Treading Softly
By Purple Lacey
Chapter 14
The rest of the morning and afternoon crept along like a glacier to the worried father and six equally worried uncles as they waited on the call that could reunite them with their lost lamb.
An observer of the team would probably have found the mass pacing of the group a fascinating sight. Each man laid out his own personal route around the large den, adapting strides and speed to avoid collisions with the others in a synchronistical ballet of movement that was all the more intriguing by virtue of being completely unconscious.
"I still think we should go check out some of the properties Ezra remembers this Fellowes guy owned," Buck's stubborn voice broke the silence as he stopped his pacing abruptly, placing his hands on his lean hips while he scowled at his team leader.
Give me a good gun battle any day, Buck thought to himself. At least then he felt like he was doing something. This infernal waiting was preying on his nerves, making him as itchy as a nudist in a poison ivy patch.
Chris scowled right back at him, not liking the wait any more than his oldest friend.
"You were sitting in that chair right over there,” Chris growled at the dark-haired agent while jerking one hand toward a brocade-covered wing chair, “when Ezra told us his information on Martin Fellowes was fifteen years out of date. You were still sitting there when JD checked the county records and found out all the buildings Ezra remembered as being owned by Fellowes had been sold over the years. There is nowhere left to go check out. What part of all that don't you get?"
"There's got to be something we can do," Buck shot back as he pushed his fingers through his hair in frustration.
"Well, I'm all ears," Chris snapped out, "So you go right ahead and tell us something we haven't tried yet."
Buck blew a frustrated breath out hard but didn't take up the challenge.
“Please,” Ezra's low voice broke in as he softly pleaded, “Please, don't tear at each other this way. The only reason I have been able to make it through this so far is because you - all of you- have been holding me up, lending me your strength. That strength comes from being together, of being a family. If we start turning on each other…”
Ezra raised eyes already wounded and worried to look at his two friends. Buck and Chris suddenly felt two inches tall and enormously guilty for adding to the man's stress level. Especially when it didn't take a rocket scientist to see how close to losing it the undercover agent really was. He was just managing to hang on to his sanity by his fingernails.
“You're right,” Buck said remorsefully as he looked at Ezra. “I'm sorry, Ez.”
“Yeah, so am I,” Chris said, directing the apology at both the men.
Ezra nodded wearily and resumed his pacing.
The strident ring of the cell phone clutched in Ezra's desperate hand had the tension level in the room rising exponentially as each man spun around to watch Ezra peer at the caller ID screen. He made eye contact with Chris and he nodded to let his leader know it was Fellowes. Ezra drew in a deep breath and steeled himself to play his role.
"Yes?" he said with more confidence than he really felt.
"It seems you are in luck, Ezra," Martin spoke with a steely softness that immediately caused the tiny hairs on the back of Ezra's neck to stir. "One of my investigators believes he has located your prize."
It took all the self discipline of a lifetime to hold back the relieved sigh that wanted to escape from the agent at this news. Fiercely reining in his emotions, Ezra allowed only satisfaction to infuse his voice as he replied "Excellent! Simply tell me where I may direct the searchers and I will inform my Federal benefactor without delay. I am very much looking forward to returning to my own concerns without having this Sword of Damocles hanging over my head."
"I would rather not have a gaggle of federal agents traipsing about," Martin replied coolly. "I believe it would be best if you picked up the child and delivered him to these Feds personally."
Now all those tiny hairs on Ezra's neck stood up at attention. Something definitely didn't feel right about this.
"Surely that isn't necessary," Ezra argued lightly as his mind raced.
"I believe it is," Martin contradicted in tone that allowed no negotiating.
Ezra sighed in a put-upon way and, knowing he had no real choice, capitulated.
"Very well. If you insist,” Ezra tried to instill just the right blend of cautiousness and annoyance in his tone. “Where is the infant?"
Ezra listened intently to the address and committed it to memory.
"And Ezra?" The disembodied voice overflowed with chilly satisfaction. "He will only be there for the next hour and a half. After that... who knows where he will wind up? I would advise you to hurry. It will take you most of those ninety minutes to get there."
Then there was only the soft click of the phone as it disconnected. Ezra flipped his phone shut with shaking hands.
"Well?" Buck asked sharply, vibrating with tension as he waited for the undercover agent to answer.
Ezra raised horrified eyes to his friends as he stated starkly, "He knows."
“How can you tell?” Vin asked as he stepped closer to Standish. “Did he say so?”
“Not directly,” Ezra answered. “He imparted the address and mentioned Alexander would only be there for the next ninety minutes. Then he said it would take me most of that time to get there.
I know him. He never guesses. Never. It would open him to the possibility of someone proving him wrong. He would never tolerate that. Therefore, we can be sure he knows where I am. That means he knows it all.”
Ezra glanced down at his watch then quickly started for the door, only to be stopped as a Josiah-shaped mountain suddenly materialized in his path.
“If it is a trap, you're not walking into it alone,” the profiler informed him staunchly.
