Page 110 of Under Fire

“Copy that. I’ll touch base with you in two minutes.” Zane ended the call.

Sebastian Norris was in on this. Somehow, Matt knew that scumbag had a role to play in Delilah’s disappearance. Whether the mayor’s son had anything to do with the rest of the attempts on Delilah’s life and the murders remained to be seen. One way or another, Matt would find out everything Norris knew.

He darted around a truck pulling a trailer loaded with hay and placed another call, this time to Miles Russell.

“Russell.”

“It’s Matt Rainer. Delilah was kidnapped from Oliver Shannon’s office.”

“When?”

“Twenty minutes ago. Fortress is helping me track a late-model Silver Lexus SUV that was seen racing from the office parking lot at the time Delilah disappeared.”

“Any idea where they’re headed?”

“I’m racing up Highway 122 toward the land held by Into The Wild.”

A few seconds of silence was followed by, “That’s the hunting business Shane Frost owns.”

The confirmation increased Matt’s sense of urgency. “My teammates are en route to that location. I know you have to mobilize your officers and respond. I’m asking you to hold them at the perimeter of the property. I don’t want your people to fire on my team.”

“That’s a huge area to search for your girlfriend, if she’s even there. The more manpower you have in those woods, the quicker you’ll find her or eliminate the possibility she’s on site.”

“Bravo will handle the search. Stay out of our way. Lisa Walters is also missing. She told Delilah Zach had called to talk to her. That was the last time I saw either of them.”

“Have you talked to Zach?”

“Not since early this morning.”

“I’ll try to track him down while we mobilize.”

“Delilah and I also talked to Shane this morning. When we walked into the house, a woman with long dark hair left by back door and took off in a silver SUV.”

“You see her face?”

“No.”

“I may know someone who can help connect the woman with Shane.”

“Once I confirm with Fortress that Lisa took Delilah to Shane’s property, I’ll let you know. Other than that, I won’t contact you again. I’m trusting you to keep the perimeter of the property secure. Based on what I know to this point, I think Shane is involved in this mess up to his neck with Lisa and Sebastian Norris. There may be others involved as well. We already know about the Randolphs. Whatever you do, don’t let them off the property. I want them wrapped up tight.”

“And if I don’t?”

Matt’s hands tightened around the steering wheel. “We’ll hunt them down and take care of them ourselves. If these homegrown terrorists hurt Delilah, they will be my unit’s next mission. We never give up on an objective. None of them will escape.”

“You’re not cops, Rainer.”

“Exactly. You have to follow the rules. We don’t.”

“You can’t just execute them.”

“Then you better hope they don’t harm Delilah. If she dies, all bets are off.”

“You’re a professional soldier. Don’t tell me you can’t incapacitate without killing.”

“If they give us the option to take them alive, we will. If not, we’ll do what we’re trained to do.” He ended the call and pulled up his email as he sped through a straight stretch of highway. Taking the coordinates Zane included with the satellite images, he keyed them into his navigation system. The last thing Matt wanted to do was miss the turnoff and have to backtrack.

Seconds later, Zane called. “Into The Wild is owned by Shane Frost. I checked on the other members of Norris’s gun club. Lisa, Shane, Sebastian, and a guy named Donovan Cain are missing or not answering their phones. Delilah’s brother, Zach, was on his way to Atlantic City to pay off his gambling debt. When I told him Delilah was missing, he said he was returning to Harmony immediately.”

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