A few minutes after Gabe finished the cocoa, his eyes started to droop. He tried to shake it off, sitting up straighter, but his body wasn’t cooperating. His head droppedforward, and Christopher moved quickly, catching him before he could hit the table.
“What happened?” Holly rushed over, panic in her voice. “Is he okay?”
“Sleeping pills,” Julie said calmly. “I’ll bet that’s the best sleep that boy’s had in years.” She looked satisfied with her handiwork. “When he wakes up, he’ll be in the hospital getting that leg properly seen to.” She turned to look at Jane pointedly. “Along with my granddaughter, who will go get a scan of her head.”
Jack stepped forward. “Holly and I will take them while he’s out. He can’t object if he’s asleep.”
Julie’s words and plan brooked no argument. She’d decided how this was going to go, and everyone in the room understood that crossing Julie Christmas was not advisable. She turned to Isabella.
“We’ll stay here with Charlie and wait to hear from Todd in case he calls again,” Julie said firmly. “You stay strong. Trust Christopher and Logan.”
With Julie’s orders in place, Christopher and Logan moved into action. They needed to move fast. The girls had been missing for over an hour already. Christopher had no idea what Todd was planning, but every minute that passed increased the danger.
Christopher checked his weapon, a handgun he’d retrieved from his secure case in his suite. Made sure he had everythinghe needed. Extra magazine. Phone fully charged. The tracking link pulled up and ready.
Logan disappeared for a moment and came back with a heavy-duty flashlight and a small pry bar from the workshop. “Might need these,” he said simply.
Christopher looked at Isabella. She looked terrified but was trying so hard to be brave. He walked over to her, aware that everyone was watching but not caring.
“I will bring them back,” he said, his voice low and certain. “I promise.”
He kissed her again, quick but meaningful. A promise and a vow. Then he turned to Logan.
“Let’s go get our girls back.”
They headed toward the door. Holly called after them, her voice breaking slightly. “Be careful. Please.”
“Always,” Christopher called back.
But both men knew that careful might not be an option. They might need to be bold. They might need to be dangerous. Because Todd Berkley had made his choice when he’d taken those girls.
And now Christopher and Logan were making theirs.
As they climbed into Logan’s truck, Christopher’s phone buzzed. A text fromhis contact.
Subject on the move. Heading north on Route 1. Away from the storage facility.
Christopher’s blood ran cold. Todd was moving. With the girls presumably. Going somewhere else. Somewhere they didn’t know about yet.
“Drive,” Christopher told Logan. “Fast. He’s moving.”
Logan didn’t ask questions. Just gunned the engine and peeled out of the inn’s parking lot, tires kicking up gravel.
Christopher watched the tracker on his phone, the little blue dot moving steadily up Route 1, getting farther away with every passing second. They had to catch him before Todd got to wherever he was going. Before the girls disappeared completely.
His phone buzzed again. Another text, this time with an attached photo. A satellite image of a property appeared on his screen.
The subject is turning onto the rural road leading to this cabin. Rental property. Secluded location.
Christopher studied the image carefully. A small cabin in the woods, surrounded by dense trees. A single access road leading in and out. Isolated. No neighbors visible in the satellite view.
Todd probably thought he was being clever, taking the girls to an isolated cabin in the woods. Thought he could hide them there, keep them contained until Isabella gave him what he wanted. Thought the seclusion would work in his favor.
But what Todd didn’t realize was that he’d just made Christopher’s mission that much easier.
Isolated meant no witnesses. No crowds for Todd to hide in. No escape routes that Todd knew better than Christopher. Just one cabin, one road in and out, and two former military men who knew exactly how to handle tactical situations.
Todd had picked the worst possible place to make his stand.
