Jake and Janet stood facing the man who had just spoken to them. He reached up and removed the ski mask covering his face. Janet gasped! It was Greg Danes. Her face displayed a mix of confusion, relief, and fear. After all, the last time she saw Greg they were hiding out in a cave high in the mountains, and he had left her there, drugged and alone. She stepped behind Jake and held on to him. He, in turn, accepted the role of protector.
“Don’t worry,” Greg said. “We’re not going to hurt you. In fact, we thought we had all of you safely locked away in this shed. We just didn’t figure you’d find a way out!”
“I don’t understand,” Janet said from behind Jake back. “What are you doing here?”
“My job.” His answer was firm.
“Your job? You mean you work for the sheriff and patrol his...his...place? Janet demanded.
“No, I don’t work for the sheriff.” Greg reached into a pocket and pulled out a leather wallet, flipping it open. Inside, the moonlight reflected off a badge. Janet let go of Jake and approached Greg to take a closer look. “We’re federal agents.”
“We?” Jake stated with a raised eyebrow.
“My partner and I. We’ve been watching the sheriff and his cronies for quite some time now. Seems they’ve been operating a rather lucrative business out here. Illegally. Time to shut them down.”
“But I don’t understand...the cave. You left me there...”
“I was trying to protect you.” He chuckled. “You know you are a very stubborn woman!”
“Tell me about it,” Jake agreed with a wry smile.
“I’ll explain later, but right now you and your other two friends need to get away from here before everything starts to hit the fan.” Greg took Janet by the arm and began to lead her away from the building and back out to the field where Seth, and Tommy were waiting.
“But Sally…” Janet began to protest once again.
“Your friend will be okay,” he promised. “You have to trust me.” Still holding her arm they walked a short distance farther when Greg added without looking at her, “Nice outfit.”
“Shut up,” she mumbled in disgust as Greg chuckled.
Jake followed, keeping an eye on Greg. Maybe Janet felt comfortable with him, but Jake wasn’t so sure, at least not for the moment.
A short distance farther and they rejoined the others, along with Greg’s partner, Frank, who had been waiting with them. “Everyone accounted for?” he asked Greg.
“For the moment, yes.”
“This must be Janet,” he remarked. “Too bad we don’t have time to get better acquainted,” he smiled at her, “but we have a date with some idiots.” The smile left as he and Greg gathered up a couple of things and got ready to return to the compound.
“Okay, kids,” Greg began. “This is the deal. You make a beeline for those lights over there,” he pointed toward Cold Creek, “and don’t stop until you get there. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” Tommy and Seth replied. He’d get no argument from them. “Jake? Janet?” Greg looked at both of them.
Jake nodded his head in agreement, but Janet turned to look back toward the bunkhouse.
“Janet! We don’t have time to play games!”
“I’m not playing games!” she retorted.
“Look! If you interfere in any way with this operation, I will personally arrest you and throw you in jail!” He wasn’t kidding. “I’ve been trying to keep you out of the way and safe ever since I found you on that back road to my cabin.” He walked right up to her and stared her down. “Do not go back there and that’s an order!” His tone was sharp and commanding.
“Okay,” she agreed finally. “I’ll stay with these guys.”
“Good. Now, everyone, get going!” As he and Frank headed off, Greg thought of one more thing and called back to them. “And don’t use any flashlights out there. Just the moonlight. That’s it. Understood?”
“Yes,” they all replied and began their trek back to town. Seth led the way, hunting and pecking his way along. Tommy carefully stepped wherever Seth did. Janet was having more difficulty due to her party shoes. The air was chilly, and she finally untied Jake’s jacket from around her waist and started to put it on instead. Hesitating, she asked him if that was okay, and he said it was. He still had a T-shirt and flannel shirt on. Watching Janet struggle in her flimsy shoes, he finally offered to carry her piggyback. She gratefully accepted. Once settled, Jake made better time, catching up to Seth and Tommy. They finally reached a wire fence. Seth decided they’d have to climb through it. Taking off his jacket, he laid it across one of the middle wires. Jake helped Janet to the ground. They let Tommy go through first followed by Janet. Jake went next and then held the wires apart for Seth. The group started off again until they heard some popping sounds in the distance behind them.
All four stopped and turned to look back toward the Quail Club. They could see the silhouettes of people running and then some shouting. More popping.
“Gunfire!” Seth exclaimed.
“Oh no!” Janet was anxious and took a step.
“Stay here!” Jake ordered her. “Remember what Danes said?”
“I know...but Sally!”
Then they heard a small explosion, and women screaming. Janet was tense…riveted to her spot. “No...,” she whimpered in defeat, tears streaming once again as they all watched in horror as the bunkhouse erupted in flames. “No...no...no...,” she kept repeating as her tears developed into hysterical sobbing.
“Take her!” Jake ordered Seth. “Stay here!”
“Where are you going?” Seth called to him, but Jake had already taken off in a full sprint back toward the compound in spite of Greg’s warning.
