Page 34 of The Death
Blood!
“Caleb? It’s Joe. Something’s happened. I need you to come out to Michael’s school right away. Will you do it?”
“Of course I’ll do it,” Caleb said. “Why wouldn’t I? But what the hell’s wrong? We’ve been waiting for you and Michael. Jane just asked about you again. Is Michael having trouble getting out of school? You said he had to finish his last final.”
“And he finished it,” Joe said hoarsely. “Then he ran back to his quarters to get his computer and suitcases. But that wasover half an hour ago, and when I went to pick him up, he’d disappeared.”
“Is this some kind of joke?” Caleb was swearing softly beneath his breath. “It’s not funny. What am I supposed to tell Jane? She’s nuts about the kid.”
“Do you think I don’t know that? No, it’s not a joke.” He paused. “There was blood, Caleb. Not much. Just a thin rivulet on the floor in the bathroom. But how am I supposed to tell Eve that our son is missing when I saw that damn blood?” He took a harsh breath. “But I don’t have time to talk to you any longer. I’ve just called security and they’re forming a group to see if we can locate Michael on campus. Before they get here, I need to search Michael’s room to see what I can find. Though I don’t have much hope. We both know Michael isn’t the kind of kid to just decide to run away on a jaunt with one of his buddies when we had plans. Call me when you get here. I hope to God I’ve found him by then. I’m not going to call Eve until I have something definite to tell her.”
He cut the connection.
He looked around the room.Search. Clear your head and see if there’s any hint of what could have happened to Michael in the short time that he was here before he got whisked away.Joe had no doubt that was what had happened. He trusted Michael would not have left this building on his own. And that meant Michael had been taken for a reason—and one that almost certainly had to do with the fact that he was Joe and Eve’s son. Joe was involved in the distribution of a lifesaving medical miracle that was often targeted by criminals. Eve was even now being protected because of her status as a premier forensic sculptor. Hell, even Caleb and Jane might be targets,because of all the enemies Caleb had gained as a top MI6 agent. Okay. No doubt that it had been a crime. Now he had to try to forget that it had been Michael who was the victim. Smother the rage and the panic. Treat it as if a stranger had been taken. Find out why and when.
Find a motive and a clue. He blocked out everything but the purpose that he had to cling to at all costs. He started to carefully, methodically, go through Michael’s things to find that clue.
Joe received a call from Caleb forty-five minutes later when Caleb’s helicopter landed on the heliport by the executive offices of the administration building. “We’re here,” he said curtly. “Any sign of Michael?”
“Not a word. We’re still searching. We’re in the hill country on the other side of the lake. I called Jessup with Scotland Yard, and he’s on his way with a team. Did you tell Jane?”
“Of course he did,” Jane answered for herself. “Do you think I’d let him come without me? It’s Michael, for God’s sake. I put Cira in her chair and brought her with us,” she said shakily. “I think she knows something’s very wrong. She keeps holding my hand and won’t let it go. And she keeps calling for Mikey.” She swallowed, hard. “I know I won’t be able to go on the hunt with you. But give me something else to do. Anything, Joe.”
“Be careful what you wish for,” Joe said. “I haven’t told Eve yet. But there’s no way I’d ask that of you.”
“You wouldn’t have to ask. We all have to do our part. Itmight be easier for Eve if I tell her when she can see Cira at the same time.” She shook her head. “No, nothing can make it easier. But we can share it.” She turned to Caleb and gave him a quick kiss. “I’ll see you later. Now go find Michael.” She got out of the helicopter and took Cira toward the administration building. “Be sure to call me when you find out anything.”
He didn’t answer as he headed off the tarmac in the direction of the lake.
“No sign of him,” Joe said curtly as he came to meet Caleb coming down the hill. “We found two farmers who’ve been here most of the day, but they didn’t notice anything unusual. One of them thought he’d heard a helicopter about the time Michael disappeared. But he didn’t see anyone or anything near here.”
Caleb frowned. “But when I flew over this lake and fields, I was low enough to scan the entire area. There were quite a few places where a helicopter could have landed and not been seen from the school. Probably the most likely place would be on that field on the far side of the lake. Have you checked it yet?”
“Not yet.” He gestured to the security team and the student volunteers and then started off at a fast trot toward the heather field Caleb had indicated. “But we will now. Cross your fingers…”
Caleb didn’t answer. He’d already streaked past Joe into the field, brushing aside the heather to examine the ground. “Signs of a landing,” he called out. “Check out the entire area.”
Joe was already carefully making his way through the heather. He waved the security teams aside as he carefully examined the ground for clues. “Keep them away until we can get a closer look.”
Joe and Caleb each took a separate section of the field and moved through it carefully, stopping now and then to examine their entire surroundings.
But it was Joe who caught sight of the gleam of metal that was lodged half beneath a rock on the side of the hill. Then he was digging frantically for it. Seconds later he freed the computer, which hadMQengraved on the cover. “Michael’s computer,” he muttered as Caleb ran toward him. “But it wasn’t Michael who buried it here. Whoever did it didn’t want it to be found too quickly. They didn’t want it to be noticed until they’d gotten safely away from this area.” His hands were shaking as he opened the lid of the computer. “But the bastards wanted to be sure we got the message loud and clear.” Then he froze as he read the first line scrawled on the computer screen. “Only this isn’t addressed to me. The son of a bitch is trying to leave me out of it.” His fingers bit into the laptop as his gaze flew over the message. “He’s using Michael to get to Eve.” He closed his eyes as the rage swept over him. “I’m going to kill the asshole.”
“Who is it?” Caleb asked. “May I read it? And may I help you rid the world of him in the most painful way possible?”
“It’s Caldwell,” Joe said “And he starts the message, ‘Hello, Eve Duncan. How wonderful we can be together at last. I’m enjoying your son’s company, but he’s really no substitution.’” Joe looked up and met Caleb’s eyes. “I’ll let you read the rest later. But right now I’ve got to go over this with Eve and tryto keep her sane and away from doing something crazy to get him back. That’s not going to be easy. As for letting you help me get rid of him, I reserve that pleasure. But I might call on you if the situation changes. At the moment, you can thank those searchers for me and then go back to Jane and give her the bad news.”
“She’ll want to go to Eve right away and help her get through this,” Caleb said. “And that’s not a bad idea.”
“Let me talk to Eve first. She may not be able to make any rational decisions about what she wants until she gets over the first shock.” He paused. “And Caldwell had a reason for taking Michael. We may have to negotiate.”
“Ransom?”
“He had a reason,” Joe repeated. “I’ve already told you how you can help.” He was moving deeper into the banks of heather and dialing Eve. “Let me get back to you, Caleb. In the end, you know all the decisions have to be made by Eve and me…”
“I know. I know.” Caleb was frowning as he turned away and headed back toward the administration building. “But don’t close us out. Remember, we love Michael, too. Let us know as soon as you need backup.”
Yes, everyone cared about Michael, Joe thought. From the moment of his birth, he had reached out and touched all of them with his warmth and special presence. But no one more than himself and Eve. And now he had to tell Eve that their son had been taken and might be in deadly danger. The pain twisted inside him at the thought.
