It felt like the past was coming back to haunt him. A lone girl, missing, and being held by drug smugglers – Greg felt like punching something.
The image of his little sister’s doll lying near a blood-soaked blanket draped over a stack of hay in an abandoned barn was stamped in his memory. Miniature fingerprints of smeared blood were also found dried on the doll.
It was discovered that the men who had abducted her had been using the dilapidated building for cooking and distributing drugs.
Later, Greg found out that Cassie had decided to explore the barn only to find a drug lab. To protect themselves, the men had kidnapped her. She’d had no idea what she had stumbled upon.
If only they would have just sent her on her way, but no, they were left to assume she had been murdered. All of the evidence pointed to it.
After more than twenty years had passed with nothing to prove otherwise, Greg had to accept the death of his sister.
Greg forced his thoughts to the present as they neared the residential office.
The sweet feeling of victory for arresting Rodriguez was tainted by the apprehension of not knowing how to locate Nora Milton.
Had Rodriguez kept his word and released Nora? Or did he have her hidden away somewhere? Either way, where was she?
Greg spoke his thoughts. “Do we know for sure that Rodriguez let Nora go? Do we know it wasn’t a trick?”
“If Nora was detained, the car would still be where Anthony left it,” Grant pointed out.
“Unless Rodriguez had it moved so we would think she got away,” Greg replied.
“I escorted her out myself,” José answered. “I don’t believe he has her.”
Grant’s phone rang. “Grant Rourke.” He sighed. “All right. Head away from town. See if she passed through any towns that road goes through… Let me know what you find.” He closed the phone. “That was one of the teams looking for Nora. It’s been confirmed; Nora did not go through Baviácora.”
Greg shook his head. He heard Anthony heave a heavy sigh in the back seat.
“They are going to see if she might have gone in the opposite direction,” Grant told them.
“We’ll find her,” Greg was adamant.
Nora wasn’t going to die – not on his watch.
Grant pulled into the DEA parking lot.
Anthony followed the agents into the office building, down halls, and finally to what he guessed was a task room.
Greg gestured towards a chair. “Have a seat.”
Daniel, who had been studying the case board, watched the group settle in. Greg turned to him.
“This is Anthony Goldburg, the missing girl’s friend. Anthony, meet FBI Agent Daniel Grisham.”
“Find anything on the girl?” Daniel asked as he rested his hand on his hip after shaking Anthony’s hand.
“Nothing,” Grant answered. “Anthony confirmed that the girl we saw in the video was Nora Milton.”
Greg added. “Juan was the last to see her.”
“Where did Juan go?” Grant asked. “I thought he was coming up.”
“He went home,” Greg said. He nodded towards the board of notes. “Getting back to the girl.”
Daniel sighed and raked his hands through his hair. “As much as I would like to stay and help you find the girl, I need to head back to the states with my team. My part of the investigation is over, and I no longer have business here in Mexico.”
“We understand.” Greg held out his hand to shake Daniel’s. “Thanks for your part in bringing Rodriguez in.”
“My pleasure.” Daniel nodded his head and turned to Grant. “It was good working with you.”
Grant nodded. “Same here.”
“Maybe once you two get stateside we can get together and throw some steaks on the grill.”
“Sounds good,” Greg replied absently, his mind moving back to the case.
Daniel held out his hand to Anthony. “I hope you find your friend.”
Anthony stood to shake the agent’s hand. “Thank you.”
Daniel looked back at the other agents before leaving the room. “I’ll be in touch.”
Taking his seat again, Anthony told Greg, “I don’t know what I could tell you that would help to find Nora.”
“Is this Ms. Milton’s first visit to Mexico?”
“It’s ‘miss’,” a deep voice from the door corrected.
Surprised, Anthony turned to see who had spoken. The movement sent a jolt of pain across his ribs, and he grimaced. The man was tall, broad shouldered, and had light hair. There was no mistaking those blue eyes. This had to be Gage Milton, Nora’s brother.
“It’s Miss Milton,” he repeated.
Anthony stood, offering his hand. “You must be Gage.”
“That’s right.” He shook Anthony’s hand. In his other hand, he held a white Stetson hat with the brim gently turned up.
