I opened the door and he immediately jumped into the passenger seat.Shaking my head, I slid into the driver’s seat and shut the door.“You better not get in the way.”
He gave me an unfathomable look before pivoting to stare out the window.
I drove a couple of blocks, just out of sight of the house and turned into the parking lot of a strip mall.Pulling out my secure cell phone, I called the only number it connected to.
“Password please.”
I typed in the ridiculous phrase William had insisted on.
A short pause, then, “Password accepted.Please hold.”
It felt like an eternity before William came on the line.
“What’s up?I expected you to be busy celebrating with that new gal of yours.”
“I wish I were.Kimberly is missing.She got a text shortly after I left for the airport and took off.My sister said Kimberly thought it was from me.Said she was going to meet me, but she didn’t say where.”
“You think there’s a connection to the poacher case?”
“What else could it be?She got a call from a number that spoofed mine and took off.Sasha thought she was going to meet me, so she didn’t ask too many questions.Who else would do that?”
“Well.”William sounded thoughtful.“It’s not like we haven’t made a few enemies since we set up the Brotherhood of the Wild.Sit tight while I make a few calls.Sam and Noah haven’t checked in yet but last we heard the poaching ring was apprehended by Interpol and are cooling their heels in the bowels of a somewhat unsavory jail in Asia.”
“Check it out.Maybe they didn’t get them all.”My reply was curt.The thought of Kimberly getting hurt because of me was unbearable.
“Roger.Hang tight.I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”The line went dead.
I sat in my car, clenching and unclenching my fists as I tried to force myself to calm down.Losing your cool was the easiest way to get yourself and everyone else on your team dead.Diego stared out the window and whined softly.
Maybe I was wrong, but my gut told me this was tied into the poaching case.
A couple walking past gave me a suspicious look.I was obviously out of place here.Putting the car in gear, I headed for the outskirts of town where I’d be less conspicuous.I parked the car at the end of a heavily treed dirt road.A walking trail led into the bush from here, and I stuck both cell phones in my pocket before I got out of the car.Diego jumped out behind me, padding quietly at my side.
Pacing didn’t help calm me down, but it did stop me from doing something stupid, like racing off to find Kimberly without having any idea where she might be.This wasn’t my stomping ground.I had no idea where to start looking.
How had the poachers managed to connect Kimberly to me?Did this even have anything to do with me?I could be barking up the wrong tree.As a conservation officer, she must have pissed off a few rough characters.
But they’d used me as bait.And they’d called her personal cell phone.Not the number she had for work, or one that might be found on the Internet.They had her cell number.How?
I narrowed my eyes as I considered the possibilities.I had the number.Sasha had the number.As far as I could tell, Kimberly had very few two-legged friends, especially after the wedding fiasco, and then the boyfriend deserting her.She had no siblings, and she’d never been close to any of her foster parents.
So how?And who?I doubted her ex had her current phone number and even if he did, he’d have no reason to contact her and no inkling of her relationship with me.It made no sense.
I resumed pacing.I must have traversed the ground from car to edge of the forested area fifty times before it hit me.
I had her phone number.And her “find the phone” data.I’d helped her set it up.She would have taken the phone with her, and even if the poachers had taken it from her, it should still lead me straight to them.As long as they hadn’t smashed it to pieces or tossed it out a window.Even if the damn thing was turned off, I’d be able to track it.I’d set it up that way.
My hands shook as I pulled out my own phone, clicked on the tracking app, and input Kimberly’s phone number.I took a deep breath.What if it didn’t work?
A position pin appeared on the location app.There!I had a position, and it wasn’t moving, which was a good thing.It meant I could locate her.
The abrupt ringing of the phone made me jump.I hit the accept button.
“Ryland here.”I clipped the words out between clenched teeth.
“We have your girl.If you want to see her alive again, you need to do exactly as we tell you.”The sneer in the unknown man’s voice set my teeth on edge, but I had to play along, at least for now.
“Is she okay?”
