Page 46 of Operation: Integrity

No one was supposed to even know her name. He stopped in his tracks and turned toward them. “What did you say?”

“Kelly and Zeus,” John Jr. said. “Dad helped them last night.”

Sam headed toward them. “We should take this talk where other ears can’t hear.” He wasn’t so sure Nathan was alone. If he wasn’t, he might have men stationed around to listen for clues as to where Kelly could be.

“Come over to my truck. I’ve got a bullet hole in my tailgate after last night’s fun.”

Sam willed his knees not to buckle. They’d been shot at by Nathan? That upped the stakes by more than double. “What happened?”

John Sr. pointed to the back of his pickup. “It couldonly have been the power of God that saved us. That little hunk of metal isn’t enough to stop a bullet, but it never came through to the other side. I can hear it rattle around in there when I open and close the tailgate.”

“How did you find her?” Sam felt the large hole in the metal and thanked God for protecting all of them.

“I saw her out hitchhiking and couldn’t leave her there. It was dark and late, and she looked to be about the same age as my daughter, Maggy. I didn’t think I’d be in for the ride of my life by picking her up. Thought I was being more of a good Samaritan.”

Connor joined them and leaned against the pickup. “You were. Think of what they would’ve done to her if they had picked her up instead of you.”

Both Johns nodded. “I hadn’t really thought of that. I just didn’t want her to stand there in the dark and cold.” He tugged a white handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped his nose. “I had to go help pull my daughter out of her driveway in the dead of night. Funny how God just works timing. She didn’t wait by the side of that road more than a minute before I drove by. I took her to the police station in Cheyenne because I didn’t think it was safe to leave her off anywhere else.”

“Then that’s where we’re headed. Thank you, John.” Connor clasped the old man’s hand and gave it a shake. “You look like you could use a rest.”

“I’m not used to being up all night anymore.” He laughed. “Especially racing up off ramps at high speeds. Gets the blood pumping, though.”

“Thank you again. You saved her.” Sam took his turn shaking the man’s hand. They waved their good-byes and headed for Connor’s truck.

As soon as both were inside, Connor sighed. “I thinkwe both know there’s no way she’s still at the police station, but it will be a good place to start.”

Sam couldn’t agree more. He pointed for the exit to let Connor know he was all-in and they took off. Cheyenne was an hour away and Kelly already had a seven-hour lead on them.

Wind bitat Kelly’s face as she tugged the collar on her coat high over her nose. She blinked rapidly, but the wind made them water and stole her breath if she tried to let the coat hang loose. In this part of town, she recognized a few things. When had she been in Cheyenne other than to visit the bank with Sam? Nathan had moved her around some, but kept her mostly in Denver. If only she’d known then that she was only an hour away from Sam.

She gave her thoughts a shake. What good would that have done except to make her want what she couldn’t have? The back of her neck prickled as she walked toward the motel a police officer had told her about. She dug in her pocket and tugged out the little card, reminding her that they’d taken her knife before she entered. It was still cold against her fingers The card was good for three nights’ stay at the Over Easy Inn, a dubious name if she’d ever heard one. At least the cop had cared enough to ask her if she had anywhere to stay and this inn allowed dogs.

Zeus nudged her leg. She’d come to realize over the past few hours that his nudge was a signal he needed to get off the path and somewhere he could do his business. At least he didn’t just run off on her. The problem was, she had no baggies for waste disposal, and they were walkingdown a sidewalk in a busy area of Cheyenne. Where could they go and be inconspicuous?

She took him down a side street toward a residential area and let him wander to a tree. Luckily, he didn’t leave anything behind that she had to feel guilty about. That wouldn’t be the case for long though, so she needed to find a means to clean up after him if she was going to keep him. She couldn’t keep being a bad girl. Time to take responsibility. Be a woman who did things on her own. This is what she should’ve done years ago instead of believing Nathan’s lies.

She whistled for Zeus, and he came back to her right away. A long dark car pulled by slowly on the main road where they’d been walking. While expensive cars weren’t abnormal, this one made her empty stomach clench. It was familiar for some reason.

She headed for the road, curious to see if it pulled off anywhere that she might see who owned it. Much to her surprise, it pulled into the inn where she’d been planning to stay. The extended car hung to the back of the narrow lot, away from the long row of rooms in the one-story building.

Kelly kept walking, hoping to get close enough to see anything she could about the driver or passengers. Since her coat was still pulled over her face, no one would ever recognize her. Nor would anyone expect her to be in Cheyenne if they did think they recognized her. She was safe, yet that didn’t stop her heart from racing wildly. There was only one way she could know anyone with a car like that. Her mind had to be remembering something from her time working for Nathan.

The memory came back like a slap in the face. Nathan had blindfolded her on the way. She’d ridden in a car for alittle over an hour until they’d gotten to their destination. He’d put a hat on her, then told her to close her eyes, that he’d slap the memory right out of her head if she dared open them. Then he’d taken off the blindfold and put on a pair of sunglasses that had the lenses completely blocked. It was like wearing another blindfold curved around her head.

He’d helped her out of the car and taken her to one of the rooms, but she’d only seen the ground and the floor of the room through the little slit where she could see between her cheek and the glasses. Almost nothing. He’d taken her into one of the rooms and she’d met with an older man there, but Nathan had told her she was to keep her eyes closed at all times. If she looked at the man’s face, he’d kill her. If she wanted to die, this was the way to do it.

Even though she’d been terrified the whole time, so much so she barely remembered what the man did, she had peeked at his face from under the blindfold he’d put on her after he’d removed her sunglasses. That face was burned into her memory for good. Nicolas Viceroy was not a man easily forgotten.

Kelly wandered over to a bench as if she took a walk in this part of town every day. She wasn’t good at lying, but she wanted to see who was there. Was this Nathan again? Was this why Nathan was in the area, not really for her? She’d known even then that Viceroy was some kind of boss to Nathan, even though Nathan had always made himself seem like he was the one in complete control.

She didn’t have to wait long before the driver of the expensive car got out and went to room number 13. He knocked twice and the door opened slightly. A woman poked her head from the room. She was dressed in a skirt suit, with full makeup and hair done to perfection. Therewas no way she was part of this . . . was she? Women who were trafficked all looked different, but this didn’t fit the mold. She had too much freedom, too much power, too much authority.

Kelly waited, trying not to look obvious, yet wishing she was close enough to hear them speaking. A moment later, the woman opened the door wider and held it for a man she would never forget. The wind and cold didn’t seem to bother him in the slightest as he strode to the car. Nicolas Viceroy apparently didn’t feel the cold. Maybe he didn’t feel anything.

Kelly shivered, and Zeus pressed his cold nose to her palm, reminding her she wasn’t there anymore. She was here and she had at least some control. Nicolas looked over at her, and his gaze stalled. He stared, then pointed toward her.

Had he recognized her, or was he telling them to get her? She would not be stuck with that man again. “Zeus, we need to get out of here.” She stood quickly and raced for the sidewalk.

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