“These are Agents Greg Nelson and Grant Rourke.” Anthony nodded in the agents’ direction.
“I wish we could have met under different circumstances, Mr. Milton,” Grant said.
Gage clutched the hat in front of himself with both hands. “Have you had any news about my sister?”
“As far as we know, one of our undercover agents is the last person who has seen her,” Greg told him.
He lowered his brow. “I don’t understand. If one of your agents knew where she was, then why is she missing?” “It’s a long story.” Anthony ran a hand over his face.
“A lot happened that you should know.”
Gage gave a quizzical expression. “And you are?” “Anthony Goldburg, a friend of Nora’s.
Greg hitched a leg on the edge of the desk. “I have a few questions I need Anthony to answer. Then he can get you caught up on the latest developments.”
At Gage’s nod, Greg gave Anthony his attention. He cleared his throat. “Was Miss Milton injured when you last saw her?”
“She was in pain from being tied up. One of the men slapped her face, and when they started beating me, she got between my attacker and I. She intercepted a punch.”
Anthony heard Gage’s draw in a quick breath and glanced in his direction as he continued. “The slap left a welt, but I wasn’t able to see the damage the punch had done because she was taken away shortly after. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s sporting a few bruises.” He looked back to Greg. “Those are the only injuries that I know of.”
Gage started pacing back and forth like a caged lion as he waited for Greg to come to the end of his questions.
Greg leaned forward. “Did Nora give you any indication as to where she would go?”
“No, none,” he replied. “It was impossible for us to talk. Rodriguez and one of his bodyguards were there, and they would have heard every word we said. When she came over to me after my beating, I was only able to give her basic directions as to where the car was.”
Greg asked a few more questions before he was satisfied he had gleaned all the information Anthony could give him.
Both Anthony and Gage exited the DEA building. “Let’s grab dinner while I catch you up on Nora’s activities in the last few days.”
Gage set his hat on his head, then pulled down on the front of the brim. “A quick dinner.” His answer was clipped. “I don’t want to waste any time finding my sister.” He gave Anthony a sideways look. “You’ll have to tell me how you got that black eye and a broken arm.”
“All in due time,” Anthony replied.
The men walked the short distance to where Gage had parked a heavy-duty Dodge Ram truck from the rental company at the airport. The alarm chirped, and Gage caught sight of Anthony’s raised eyebrows at seeing the large truck.
“In case we have to off road it,” he explained.
Over plates of nachos, Anthony told Gage how he had followed José to the compound and found Nora but was captured himself, then freed in the raid made by Grant and Greg.
“More than anything, I wanted to get Nora out of that place. I told Rodriguez I would stay as insurance if he would let Nora go. To be honest, I wasn’t sure he would go for it, and Nora had her qualms about leaving me behind.”
A soft smile spread across Gage’s lips as he thought of his sister. “Did you have to talk her into going?”
“Yes.” Anthony lifted the glass of Coca-Cola to his lips. “Rodriguez agreed, and Nora left. I was able to slip her my cell phone and the keys to the car I drove.”
Gage’s ears perked up. “She has a cell phone?”
Anthony pursed his lips. “Yeah, but I don’t know if it held its charge or if it has reception where she is.”
“I didn’t hear you say anything to Nelson about the cell phone. Had you already told him?”
“No.”
“Have you tried calling your phone?” Gage leaned over the table. His eyes were intense with worry for his sister.
“No, I didn’t think of it.” He ran his hand through his hair. “To tell you the truth, I haven’t been feeling that well myself.”
Gage grabbed his phone from the table, close to his drink. Turning the screen on, he brought up the dial pad. “What’s your cell phone number?”
Anthony gave him the number, and Gage held the phone to his ear. Please, Lord, let her answer, Anthony prayed silently.
“The phone went to voicemail.” He called the number again and waited as it rang. “It didn’t go to
voicemail that time, but no one answered.”
“Battery’s probably too low,” Anthony replied.
Gage set the phone back down. “Did you get that broken arm and shiner from the beating Rodriguez gave you?”
