Hidden Fates (Hidden Heroes #4)

Chapter 27

“So, what’s up?” Garrett asked, returning to Reese’s classroom. The image of her driving his truck filled him with a sort of pride that made him want to see her do it more often. He hadn’t missed the way she’d made herself right at home in the driver’s seat, and he liked the way she looked sitting up there, in control of something much bigger than her.

“Since Caden and Hallie’s wedding, I’ve been digging around and I think it paid off.”

Garrett crossed his arms and leaned against the teacher’s desk. “Tell me.”

Blake sighed. “Until Reese told us about how she saw you dying, I never would’ve put two and two together. Then Caden called me about Madison Grier. I started thinking and took a chance.”

“Blake, just spit it out.” Garrett was losing patience and he had no idea why his friend was dancing around the subject.

“We didn’t find the van yet, but there was a van just like the one Reese described, reported stolen the day after Reese’s kidnapping.”

“How is that helpful?” Garrett asked. “Unless you know who stole it.”

“I don’t think it was ever actually stolen,” Blake said. “Remember when I told you I’d look into Principal Ryker? Well, guess who owns a white work van?”

Garrett stood to his full height. “Ryker?”

“No. A guy named Franklin Wright. He’s Ryker’s first cousin, but what’s even more interesting is that Wright was Molly Edgar’s ex-husband.”

“Shit,” Garrett said. “I brought her right to him.”

“Don’t you dare put this on yourself. Now, the van we found had the same custom work done in the back.”

“What is up with these vans?” Garrett asked.

Blake grinned. “That was my thought exactly and then I had an idea. I looked up all public records for Edgar Pharmaceuticals, and it turns out they had a massive flooding issue six years ago. They had to install a brand new drainage system, including new sewers.”

Garrett wasn’t sure where Blake was going with this. “Okay…”

“They never did away with the old sewers, Garrett. Can you think of a better way to avoid surveillance when sneaking drugs out of a pharmaceutical company?”

Garrett’s gut sank. “Shit. What are the chances Molly Edgar found out and -”

“And that’s why Russell killed her? I’d say dead on. Now, how about we head over to Ryker’s office and get some answers before the FBI officially takes him into custody?”

Garrett was moving before he could even respond, and Blake was right on his heels. He blindly marched to Ryker’s office, not seeing anything around him. All he could think about was Reese, and how close she’d been to the very people who were trying to hurt her.

When they got to the principal’s office, the door was locked, and the small window looking into the reception area showed it was dark inside. “He’s not here,” Garrett said.

Blake smiled. “Let’s go hunting.”

“Maybe we can catch him in the parking lot,” Garrett said.

They ran out of the building, searching for the man who was likely responsible for reporting to Russell about Reese’s whereabouts.

“There he is,” Garrett called out, running toward a black SUV. They closed the distance in mere seconds, but Ryker must’ve seen them coming, because he pulled out of his spot and careened out of the parking lot, nearly causing a three-car collision on the road.

“Come on,” Blake said. “We’ll take my car. I’m parked right over there.”

They climbed into his car and Blake peeled out of the parking lot, just a few cars behind Ryker. He threw on his lights and sirens, and the cars in front of them pulled to the right to let them pass on the left. Ryker sped up. So did Blake.

Chasing after a perp was actually something Garrett usually enjoyed. There was a rush to it that couldn’t be replicated in any other scenario. But he was also well aware of the danger it posed to everyone on the road around them.

Blake stayed on Ryker’s tail as he meandered through traffic, not losing him for even a second. “Pull over,” Garrett instructed over the vehicle’s PA system. “This is Texas Ranger Garrett Cooper and FBI Agent Blake O’Connell. Ryker, pull over right now.”

Ryker swerved, and Garrett worried he was about to hit a small two door sedan, but the driver changed lanes just in time. Garrett blew out a breath of relief. “You’re clear on the left,” he told Blake.

“Copy,” Blake said. “I’m ending this as soon as possible.” He cut into the left lane, sandwiching Ryker between his car and the curb. Anticipating that Ryker was about to turn at the light, Blake cut him off and hit the brakes, forcing Ryker to drive off the road and jump the curb.