Panting heavily, he reached the wire fence and scrambled through, oblivious to any cuts or scratches. Track and field had never been his athletic passion, yet here he was, making the dash of his life. The moon was sufficiently high enough now to cast some decent light on the field, at least well enough to illuminate where he was going, even if he did miss seeing some of the potholes and larger rocks along the way.
As he approached the vicinity of their previous temporary confinement, he stopped to catch his breath and survey the scene. More shots rang out, and he dropped to the ground, lying flat, barely raising his head to see what was going on and where everyone seemed to be. For once in his life, he wanted to do something significant. Helping Janet find her friend was going to be his opportunity. Even so, he was scared to death! In fact, now that he had gotten this far, he didn’t really know what to do next until he heard someone coming.
Scrambling to his feet, he ran up to the backside of the shed and crouched down in the shadows, waiting. He could hear the panting and footfalls of someone coming in his direction. He also could hear the voice of a woman, pleading to be let go.
“You shut up!” a man’s voice was yelling at her. “Just shut up!”
“Please!” she was pleading again until Jake heard a slap and the girl’s whimpered response. A moment later, a short stout man rounded the end of the building, jerking the young woman along with him finally thrusting her to the ground.
“You are nothing but trouble, missy!” Sheriff Wilcox snarled at her. “Nothing but trouble! You and that...that friend of yours! She’s run off, and now you was trying to run off. Well, this here’s the end of the line fer you!”
Another explosion startled the sheriff. He hurried to the corner of the shed to take a look. More gunfire erupted. Jake could tell the bunkhouse was completely on fire now. The red and orange light it gave off was increasing, and he could smell the smoke swirling around. Jake pressed his body into the ground as flat as he could, hoping his dark clothes would help keep him camouflaged long enough for the sheriff to move on and not discover him. The grass and weeds growing around the base of the back wall contributed some cover as well. A few burning embers landed nearby. He just hoped none of the gr
ass would catch fire!
Evidently the sheriff got spooked. He kicked at the woman where she lay lifeless and took off toward the open field and in the direction of Seth, Tommy, and Janet. Jake hoped they were staying alert and watching for anything unusual because he was sure they were waiting for him and had not continued on to Cold Creek.
Jake counted to ten before he dared raise his head to look around. The light from the fire had greatly illuminated everything around, and he could see the girl lying in the weeds nearby. Crawling over to her, he tried to determine if she were dead or alive. A slight moan gave him his answer. He looked off toward the field but saw nothing. In the distance, the lights of Cold Creek seemed almost unreal. How he wished he were home in bed right now or having a late-night snack with his Uncle Pete and talking about the day’s events. There usually wasn’t much to talk about, but that was all changing now.
Another popping sound caught his attention, but it wasn’t gunfire. Jake stood up and looked at the shed. The sound was coming from inside it. Some wisps of smoke drifted from cracks between the wallboards. The shed was on fire! It wouldn’t take long for it to become completely involved. Quickly, he picked up the young woman and struggled to carry her as far away from the burning building as he could get. He remembered seeing a gas can thinking it was empty but and who knows what else was in there ready to explode. He could hear more shouting, but he didn’t think anyone had seen him. There was so much commotion going on.
Jake stopped for a moment to catch his breath and decided to reposition the woman over his shoulder. His only thought was to head back out across the field and away from all the excitement and potential danger. Minutes marched by slowly, he thought, as he continued his desperate attempt to escape the growing raging inferno and flying bullets. At last, he reached the wire fence and sat the woman down on the ground. He crouched next to her, keeping her propped up. She started to moan again and finally looked up at Jake.
“Who are you?” Her question was weak and almost inaudible.
“My name’s Jake,” he replied. “I’m a friend of one of the girls the Sheriff had locked up in that bunkhouse…Janet.”
“Janet?” she seemed bit more alert. “You know Janet? Where is she?” The young woman tried to look around but still seemed dazed and confused. Jake wondered if she had been drugged.
“She's safe,” he reassured her. “In fact she’s nearby. We need to keep going, though, if we want to catch up with her.” He kept looking at her then suddenly asked, “Are you Sally?”
“Hmm? What?” she blinked at him. “Umm, yes, I’m Sally,” she answered groggily.
“Thank God!” Jake stood up and pulled Sally to her feet. “Do you think you can walk for a little while? It might help clear your head. Do you think you could do that?”
“Yes. I’ll try.”
Jake pulled off his flannel shirt and laid it across one wire while pulling up on another so Sally could squeeze through. Then he followed, grabbing his shirt. He was about to put it back on when he handed it to Sally instead.
“Put this on. It’ll keep you warm.”
“Thank you,” she replied weakly.
Jake took one more look at all the devastation behind him. In the opposite direction, he could hear sirens and finally saw the flashing red, blue, and amber lights of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles racing to the Quail Club compound. For sure, he and Uncle Pete would have plenty to talk about in the weeks ahead.
Jake and Sally walked for another fifteen minutes or so until they could hear some muffled voices up ahead. They approached with caution, watching for any signs of danger.
