I watch until late into the night but still
don't find out any definite news about Dylan and his friends. I do
learn that all of the Senators were freed unharmed. Finally I head
to bed. This pregnancy is really dragging me down. I can't seem to
get enough sleep and am tired all the time. At least I am not
having morning sickness. I fall into a restless sleep.
The next morning the news is no better. The
media is concentrating on the rescued hostages. All of the
interviews I watch talk about the brave group of men that saved
them and killed all of the terrorists but no one mentions who they
were or what happened to them. I am scheduled to leave for LA first
thing tomorrow so I make myself go to bed early.
******
I rise early and travel to LA on the Murray's
private jet. Barry's jet is still in DC. The prosecutor is sending
a car to pick me up at the airport and deliver me to a hotel near
the courthouse. He has agreed to furnish a car to and from the
proceedings. I am not planning to venture out of the hotel by
myself. I am very nervous and am carrying my .45 in my purse.
When I arrive in LA I am greeted by a
policeman in uniform who informs me he is to take me by the hotel
to leave my things and then deliver me to the courthouse. He helps
me into the back seat of a marked police car and drives me straight
to the hotel and then the courthouse. The proceedings on this first
day are primarily dealing with motions and jury instructions. After
court is recessed for the day the same policeman takes me to the
hotel. When I am safely inside he tells me what time he will pick
me up the next morning for court. I order room service and do not
leave my room until time to leave for the courthouse the following
morning.
Since jury selection was completed before the
trial was postponed because of the explosion at the restaurant,
testimony begins immediately the following morning. The first day
of testimony is primarily from Richard Thomas where he names the
defendants by name. He confesses to convincing me to come with him
to the van where he drugged me with a spiked cola. I wait patiently
in the witness waiting area and watch the proceedings on closed
circuit television. When they recess for the day I am relieved that
I didn't have to testify yet.
Back at the hotel, I decide to go down to the
hotel's dining room for a quiet dinner. I am very nervous, and
check to make sure I put my pistol back in my purse when I returned
from court. I sit in a booth in the corner and watch the people
come and go as I nibble at my dinner. As I leave the restaurant to
go back to my room a man I had seen relaxing in a chair in the
lobby grabs my arm and whispers, "Don't make a scene or I will kill
you right here."
Shocked and frightened I do exactly as he
tells me. He pulls me out the front door and shoves me into the
back of a limousine and climbs in behind me. I am terrified. I
don't have any idea who this person is or what he wants. Digging in
my purse I feel for my pistol and find my phone. I have Dylan on
speed dial so I push the appropriate button, wait a few minutes to
give the call time to connect, and then I ask the man, "Who are
you? What do you want with me?"
"Just shut up and you won't be hurt!" the man
growls and looks out the window. I lived in LA for most of my life
but I'm not sure where we are. It looks like we are headed toward
the coast.
I just keep mumbling about where we are going
and what we are passing. I only hope that the phone connected and
Dylan is listening. I don't even know where Dylan is or if he is
where he can answer. I may be talking to his voice mail.
******
When Dylan sees Skye's name on the caller ID
of his cell phone his heart soars. But when he answers her call he
is horrified to hear a strange man telling her to shut up. They are
waiting on the tarmac in DC for Barry's jet to take off and he
panics. He begs, "Barry, call Melanie and find out where Skye is. I
have her phone connected to mine and it sounds like she is in
trouble."
When Barry hangs up he says, "She's in LA.
The trial started yesterday." He instructs the pilot to change
their flight plan to fly directly to LA instead of the ranch in
Wyoming.
By this time Dylan has put the phone on
speaker and all of the guys are monitoring what is being said.
Barry calls Detective Long to tell him they believe Skye may have
been kidnapped and he assures them he will check on her and get
back to them.
Barry says, "From what is being said it
sounds like they are headed up the coast."
When Detective Long calls back confirming
that she was seen leaving the hotel in a limousine with a man in a
suit. Barry relays the information from the phone to Detective Long
who puts out an APB for the limousine on the coast road. Then they
hear Skye say something about getting in a small boat and they hear
an outboard motor start that drowns out all the voices for a while.
The phone sounds like it is in her purse because everything is
somewhat muffled.
The jet is now in flight but they are at
least five hours away from California. Dylan is terrified. He is
praying for her safety. Bear is trying to comfort him telling him
that Skye is a good strong swimmer. He reminds them that she is
smart and brave and the toughest woman he has ever met.
******
I am terrified. When they force me into the
small motorboat I know wherever they are taking me is going to make
it harder for someone the rescue me. I am going to have to stay
alert and look for an opportunity to gain the upper hand. The small
boat pulls up to an island off the coast where I see lights from a
house. The man that kidnapped me from the hotel roughly pulls me
ashore and drags me up an incline to the small cottage. I hear the
motorboat start back up and pull away from the island. He pushes me
in the door and says, "You might as well make yourself at home
because you're not going anywhere for a while."
Once again I ask, "Why did you bring me here
to this island? What have I ever done to you? I don't even know
you."
He responds, "Look, I'm just following
orders. Now shut up and get comfortable. Don't try anything and
we'll get along just fine. I don't want to hurt you but I will if
you force me to. We are going to stay here until the boss comes for
us." Then the call drops.
The man's words are somewhat comforting to
Dylan. At least it sounds like she is not in immediate danger. He
tries to think positively but it's hard.
Barry is still on the phone with Detective
Long who has every law enforcement agency in the area searching for
them. He informs Barry that there aren't too many inhabited islands
close enough to the California coast to reach by a small motorboat.
They will begin searching by air as soon as it's daylight.
