Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 80940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
I glanced over and saw officers walking in and out of an old barn. Some in police uniforms, some in suits.
“The FBI is here as well,” the officer said.
“The FBI?” I asked.
He simply gave me a nod.
“Do you mind if we at least get out of the truck. We won’t leave this spot.”
“That’s fine. I’ve been instructed to stay with you once you arrived.”
Chad and I both got out of the truck and stood near the officer.
“Why is the FBI here?” Chad asked.
“Not much I can tell you, other than they’ve been investigating a sex-trafficking ring that’s been working in the north and up through Canada.”
Chad turned to me. “Do you think Jonathon is part of that?”
I shrugged.
“That place is creepy as hell,” Chad said. “I still can’t wrap my head around Jonathon being a part of this.”
“We still don’t know for sure if he was the one keeping Mallory in the basement. She didn’t recognize him, and she’d seen him a number of times.”
“Hopefully you’ll find something that tells us who did this.”
We stared at the barn. It looked like it was at least fifty years old, if not older. The dirt road we drove in on turned to the right of the barn and went off in another direction. I looked over at the wooded area and shivered. That must have been where Mallory ran to. I closed my eyes and tried not to think about what it must have been like for her.
After a couple of hours, I turned the truck around, and Chad and I sat on the truck bed and watched as FBI agents and officers brought out what was most likely evidence. Two more trucks pulled up and the officers got out with dogs.
“Dogs?” I asked the officer.
He shrugged. I had to hand it to the guy, he wasn’t saying much.
Chad had stepped aside to call Krista and check to see how she was doing. I had taken that time to call Bubba. I knew he was on pins and needles and wanted to be here as well, especially if Emily had been kept here. He assured me he was where he wanted to be, and that everything seemed good there. He did, however, tell me he had a feeling that something was off. I hadn’t wanted to say anything to anyone, but I’d had the same feeling. I knew Mallory did as well. Last night she had gotten up and stared out the window when she thought I had fallen asleep. It was an eerie feeling that we all had, like someone was watching the house. Bubba had called an old buddy of his who trained dogs for the police force. He called in a favor and asked the guy to bring a dog to the house, just to make sure someone wasn’t camping out waiting to make a move. Unfortunately, he was in Missoula and couldn’t leave for another three days, since he was working a shift. But we at least had that lined up.
Randy suddenly appeared, looking tired as hell. Chad and I both jumped off the truck and waited for him to come talk to us. He stopped and spoke to a guy who was wearing an FBI jacket. He pointed to me, and the guy turned and nodded. Then they both made their way toward us.
“Here we go,” Chad mumbled.
“Liam, Chad, this is Agent Taylor Hollows. Agent Hollows, this is Liam and Chad Sanders. Liam was the person who found Mallory, and Chad is good friends with Jonathon.”
“Have you located Jonathon yet?” I asked.
They both shook their heads. “Mr. Hayes has indicated that he’s fled the country, crossed into Canada, but I’m not buying it,” Agent Hollows said.
“Why not?” Chad asked.
He looked at me, then at Randy. “I can’t say much with it being an ongoing investigation, but these women were like prizes to him. According to Mr. Hayes, they’ve transported women across state lines on more than one occasion, but when he saw Ms. Wilson, he knew Jonathon would want her. His words, not mine.”
My hand pushed through my hair. “Jesus. Had he been following her?”
“According to him, he had been watching her for at least a month. Just happened to have gone into the restaurant where she worked one day.”
“My God,” Chad said as he sat back down on the truck bed. “That man was around my wife.”
Agent Hollows cleared his throat. “I better get back, but I would like to interview Ms. Wilson as quickly as possible, preferably today.”
“Yes, of course, she won’t mind speaking with you,” I said.
“Great. I’ve got your number from Officer Sanders here, so I’ll give you a call and work out a time.”
All I could do was nod and reply, “Sounds good.”
The three of us watched as the FBI agent walked away. Randy motioned with his head for us to walk away from the officer who had been babysitting us.