Not stopping, Ryker veered into an empty gas station and sped up, probably thinking he could cut through it. But this gas station led to a dead end, and Ryker was going too fast to stop before slamming into the row of dumpsters.

Garbage flew out of the open metal containers and rained down on Ryker’s truck just as Blake skidded to a stop. Garrett and Blake exited the vehicle, weapons at the ready. “Toss your keys out and slowly get out of the truck. Hands where we can see them,” Blake ordered.

As Ryker finally did as he was told, Garrett spared a glance in Blake’s direction and saw what he knew to be the same rush of adrenaline and satisfaction that he was feeling himself.

They got the bastard.

***

It was the putrid smell of gasoline that brought Reese back to her senses. She had no idea where she was or why her body felt like it was ten times too big, and hurting like a bruise the size of the Pacific. When she lifted her head, a hand fell on her forehead. Her first thought was that it was Garrett, but then someone spoke and it definitely wasn’t the man she loved.

“Good, you’re awake. I was afraid he’d overdosed you.”

“You drugged me,” she mumbled, surprised her words were coming out slurred. She didn’t remember what happened, but she’d recognize that voice anywhere. “What do you want from me?”

A hand stroked the side of her head. The touch felt almost gentle, but she knew better. Russell wasn’t being nice or kind. He was playing with her. Taunting her. Hoping to give her a false sense of security before metaphorically pulling the rug out from under her.

She tried to pull away from the touch, but he cupped her cheek with his other hand, keeping her head in place. “I let you run away from me one too many times already. I won’t make the same mistakes again.” The smirk in his tone was the same one Reese remembered from when they were teenagers. Like when he told her mom that she’d been sneaking out to meet a boy after her mom had forbidden her to see him when she was fifteen. Russell had stood just outside her door, quietly listening and watching as her mom yelled and punished her without even listening to her side of the story. She wasn’t even dating the boy. She’d been sneaking out to bring him food because his dad had left, and his mom was addicted to meth, so he was starving. But she never got to tell her mom any of that because she’d been too angry to listen.

Reese had tried to move past all the awful things Russell had done to her when they were living together, always giving him the benefit of the doubt. Even when he’d ripped her away from the life she’d carefully created for herself and locked away in Desert Cove, Reese still tried to hold on to the sliver of good she believed was inside him. But she’d been naive and stupid. The man had proven who he was a long time ago, and she should’ve taken his actions at face value. Maybe then she wouldn’t be in this mess now.

Reese kept her gaze focused on the far wall. From what she could tell, she was inside a log cabin with two windows and a door that led outside. There was another door that led elsewhere, likely another room or a bathroom. Her arms were pulled back behind her and she felt the bite of the metal handcuffs digging into the skin at her wrists. She tried to loosen the grip, but the movement only made it hurt more. She sucked in a breath, and steeled herself for whatever happened next. She just had to survive. Garrett would find her just like he did in the woods.

And that’s when she remembered that she’d never activated the GPS locator thingy in her pocket. She tried to squirm in her chair, desperate to feel it in her back pocket where she’d put it this morning, but nothing seemed to be there now.

“Looking for this?” Russell asked, holding up the exact thing that would bring Garrett to her. “Don’t worry, you won’t be needing it.” He wore a short sleeve button down shirt and dark blue slacks. His hair was combed and sleek over his round head. She could see every large pore on his face, and the black heads on his nose that glistened with sweat. It was warm inside the cabin, but she ignored the oppressive heat and her own droplets of sweat forming along her hairline.

The smell of gasoline was still present, but it was her desire for water that overwhelmed her thoughts. She licked her dry lips, but didn’t dare ask for what she really wanted. Instead, she said the one thing she hoped would get under Russell’s skin. “He’ll kill you for this.”

Russell smirked, then wrapped his fingers around her throat. “Not if I kill him first.”

Reese shivered, but it wasn’t the threat behind his words that scared her. It was the sudden realization that this was the place she’d seen Garrett die in when she’d looked into his eyes. “No,” she whispered, likely too softly for Russell to hear.

But Russell gifted her the biggest, most evil smile she’d ever seen, then lifted her phone to her face. “Ready to call your knight in shining armor?”