******
I go into the bedroom and lie down on the bed
clutching my purse to my chest. I am extremely tired and fall into
a restless sleep. As I am drifting into sleep I pray Dylan got my
call and comes for me.
******
The guys are studying the maps they pulled
off the internet trying to determine how far up the coast they
could have traveled in the time they were monitoring the call and
what the most likely area would be where they will find an
inhabited island. They have narrowed the possibilities down to
three primary search areas.
Barry relays the information to Detective
Long and he narrows the search areas down to two primary areas
based on his knowledge of the coast. He promises to have a
helicopter in the air at first light. He will send a car to the
airport to meet their plane and bring them to their central command
post.
Detective Long is tracing Skye's cell phone
signal and by the time the plane lands in LA they have narrowed the
search area down to a group of small islands about three miles off
the coast. When the Drake Security team reaches the central command
post the sun is peeking over the horizon.
It is decided that since the former Marines
are the most experienced in search and rescue including water
rescues they will be in charge. After viewing the aerial
reconnaissance videos made by the Coast Guard drone, they decide to
fly by helicopter to the area and drop into the ocean about a mile
off the island and make their way to the cottage. Since they do not
know how many men are with Skye, the four younger team members will
all go. Bear will wait with Detective Long at the central command
post monitoring their activities by radio.
They all don wet suits and scuba gear they
borrowed from the LA police department and seal their weapons in
waterproof bags. Dylan is more nervous than he can ever remember
being before a mission. His wife and his unborn child are at stake
this time. As they board the helicopter, Bear wishes them well.
Just before they reach the drop area they
receive an emergency alert calling off the mission and the
helicopter turns around and heads back toward the mainland. Dylan
is furious. Upon landing he purposefully approaches the command
post and demands an explanation.
Bear puts his arm around his shoulders and
directs him away from the other men and says, "Easy Dylan. They
know what they're doing. A yacht was spotted headed for the island
with at least four armed men on board. Skye's not in immediate
danger and they are monitoring the island and the yacht closely. Be
patient."
******
I am awakened by voices coming from the main
room of the cottage. Frightened I continue to lie still, feigning
sleep while I listen to their words. I hear at least five different
voices. The longer I listen to them the more frightened I become. I
dig in my purse and pull out my phone. I dial Dylan's number. As
soon as he picks up I whisper, "They're going to take me out to sea
and throw me overboard. Help me!" I quickly disconnect when I hear
my captors walking toward the bedroom door.
******
When his cell phone rings and he sees Skye's
caller ID he answers on speaker phone so everyone can hear.
Everyone in the command post hears her frightened plea. Looking
desperately toward Detective Long he is relieved when the detective
says, "You guys take the helicopter and head back to the island.
I'll send the police boats to follow the yacht."
By the time the helicopter is airborne and
nearing the island they see the yacht pulling away from the dock.
Through binoculars Dylan can see Skye sitting in a deck chair being
closely guarded by two armed men. He makes a decision that he prays
is the right one. He tells the pilot to follow at a distance. As
soon as he sees the two men grab her arms and head toward the side
he tells the pilot to close the distance and get lower. He is going
to wait until they throw her overboard and then drop down to her.
He just prays she can stay afloat long enough for him to get to
her. The water is very rough with huge swells and the water
temperature is very chilly.
Everyone is watching and pinpoints her
location as soon as she hits the water. Flying low overhead Dylan
jumps out of the helicopter and swims to her. He quickly places a
flotation device around her and they wait for the police boat to
come to their rescue.
The remaining team members in the helicopter
chase the yacht. The two snipers, Pinky and Barry Farrady have
anchored themselves to the helicopter's frame and lean out the
sides, take aim and disable the yacht's engine. Then they
immediately pick off all the armed men that are visible. The other
police boat quickly overtakes and boards the yacht and takes the
remaining men into custody.
******
I am so scared and my heart is pounding with
terror. When I hit the water, all of my strength is needed just to
stay afloat. When I look up and see the helicopter approaching,
hope blooms deep in my soul. I pray they are able to see me and I
am relieved to see Dylan jumping out of the helicopter and swimming
to me. When he reaches me and places the flotation device around me
I say, "Oh thank God Dylan. I was so scared!"
We are soon pulled into the safety of the
police boat and wrapped in warm blankets. Dylan can finally relax.
He pulls me into his arms and kisses me warmly.
"Are you all right Skye? They didn't hurt you
did they?" he asks.
"I'm fine. They didn't hurt me. I'm so glad
you're here," I answer snuggling deeper into his arms.
When we return to the mainland, Detective
Long takes us to the hotel where my things are. Of course, the
trial had to be postponed again but will resume tomorrow. After
changing into dry clothes we join the detective and the other team
members in the restaurant for lunch and an update.
The detective begins, "Well, hopefully Ms.
Reynolds, this will be the last excitement for a while."
Dylan interrupts, "It's Mrs. Drake now
Detective."
Embarrassed he says, "Well, congratulations!
I hadn't heard. Anyway, the mastermind behind your latest ordeal
was Raymond Rasmussen. Have you ever heard of him?"
Shaking my head, I say, "No, it doesn't ring
a bell. Should I know him?"
The detective continues, "Rasmussen is one of
the kingpins of the mob that your father was targeting with his
documentary. Evidently he hasn't heard about the federal
investigation in which he is named. He must still think you have
the files in which he is implicated and thought by eliminating you
they would remain secret. I intend to make very sure that the
federal investigation becomes public knowledge immediately. After
that, you shouldn't have any more problems."
Smiling Pinky, Goose, and Stump exchange smug
looks.
The detective continues, "Rasmussen will be
facing kidnapping and attempted murder charges for this latest
incident. Then when the Feds complete their investigation, they can
have him for their charges. He should be behind bars for an
extremely long time.