“I have to,” Ezra argued. “His inference was crystal clear. He will not allow anyone else but me to do it. I have to go, my friend. I HAVE to. Alexander's life is hanging in the balance. If I do not do as he says then my son's life will be forfeit. I can not let that happen.”
“We won't let it happen,” Vin tried to assure the distraught father, “But we won't let you get yourself killed either. We'll think of something, Ez.”
“There isn't time!” Ezra shouted and tried to sidestep Josiah.
He didn't make it far as Buck and Nathan each grabbed an arm to hold him in place.
He tried wrenching away but their grips were sure and they knew him well enough to avoid his feet. Realizing the futility of continued struggling, Ezra threw pride to the wind and began begging, “Please! If you care anything about me then let me go. Please! Let me go to my son! Time is running out for him. You have no idea what Martin will do to him!”
The tears that began gathering in the emerald eyes tore Buck's tender soul to shreds but he steadfastly maintained his hold.
“We'll let you go to your boy, Ez,” said Buck as he leaned down closer to the smaller man, “But not alone. We aim to see that both Alexander AND you get out of this alive. You've trusted us this far, Ezra. Trust us for a little longer, okay?”
“Alright then,” Chris stated firmly looking at his watch. “There's no time to come up with a plan. We'll have to make this up as we go. Nathan, you and Vin grab the toys Vin brought from the office. Buck you're gonna have to put a wire on Ezra while we drive. There's no way we're letting him go in there without a way to know what's going on. Josiah you drive. JD, you're navigator again. Grab your GPS and find us the fastest route, and see if you can give us some idea of the terrain around the place. Let's go, people. The clock is ticking.”
Finally having a direction to move in, the Team Seven machine kicked into gear and the men scrambled to gather their equipment and head down to the waiting SUV.
“What about a warrant?” Nathan questioned as he hauled a loaded canvas bag on each shoulder and prepared to carry them to the elevator.
“We already know there must be a rat in walls of the PD here,” Chris told him while shaking his head in negation. “We don't take chances. We'll argue probable cause later if we have to. What's important is getting Alexander back. Taking this guy down is secondary.”
Within ten minutes the entire group was once again loaded into the SUV and on the move with Josiah at the wheel.
Vin was busy in the cargo area behind the third row seat checking and loading weapons for the team assisted by Nathan and Chris who had squeezed in the seat right in front of him. In the second row of seats, Buck contorted this way and that as he and Ezra tried to get the undercover agent wired with both a primary and a back up wire. In the front seat, JD's fingers were flying across his laptop keyboard and he kept up a continuous stream of instructions and information flowing as he not only guided Josiah to the rendezvous point, but pulled up as much information on the area as he could find which, unfortunately, wasn’t much.
The minute hand on his watch seemed to be flying around the dial when Josiah risked a glance at it. Forty five minutes left. He pushed the accelerator down farther and listened to the V8 engine of the massive SUV hum as the transmission kicked into overdrive and they surged ahead. He cursed under his breath as a slower moving vehicle pulled on to the highway ahead of him and he swerved into the next lane to avoid a collision but never once let up on the gas. What he wouldn't have given for a siren and light bar right then. Or maybe not, he suddenly changed his mind, thinking on what was usually attached to that siren. The last thing they needed right now was to be pulled over by a traffic cop. Josiah spared another glance at his watch. Forty minutes left. He started praying with everything in him that they would make it in time.
“Take a right at the next intersection,” JD told him, only sparing a second from his computer to glance around him. “Go another three miles and it should be on the right.
“Stop about a quarter mile before you get to the place, Josiah,” Chris instructed. “We'll get out and continue on foot. Ezra will drive in alone. We'll make our way in after he's inside.”
“Not a good idea, Cowboy,” Vin argued. “We don't know the lay out of this place. We may not be ABLE to sneak in. Not without causing a ruckus and maybe getting Ezra and Alex killed.”
“I know, but I don't see another option. You have an idea?” Chris asked with an eyebrow raised in question as he looked over his shoulder at the sharpshooter.
“Yeah,” Vin huffed, not believing he was about to suggest this. “That seat you're sitting on folds down and the seat in front of it has a shelf that folds down to create a level surface for hauling things. It doesn't look it, but there's a space just big enough for a man to hide in there. It'd be a tight fit but nobody would probably suspect anybody was there.” Vin had to swallow hard before he continued determinedly, “I'll go in with him, and then when it's clear I'll sneak out. I'll be in a better position to even the odds a little if necessary, and I'll be closer if Ez gets in trouble.”
The team leader looked at the space Vin had referred to and then back at the infamously claustrophobic agent and began shaking his head.
“I'll do it. You can…,” Chris began.
“Chris,” Vin interrupted. “You know I'm the best one for sneaking around in there without getting caught.” Vin flashed a taunting grin at his leader and he said, “Besides, I'm skinnier than you. It'll be a tight squeeze for me, but it'd take a crowbar to get you into it.”
Chris threw Tanner a scathing glare that rolled off the grinning agent with no effect.
