Chapter 17: Part 1

The helicopter came in low over the ocean. They were still twenty minutes away and he hadn't heard from or seen Sam. A storm gathered near the island, the angry thunderhead popping up on the radar. This wasn't how he wanted this operation to go. They were so damn close but still Delanie could lose her life. He never should have let her return to the place. A decoy, that's what he should have used. Delanie didn't deserve to die because of his fucked up mind and messed up plan.



He dialed her again, but the call wouldn't go through. That's what he got for not picking up the tab for a satellite unit. He should have said screw the Bureau and it's rules. They were cash poor and he wasn't. He could have already connected with her and this could all be over with. But no, he had to try to make his damn boss feel okay with the whole money thing. No one would ever feel comfortable with the amount of money Bill had. It was too much for an FBI agent, hell it was too much for some small countries.



Raising Sam on the stupid phone didn't work either. He needed to contact Sam or his man on the island. Nothing was working the way he wanted it to. Letting Delanie return to the island was stupid. And now the storm threatened to force the helicopter back to the main island.



He called Sam again. This time he answered. "Sam, where are you?"



"About twenty minutes out, maybe thirty if this storm goes away."



"Why aren't you there yet?"



"Rough seas. Where are you?"



"I was delayed."



"Damn it, Bill. She could already be dead."



"Is that storm gonna be a problem?"



"It already is a problem. It's wreaking havoc with my sails."



"I can't get my guy on the island. I think something happened."



"I'm sure something happened. Fuck, she wasn't supposed to be put in this kind of danger."



Bill rubbed his forehead, pressing hard against his temples. "I know. I know. Damn it, I'll be there as soon as I can."



Sam hung up and Bill called the man he'd sent with Delanie on the fast boat. There was no answer. He stared at the building cloud structure, knowing that the pilot wouldn't fly into a mess like that.



This wasn't a military chopper, just some guy who had some time on his hands. He could have called for a military lift but that would have cost the FBI big money. This guy was in for only a couple of hundred since he was already heading out this way to pick up another fare.



Bill had been lucky to find the pilot. All this money crap with the FBI was driving him crazy. He knew he needed to keep expenses down, but he had the resources to fix many of the problems.



Usually it wasn't a issue, but this time Baker had been riding his ass about any money he spent to solve this case. He would have to quit the case tomorrow. That was the best he could do. The problem wasn't really the United State's to solve. Soon another country would be forced to take up the charge to find this guy. He hated leaving someone else holding the ball but his hands were tied.



This might end up being one of those great tragedies where this psycho is allowed to roam freely around the world picking off and torturing beautiful women. One of the sad facts surrounding police work was that sometimes the bad guy was too hard to catch. No one would ever have enough time or resources to catch this guy.



The helicopter bucked and dipped in the wind. "If this doesn't quiet down we're going to have to land."



"Damn, how much longer do you think the weather will hold?"



"It's not holding now." The pilot pushed up on the cyclic and the craft sped forward then turned away from the island.



Bill turned back and spied a waterspout. Damn, the storm had grown too quick. "Can you make another go?"



"Let me pull up the weather." The pilot looked at the weather display and shook his head. "Even if I circle around we're looking at having to wait. The fuel is too low to not turn back."



"Damn, can you drop me near a marina?"



"Sure, let me figure out where to go."



Bill whipped out his phone, knowing that he wouldn't get any reception. Sam would be on his own and there was nothing he could do.

Copyright Sara Thacker 2011