were close at one time?”
Jeffery settled in his seat. “I couldn’t talk about this in front of my father last night. Danny was my first lover. We were best friends, and when his mother passed away, he came to live with us. Soon after, he seduced me.”
“Are you saying it wasn’t consensual?”
He waved a hand. “No, no, nothing like that. Danny was the first man to love me in that way. Before then you could say I was a little confused about my sexuality.”
“Is that the reason behind you and your father’s estrangement?”
“Not entirely. You see, Danny and my mother became very close, and he took on the role of her protector. As you can well imagine, we were all devastated by her sudden death, but Danny took grief to a whole new level. He wouldn’t accept that she simply died of a heart attack. Everybody was suspect, and someone was going to pay for her death. It became his mission in life to find out whom.
“My mother helped us keep our relationship from my father. Shortly after her death, he found out and went ballistic. He told Danny to move out, even banned him from the property. I also left the house that night, but continued to work and live on the acreage.”
Jeffery shrugged indifference. “Dear old dad actually did me a favor. I wanted to end it with Danny, but didn’t know how. A few months later, I hooked up with Jacob, and here we are now.”
Randy listened to Jeffery’s story half-heartedly. While it was all interesting and gave him a better understanding of Danny, it brought them no closer to finding Becca. He hit the steering wheel again. “We’re missing something and I can’t for the life of me figure out what it is.” Smoke came up from under the car as he hit the brakes and peeled down the professor’s driveway.
His heart sank as the scene unfolded before them. The officers lingered outside the buildings, making it crystal clear their search had turned up nothing. His tires bit into the gravel with the truck’s sudden stop.
“The dogs. Why haven’t they been called in? Mark, go find the chief and bring him back here. I don’t have the authority to request them.”
After thirty excruciating minutes, the K9 units arrived with two beautiful Belgian Malinois on board. Each dog had been outfitted with ballistic vests for their protection. Given Danny’s state of mind and the fact he’d already poisoned and killed a dog, he wouldn’t think twice about shooting them.
With ears pointed upwards, one canine sniffed Becca’s sweater and the other Danny’s vest. Their police partners knelt beside them and uttered their command of search and find.
The dogs put their black snouts to the ground and ran off in the same direction. Their partners followed close behind until both animals jumped into a thicket of trees and bramble, obscuring the back of a sorting building.
Randy’s heart pumped so hard he heard blood rushing in his ears. He’d asked Jacob earlier what was behind that particular structure and the guy assured him not even their brawny utility trucks could get through the mass of overgrown weeds and foliage there.
“Jacob, can you show us around to the other side of this brush? Isn’t it possible he got in that way?”
The foreman shrugged and slid in behind the wheel of his Mule. “I guess it’s possible, but I can’t see how he did it without anybody noticing.”
The trainers tried to bring the dogs back to no avail. Once the two animals started to bark incessantly, he turned to the chief. “They’ve definitely found something.”
“Can’t you just command them to come back?” the chief asked.
“They are trained to stay with their find. I doubt they’ll come.” He cupped the side of his mouth and called out. “Baron! Regan! Home!”
“We’re wasting time.” Randy waved the chief over. “If anyone gets in this way, let us know immediately. I want a team to follow us as well.”
Jacob drove down the lane to the main road. He travelled a short distance before turning onto a rough path through the middle of a field. He pointed to where the tree line began.
“Right about here is where they went in from the other side.”
“Can’t we get closer than this?” Randy’s lack of patience reached a new high.
“Not without ruining the flowers.”
“I don’t care if we have to plow them all under. It’s probable Danny came this way, so take us there now.” Randy struggled to rein in his anger.
“Let’s calm down a minute. You’re not doing her any good making decisions half-cocked.” Chief raised his brows.”Sit down and take a deep breath.”
Randy glanced at the other passengers and eased back in his seat, feeling very much the scolded child. “I’m sorry, but for all we know that whack job is over there sewing Becca’s mouth shut right now.”
Chief squeezed his arm before addressing Jacob. “Keep going until you feel we are directly across from the building, and then drive a straight line across the field. I think Becca’s life is more important than a few rows of posies.”
Jacob nodded and slipped back behind the wheel. He didn’t go much further before turning. He came to a stop after crushing only a dozen or so of the vibrant yellow blooms. He frowned and hopped down, parting the tall stems.
“Look at this.” He moved to one side to show them tracks already carved between the rows.”
Randy jumped out of the truck and dropped to one knee. “These two fat ones look like they came from a truck.” His fingers slid down the grooves of the third track, “Shit! A motorcycle.”
Chief was already on the radio relaying their discovery. Not long after, the field swarmed with men, making their way through the field. The building sat hidden behind a cluster of lilac trees. It had a double door to accommodate a motorcycle, and cement pad where only an oil stain remained.
A couple of men in welding masks ground the locks. Armed special task force officers stood at each door and signalled, weapons drawn. The doors flew open with a bang, and silence permeated the space as Randy took it all in. Danny’s big black motorcycle sat in the center of the room.
He saw no sign of Danny or Becca aside from the remnants of bloodied tape. The pool of blood under a leather masseuse table was still warm to the touch.
“Fuck! While we were chasing those fucking dogs, Danny took Becca out of here. Where the hell did he take her now?”
Chapter Twenty-two
Becca forced her eyes closed while Danny paced back and forth in front of the sofa where she lay. Keeping up the ruse of being unconscious bought her a little time to come up with an escape plan. She tried to decipher Danny’s gibberish as his sanity unravelled with each passing moment.
She held her breath, feeling the couch dip under his weight, his hot breath on her face almost her undoing. Danny snapped his fingers in front of her face, and she prayed none of her muscles twitched. Her stomach churned with the musky scent of his aftershave tickling her nose, the threat of her puking imminent.
“I’ll be right back, darlin’, and then we’ll get started.” His footsteps faded across the wooden floor, followed by the opening and closing of a door.
She dared open her eyes a sliver to glance about the room, careful not to change her position. All she could see out the windows were trees. She concluded they were in a cabin of sorts. Given the worn furniture and photos that littered the room, someone lived here.
The only hope she had of making it out of this situation alive was to outsmart him. Overpowering definitely wasn’t happening. Sure, she gave him a nosebleed, but he recovered in seconds and had the presence of mind to put a chloroform soaked cloth to her face.
She was pretty sure the cops were hot on Danny’s trail. What other reason could there be for leaving the setup where he had everything at his disposal? Becca committed the room’s layout to her memory. She had no choice but to try and get away soon, before he had a chance to use the drug.
