The Rescue(71)

“Good point,” said Harlow. “We’ll plan a few trips into the valley to get supplies for a one-to two-week stay.”

“I’ll start working on a list,” said Katie.

“There’s no hurry,” said Sandra. “We can eat the frozen stuff and order some pizzas for a few days. The longer we give the situation on the ground to settle, the better.”

“Fair enough,” said Katie, taking a seat on the leather couch next to Harlow. “So what’s this brainstorming all about?”

“We’re going back to Meghan Steele’s kidnapping,” said Harlow. “To try to figure out why she was taken.”

“She wasn’t kidnapped, from my perspective. She was murdered. Whoever grabbed Meghan Steele signed her death warrant. My guess is it’s related to Aegis. Dig into Aegis first.”

“But Jacob Harcourt recommended World Recovery Group to Senator Steele,” said Harlow. “If Aegis is behind this, why would the CEO of Aegis run the risk of hiring the best in the business? Unless—”

“He knew she couldn’t be found—because she was dead and buried,” said Sophie. “Decker sounded crazy when he said that.”

“It doesn’t sound so crazy anymore,” said Harlow, sitting back. “Let’s get to work on this. Every angle. Every person. Every entity. We map it all out, starting with Aegis.”





CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Decker stood on Pierce’s timber deck and took in the incredible view with his third cup of Bolivian coffee. He wasn’t sure which he was enjoying more at the moment. Pierce’s house faced west, situated at the bottom of a wide draw between east-west-running ridges. The arrangement gave him an unrestricted view of the Sangre de Cristos’ twin snow-capped peaks, rising above a sea of deep-green pines. He’d vastly underappreciated this view when Pierce brought him out here a few years ago.

He looked at Pierce, who stared pensively up the gently sloping, pine tree–scattered valley.

“I thought you were crazy when you brought me out here,” said Decker. “There was nothing but the view.”

“That’s all that matters,” said Pierce.

“Which one—the view or nothing out here?”

“Both.”

Decker laughed. “I guess you were on to something. I definitely missed the secret lair memo.”

“I never meant this to be a permanent hideout,” said Pierce. “Just a place to bring the family and get away from it all. There’s some good hunting out here, too.”

“I noticed the taxidermy shops. Looked like the only permanent businesses in town.”

Pierce grinned. “The café has changed hands three times since we arrived. I think it’s a bakery now.”

“I hate to break it to you, but the bakery is out of business.”

“Really? Crap. That was the only place within fifteen miles that served food, unless you count the gas station off the interstate.”

“You guys get out at all?”

“We get groceries down in Trinidad twice a month,” said Pierce. “There’s a nice state park there on the lake, and a few decent Mexican restaurants.”

“I don’t want to drag you away from here,” said Decker. “Anna would never forgive me if you didn’t come back.”

“She’ll understand. I mean, how long can we actually stay here? The kids are growing up. It’s only a matter of time before this place won’t work for us anymore. It’s barely working now. We have a chance to get out from under this.”

“Maybe,” said Decker. “The kids are almost in high school, right?”

“With the homeschooling, we have them taking a high school course load. There’s not much out here to distract them. Nicki technically finished her sophomore year requirements in May. Thomas will be done with his freshman year in a month or so.”

Thomas and Decker’s son, Michael, had been friends. Not close friends, since they lived in different towns, but close enough for this conversation to hit Decker hard. Tears welled up in his eyes and he turned away, taking a deep breath.

“Not a day has gone by that I haven’t thought about your family, Ryan,” said Pierce. “Not a single day. I feel guilty every time I look at my family. This may sound stupid to you, or even insulting. I don’t know. But the guilt can be crippling at times. Anna sees it, and I can tell she’s getting worried.”

“It’s not stupid, or insulting,” said Decker, staring off into the undisturbed valley. “It’s the mess those assholes left us.”

“Count me in.”

“You should call Anna.”

“I’ll call her from the road,” said Pierce. “We need to get moving.”

“We should wait for Harlow’s team to put together their package.”

“It’s a big camouflaged hole in the ground with a house in it. If we leave now, we can be in position before nightfall.”

“You think we should do this at night?” said Decker.

“The nearest cover is two miles away to the east. I’m not crossing over flat ground during the day. If Kurt’s watching, he’ll pick us off before we can get a decent shot at him.”