“Are you sure about this, Vin?” Chris asked just to be sure.
Cocky grin fading away, Vin's cerulean eyes met Chris' hazel ones, and Chris watched fear battle with determination. Determination won. His respect for the skinny sharpshooter grew to a whole new level.
“Yeah,” Vin assured him seriously, “I am. For Ezra and that baby… I can do it.”
Chris nodded his reluctant agreement.
Within five minutes Josiah was pulling the vehicle over to the side of the road and parking it. A general exodus followed and the group took a moment to test the radio headsets Buck hurriedly handed out and take the prepared weapons from Vin.
“Alright, everybody stays sharp,” Chris ordered, eyeing each man for a moment to let them see his seriousness. “Ezra, you be extra careful until we can get in to you. Don't take any chances, you hear me?”
Ezra remained silent but gave him a tense nod in acknowledgment as he climbed into the driver's seat, impatient to get moving.
Chris turned to Vin and the two exchanged looks: Chris' worried and Vin's resolute.
“Watch your back,” Chris ordered brusquely.
That little smile that Vin reserved only for his friends peeped out as he replied, “And you watch yours.”
Chris stepped back to allow the other man room to climb into the back of the vehicle then reached out to draw the seat then the shelf down, being careful not to lock either into place so Vin would be able to extricate himself once he was inside. He stepped back and closed the door then gave it a thump with one fist to signal Ezra to take off.
The remaining five agents watched the back of the rapidly disappearing SUV for a moment then began jogging toward the rendezvous point.
The men found cover in a stand of trees in a heavily wooded area across the street from their target. Chris swore when he got his first look at the property as the SUV containing his two agents stopped at the end of a long driveway by a large house. The house sat smack dab in the middle of very well-kept lawns. There was no cover for the first thirty yards surrounding the dwelling, obviously the reason Fellowes had chosen it. No one would be able to sneak up on the place in the middle of the afternoon without being seen by anyone watching.
The team leader reached into his pocket for the set of mini-binoculars there and watched as Ezra exited the vehicle. The man was patted down by one of the two goons that approached him before being escorted inside. The second henchman opened the door of the SUV, checked it over, and then withdrew, apparently satisfied that it was empty.
"Vin," Chris spoke into the tiny microphone of his headset."
"Yeah?"
Chris could hear the stress and repressed panic in his friend's voice as it came over the airwaves.
"We're not going to be able to make it in without being seen," Chris gave him the bad news grimly.
The sharpshooter was quiet a second before replying, “Had a hunch that might be the case."
Chris eyed the armed men walking openly around the property with a frustrated scowl.
"I count two men in front," Chris informed the hidden sharpshooter. “Two on the east side of the house, two on the west. I can't see into the backyard from this location.”
“Anyone close to my position?” Vin asked.
“One about five yards away in between the car and the perimeter of the property. The other is about twenty yards west of him. The SUV is facing west.”
“Is this tin can drawing any attention from them?”
Chris studied each of the hired guns he could see carefully then replied, “Negative. They all look like they're focused on watching the fence line. I don't think they were expecting trouble to come from the SUV.”
“I'll just have to see if I can put a few out of commission then,” Vin replied levelly, but his friend could hear the relief in his voice at the thought of leaving the small confined space. “I'm on the move.”
“Roger that,” Chris told him.
Chris kept close watch but couldn't see the wiry ex-bounty hunter slip out the barely opened door of the SUV since Vin exited on the side closest to the house thus putting the big vehicle between himself and the rest of his team. Larabee let the breath he hadn't realized he was holding out slowly as he saw Tanner slip around the side of the house like a shadow and disappear.
Chris spared a glance at Buck who had been monitoring Ezra's frequency while Chris interfaced with Vin. Buck looked ready to kill. Chris felt a fist knot in his gut.
“Buck? How's it going in there?” he asked.
“Ezra was right. The guy made him,” Buck spoke urgently.
“Is he hurt? Or the baby?”
“Not yet,” Buck assure him, “But it's starting to get ugly in there. We got to get in there, Chris, and fast!”
“Vin's working on it,” Chris did his best to reassure the anxious agent.
Ten minutes later, Vin's voice was filling Chris' earpiece with the welcome news that the team could now attempt entry from the west side of the property. A few tense minutes later, five team members joined their sixth in hugging the west wall of the house.
“I took out the two on this side and three more in the back,” Vin informed Chris with a self-satisfied smirk as the leader reached his side. “They're big but not too smart. Definitely amateur material.”
“Amateurs or not, we can't afford to have the other four running around loose out here while we try to take on whoever's inside. Think you and Josiah can take out the rest while we head into the house for Ezra?” Chris asked.
“Like licking butter off a knife,” Vin said with a smirk.
Josiah nodded his agreement and the two men slid away from their hiding place and slipped around the corner of the building. The other four men remained to find a way in, preferably without alerting the residents of their encroachment.
Silence and stealth were discarded in a heartbeat as from inside the house an agonized scream tore through the quiet of the afternoon and made their blood run cold.