“Yeah.” Anthony looked Gage square in the eye. “What I didn’t tell you is that Nora was forced to watch me be beaten. Rodriguez wanted to be sure she wouldn’t talk.”
Gage stiffened. “If Nora gave her word, she would have kept it.”
“I know. She tried to tell Rodriguez that, but, of course, he wasn’t going to believe her.” He picked up a chip covered with cheese and stuck it in his mouth. “What worries me is we have no clue where to start looking. She could be anywhere.”
“I think the best place to start is to go back out to where you left the car.” He picked up the keys to the truck. “Are you ready?”
Anthony shoved another chip in. “You bet.”
The men paid for their meals and crossed the parking lot. Anthony was quiet as he automatically reached for the seat belt, but he had a little more trouble than normal trying to get the belt under his broken arm without jarring it too much.
Gage started the truck with a worried expression. “We have to find her. I can’t stand the thought of her being out there alone.”
“You and me both,” Anthony’s tone was dry.
As they headed out to the hills, Gage eyed Anthony curiously. “So why are you doing so much to help find my sister?”
Anthony rubbed his good hand over the cast, his head bowed. “I got to know her a little during the time we were at the mission. I’m starting to see her as someone special.”
“Someone special as in she’s a special person or someone special to you?” Gage kept his voice even.
“I don’t know. Possibly both… It’s too soon to tell.” He shifted his broken arm. “One thing I can tell you, Nora is very strong. The way she handled herself in there…” Anthony shook his head. “I don’t think many people would be able to handle what she had to go through. Sure she was scared, but she trusted the Lord to bring her through it.”
“She’s quite the girl; I’ll give you that,” Gage gave a wry chuckle as he thought of his spunky sister.
Gage heard the truck door slam shut as Anthony came to join him. The gravel shifted under their boots as they scoured the area.
What had gone through Nora’s mind when she got behind the wheel of the car? She would have used common sense and assumed the car was facing the direction Anthony had been driving to get there. With that in mind, she would have turned the car around and gone in the opposite direction.
“You said Nora told you she was blindfolded when she was abducted, right?”
“Yeah.”
He studied the gravel along the side of the pavement. “Which direction was the car facing?” Gage inquired, deep in thought. He bent to pick something up – a hair pin. What were the chances the exact style hair pin Nora used would be lying on the ground where they hoped she had been hours earlier?
“This way,” Anthony answered, pointing down the road in the town’s direction. He saw the object Nora’s brother held, and anguish flickered across his face, his eyes tortured.
“I have to find her. She has to be okay.” Gage brushed at his damp face.
“Lord willing, we will,” Anthony replied. “What way did you say the car was pointing?” Anthony gestured towards the nearest town.
He blew out a sharp breath. “She went the other way.” Gage found the tire tracks at the edge of the road and noticed very precise marks where Nora had made a three-point turn. “Come on!”
Gage forced himself to drive slowly, being careful not to miss any sign which could give away his sister’s whereabouts. His phone started ringing William Tell’s Overture. “This is Gage… That’s impossible. I know she headed away from Baviácora. We found tire tracks where Anthony left the car, heading in the opposite direction it was pointing… I know my sister, and I’m telling you that’s what she did… Then she’s stranded somewhere… Thanks, I appreciate it. I’ll wait to hear from you.”
Nora’s brother gave Anthony a sideways glance. “That was Nelson. Rourke got word that they didn’t find anything on Nora within the fifty mile radius that they covered. They’re sending out a chopper to search. I’m afraid something’s happened, and she can’t call for help.”
“The helicopter will cover more ground than we can in the same amount of time.” Anthony shifted in his seat.
“Let’s hope Nora is somewhere in the area they cover.” Gage checked his side mirror. “Even though I told them she came this way, they are sending the helicopter farther west and will work their way in this direction.”
“I’m sure they have a systematic plan that they are implementing.”
“It’s cold out here,” he commented as he scanned the area around them. “Was there a blanket, coat, or anything else in the car to keep her warm?”
“Not that I know of.”
“She’ll be freezing.” Gage sounded grim.
Anthony wished there was something he could do to help Nora and Gage. How he would love to see their reunion. Would that reunion ever come?