Sally seemed to be getting her wits back with the exercise and cold night air. “What’s going on?” she whispered.
“I’m not sure, but we need to be as quiet as possible.” Jake held her by the hand as they continued toward the area where he had left his three companions. The muffled voices grew louder as he and Sally approached. Finally, they could make out the voice of Janet. It was obvious she was extremely agitated at someone.
“You! You underhanded snake! You vile and putrid slime ball! You disgusting, poor excuse for a human being! You don’t deserve to live! It would give me tremendous pleasure to kick your sorry…”
“Janet!” he heard Seth yell over her screaming tirade. “Calm down!”
“Calm down? Calm down? After all he has done? He doesn’t deserve to live. He doesn’t deserve to breath! He doesn’t deserve to…”
“Okay!” Seth yelled again. “I totally agree with you. And if we could string him up by his…”
“Hey! Guys!” Jake interrupted.
“Jake!” Tommy ran to greet his friend. “Jake! You’re alive! You…” Tommy stopped short when he saw the young woman with him. “Who’s that?”
Janet spun around, hesitated for a moment, and then ran to Sally. “Oh my God! Oh my God! You’re safe! You really are! You're safe!” The two girls embraced with tremendous joy, tears of relief streaming down their faces.
“Who is that, Jake?” Tommy whispered.
“It’s Sally, Tom,” he answered in a tired voice. “It’s Janet’s best friend...Sally.” Jake walked over to Seth who was sitting on the pudgy body of a struggling Sheriff Wilcox. “What’d’ya got there, Seth?” he asked smugly. Then he bent down to look the sheriff in the eye. “You are such a disgrace to law enforcement,” he said calmly. I can hardly wait for the feds to get their hands on you.” Looking closer, he could see that the sheriff had been hog-tied with Seth and Tommy’s belts. “Nice touch,” he patted his friend on the back. “Nice touch.”
Overhead in the distance, he could hear a different sound. A helicopter.
“Everyone!” he called out. “Grab a flashlight! Shine it toward that helicopter coming in!” Jake, Seth, and Tommy each flicked on a light and aimed it skyward. “Wave them back and forth to get the pilot’s attention!”
The chopper passed overhead but kept going toward the fiery compound and circled it a couple of times before hovering. Then moments later, it headed back in their direction.
“Keep waving your lights!” Jake called out again.
By now, the girls were waving their arms and screaming for help. The helicopter circled them and turned on its spotlight. Everyone frantically waved and shouted as it hovered over them. The helicopter finally landed a few yards away, kicking up dust and debris in the process. A side door slid open and two men hopped out, hurrying toward them with guns drawn.
“Keep you hands in the air!”
“Okay!” they all responded and did so. As the men approached, one of them radioed to someone. They could hear a crackled response but kept their hands high in the air. Both men shone lights on the bedraggled group then one of them caught sight of the sheriff tied up on the ground.
“Who’s that?”
“Sheriff Wilcox,” Seth volunteered quickly. “We caught him!”
Again, one of the men radioed to someone saying that the sheriff had been apprehended, along with five other individuals.
“Hey!” Seth began to complain. “We’re not the bad guys! He is!” He jerked his head in the direction of the sheriff.
“Yeah!” Tommy joined in. “We were just on a rescue mission!”
“A what?”
“A-a-a rescue mission,” he answered more quietly, not wanting to get into any more trouble.
Shining the lights back and forth between all five companions, the men steadied their lights on Janet and Sally. “Rescue, huh?” One of them chuckled.
“It’s not what you think!” Jake snapped at them. “These girls were kidnapped... well, at least Sally was.” He tried to calm down. “Well, so was Janet. She was trying to rescue Sally, but got caught too, so we decided...to...help...” Jake thought it was time to stop talking. It all sounded too incredulous, even to him.
“Well, we’re going to have to make two trips to ge
t all of you outta this field.”
“Are you agents too?” Janet finally spoke up.
One of the men turned to her. “What do you mean?”
“Like Greg Danes. You know...Federal agents.”
“You know Danes?”
“Yes.”
One of the agents had already removed the belts the boys had used to tie up the sheriff replacing them with handcuffs. He marched the sheriff over to the helicopter. “Who else wants to go this first trip?”
“Me!” Tommy called out. “Can I put my hands down now?”
Without warning, laughter erupted, and an embarrassed Tommy turned away.
“It’s okay, Tom,” Jake reassured him. “We’d all like to put our hands down.”
“Yes, you can put your hands down,” the agent said, “and yes, I’m a federal agent, like Danes.” With a chuckle, he motioned for Tommy to head for the chopper. Seth agreed to accompany him. Moments later, the helicopter was taking off and heading toward Cold Creek.
“So,” Janet wanted to know, “what’s your name?”
“You can call me Agent Bradley.”
A brisk wind had picked up fluttering the short flimsy dresses both Janet and Sally were wearing.
“Rescue mission, huh?” Agent Bradley remarked again with a slight smile and walked off a short distance to make a call on his radiophone.
Chapter 21