On a whim, she pulled up a web browser and typed in a quick inquiry. The results made her roll her eyes, but she decided to plow through and see if she could bring him back to himself, even by a little bit. “Hey, Owen, what do you call a person who runs behind a car?”
She sat through a beat of silence, then Owen asked, “What? I’m in the RV, heading out in five minutes.” A door slammed, and she heard a rustling sound, then he said, “I don’t get it.”
“He’s behind a car, so he’s exhausted. From the car’s exhaust. You know, it loses a lot when I have to explain things to you.”
“Oh, hardy har har.” The RV’s engine rumbled to life. “Funny one, Alace.”
“What do you call a person who runs in front of a car?” His dot was on the move again, as was the tracker she’d had him install in the RV. When he didn’t answer her, she supplied the punchline. “Tired.”
“Heh.” He clipped the sound off short, then snorted. “That one wasn’t half bad.”
“One more, and then I’ve got things to do.”
“Don’t hurt yourself, Alace. Humor’s not a native language for you. I know it, and it’s okay. I can get by without jokes, you know.”
“I know, but this one is pretty good.”
“Sock it to me, momma.” True humor threaded through his voice, and Alace found herself smiling. “Gimme.”
“How do crazy runners get through a forest?”
“I’ll play along.” His chuckle was music to her ears, and he sounded much more relaxed, ready to work. Able to bend without breaking. “How does a crazy runner get through a forest?”
“They take the psycho path.” His groaning complaint made her laugh. “I’ll check back in soon. Ping me if you need me.”
“Take the psycho path she says,” he grumbled. “I’m headed to the woods right now, you realize that, right? I’ll take the psycho path all right. I’ll take it all day long.”
“Drive safely.” She disconnected, leaving his humored words behind.
She checked in with August and found he was ahead of schedule, having completed tasks assigned to him with time to spare. His vehicle sat a couple of miles away from the compound’s entrance, parked on an unused logging road, camouflaged against casual discovery with branches and foliage. He sent her a picture of the inside of his backpack, and she counted the items in view carefully.
One expensive bottle of cognac, the container shaped so uniquely it had been easy to devise a bug and adhere it within one of the folds of glass.
Six small, discreet cameras capable of transmitting on a shielded frequency for up to twelve hours on the internal batteries. They’d continue to record for longer than that, and footage could be retrieved later.
Two portable parabolic microphones for long-distance listening. While less convenient than a handheld device, these would be easy to place and hard to spot, and would give August insight into what was happening inside the compound.
Armed with recent satellite imagery, Alace and Owen had pored over the compound setup. Drawing conclusions based on expected floorplans lifted from the files of the construction contractor, they’d decided to focus on the two main structures. Isolated cabins were used to house party guests, and while they might bring in their own entertainment, the plan was to stay on point with first rescuing anyone being held captive by MacLeod. Their layouts were simple, so if a rescue was needed it wouldn’t be hard to fold into the overall plan. One of the target structures was a sprawling house with multiple wings joined in the middle by a main hub. That hub was two stories high with a basement, and the open room on the upper floor was a likely candidate for where party activities would be conducted. The second building looked more like a livestock barn on the architect’s drawings, but Alace and Owen both knew it was unlikely the occupants of the individual holding areas were animals.
August would place the listening devices as close as he could safely do so, adjacent to those two buildings.
She saw four incendiary devices, ones guaranteed to burn hot enough to catch nearly anything on fire. At the end of things, they’d burn it to the ground. Knowing Owen’s aversion to open flames, Alace had initially shied away from the idea, but he’d circled back to it again and again. “Scouring the earth,” he’d called it. She didn’t disagree. Those would be planted at opposite corners of the two main structures after they were certain all innocents had been removed from harm’s way.
“Miss Alace?” The questioning call broke her concentration, and she glanced towards the closed bedroom door.
“Looks good, August. Carry on.” After issuing the assurance and order, she terminated the connection and locked her computer. A quick look at the bassinette showed Lila still sleeping, sprawled on her back, arms carelessly tossed over her head. Alace reached the door and thumbed the simple doorknob lock she’d engaged before starting work. Opening it, she looked down at Kelly, standing hand in hand with his little sister. “Yeah?” She squatted, bringing herself down so she could look him in the eyes. “Whacha need?”
“Is it okay if we go outside and play?”
Alace mentally calculated the amount of time she needed to kick off the research on the data they’d acquired from MacLeod’s card, added in some necessary analysis cycles, and decided she had ample time to spend an hour outside with Owen’s kids.
“You bet. Let me just get Lila, and I’ll come with you.” She smiled, knowing it looked forced but hoping the kids wouldn’t notice. Babysitting wasn’t an inherent talent, and she still wasn’t sure why she’d allowed Eric to go into the office today. “Be right there.” She stood and took a sideways step towards the bassinette, not giving the kids her back. Okay, I’m being ridiculous. “Go ahead. I’m literally ten seconds behind you. But don’t run in the house.” Don’t run in the house? “I mean, be careful if you do run.”
Another sideways step had her next to where Lila slept, and she bent to gather her daughter into her arms, startling into stillness when Kelly appeared next to her. He stooped and grabbed the diaper bag, slinging the strap over his shoulder. “Thanks,” she called after him as he disappeared into the hallway.
Knowing there would be kids who might need immediate medical attention, Doc had flown to Philadelphia hours after Owen landed, his tickets requiring a quick turnaround on manufactured identification, a need Alace hadn’t anticipated. He was parked at a motel close to the compound under the same false name, rental car completing the look of a vacationing out-of-towner. Once everything was under control at the compound, he would head in, prepared to treat patients in the RV, which would also be used to transport any kids they found. Alace would activate a local asset to pick up the rental and return it on time to the agency, completing the image of the tourist.
But that meant Doc’s planned role in Owen’s life was disrupted.
Hence, the appearance of Owen’s kids at her bedroom door.
Lila squirmed against Alace’s shoulder, rubbing her face across the fabric and snuffling. Alace cradled her close, humming softly as she descended the stairs. The rear sliding glass door was open, the screen thoughtfully closed to keep bugs at bay. Seeing the two kids running wide circles through the backyard, Alace detoured into the kitchen briefly, grabbing a couple of juice boxes, a container of donut holes, and the divided plate from the refrigerator that held Lila’s lunch.