Page 102 of Lost Truth
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Gunshots finally quieted in the distance, but Cady continued to pace the pit area, her heart beating erratically. What had happened? Was Ivers armed? Had he shot, maybe killed Hayden? She could hardly think straight, so when others in Ivers’s group started peppering her with questions, she stepped away and ignored anyone who dared join her. She could explain what was happening with Ivers, but honestly, she didn’t think anyone would believe her.
After all, who would think a commissioner could be involved in human trafficking? As a reporter, she had a skeptical outlook on life, and even she wouldn’t have believed it at first.
But more of a priority was to know what was going on with Hayden.
Was he okay?
She would’ve called the police to help him, but Pruitt already reported Hayden had stolen a vehicle. Not the reason she wanted law enforcement involved, but it would bring them to the scene. Her job would be to convince them Hayden wasn’t a thief but was following a very dangerous, awful man who needed to be arrested.
Her phone rang. She plunged her hand into her pocket to find it and saw Hayden’s name on the screen. Her heart soared. If he was calling, he had to be fine, right?
Her legs trembled with weakness, and it took everything she was made of not to sink to the sand, but answer instead. “Hayden? Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. But I need you to call 911. Get an ambulance for Ivers. He crashed his buggy and went flying without a helmet. He has a pulse, but he’s not moving. Tell them to hurry.”
No time to revel in her thanks right now. “Where will they find you?”
“If they follow the main trail, they’ll see us.”
“Okay. I’ll call them right now and let you know what they say. Pruitt reported you to the police for stealing an ATV, so they’re on the way. I’ll make sure they know what’s going on.”
“Be sure to tell them that Ivers has a gun, and he fired multiple shots at me.”
“But he didn’t hit you, right?” Her voice rose, giving away her panic.
“Right. I’m fine.”
“You’re not just saying that so I don’t worry, are you?”
“No. He didn’t hit me, and I didn’t crash my vehicle. All’s good. Just get an ambulance here for Ivers.”
“Will do.” She’d no sooner ended the call and arranged for an ambulance when sirens blared from a distance, and she saw the lights swirling above the building. A single car door slammed.
Had to be the deputy as it was too soon for the ambulance to have arrived. She watched the path to the building, but no one came out. The deputy had to be taking Pruitt’s statement. Man, if only she were in on that conversation. No point, though. Pruitt should tell his story first. Then she would refute as much of it as needed to declare Hayden’s intent behind taking the ATV.
She tapped her foot and waited. What if the deputy didn’t believe her? What if they went after Hayden and arrested him? It would all be figured out in the end, but Pruitt might still press charges.
A young uniformed deputy, one hand on her sidearm, the other on her waist, barreled around the corner.
Pruitt trailed her. He pointed at Cady. “Her. She’s the one with the guy who stole my ATV.”
“Stay here while I talk to her.” The deputy locked eyes on her and approached as if she were a speeding bullet intent on harming her.
Cady took a long breath and let it out.Please give me the words I need to help Hayden and not harm him.
The deputy came to stand in front of her, her last name of Booth on her badge. She took out a notepad and fixed an intimidating stare on Cady. “Name, please.”
“Cadence Vaughn.”
Booth started writing, but before she could finish, Cady said, “And before you ask, the gentleman who took the ATV is Hayden Kraus. We’re working on an investigation into human trafficking in coordination with Sheriff Mina Park. Hayden took the ATV to go after Commissioner Odin Ivers, the head of the human trafficking organization, before he fled the area. He has tickets on a plane scheduled to depart later tonight for Beijing. China doesn’t have an extradition treaty with the United States, so there’s no way we could get him back to stand trial.”
Booth held up a hand. “Let’s take this a little slower and back up. So you’re asking me to believe this commissioner is into human trafficking?”
“Hard to believe, I know, but if you check in with Sheriff Park or her detective, Elaina Lyons, they’ll bring you up to speed.”
Another siren sounded, and the deputy spun toward the building.
