Page 88 of Trapped

He saw her looking at the flowers littering the ground. “They didn’t care what they did to this place.”

“They wouldn’t.”

More figures materialized out of the darkness, and he stared at the group gathering around him. They were all tough looking men, but different in some fundamental way from the guards at the bunker.

“What did you do to the helo?” he asked.

The one named Hunter Kelley answered. “They collided with a drone.”

He stared at the guy, taking in the words. “That’s illegal.”

Hunter laughed. “More illegal than what they were doing to you?”

Stunned, Cash stared at him. “And when the cops find a helo full of tough guys here, what are they going to think was going on?”

“I guess they’ll investigate and try to figure it out. Come on; let’s go.”

He led them down the stretch of highway that crossed the dam to where another helicopter had landed.

In the distance, they could hear the sound of sirens.

Quickly they all climbed in, strapped their safety harnesses, and the pilot took off. From the air, Cash got a quick look at the burning machine. Then they were flying away from the crash scene.

Sophia sat next to Cash. Reaching for his hand, she held on tightly.

He squeezed her fingers, glad that it was almost impossible to talk above the noise.

He expected to see the lights of Baltimore or Washington ahead of them. But it was clear they were heading toward an area with little population. About an hour later, they landed in a clearing beside a long, low building in the middle of a pine forest.

When they had exited and were far enough away from the rotor to talk, he asked, “where are we?”

“A safe house in Western Maryland,” Hunter Kelley answered.

They walked into a spacious front hall.

“We were in kind of a rush to take off, so I didn’t get to introduce myself,” the man who had been piloting the helicopter said. “I’m Mack Bradley.”

The others also offered names.

“Jonah Raider.”

“Frank Decorah.” He was older than the rest but very fit. From his name, Cash gathered that he owned Decorah Security.

“Zane Marshall.”

“And Knox Marshall.” He gestured toward Zane. “We’re brothers.”

Two women came down the hall, one of them a redhead and one a blond.

“I’m Kathryn Kelley, Hunter’s wife,” the redhead said, moving to her husband’s side.

“And I’m Lily Wardman, Mack’s wife,” the other woman supplied.

“Glad to meet you all.” Cash eyed them, trying to look like he was relaxed. He didn’t know these people, and he’d been afraid to trust them. So far, things were going surprisingly well.

“I’m afraid I’m the one who got Sophia into this,” Kathryn Kelley said.

“I’m glad you did,” Sophia answered.

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