She reached for her phone, called Mitchell.
“How’re you doing, Dani?”
“I’m sending you a location. I need a team here ASAP.”
“What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain when you get here.”
“But you’re suspended.”
“Just get over here, Mitchell!”
Dani hung up, climbed out of her vehicle, and raced over to the gate.
FORTY-TWO
“Are you OK?” Jake asked his daughter.
He couldn’t stop hugging her. They had their arms tightly wrapped around each other. Over the past several hours, he’d tried so hard to not think about how he’d even go on with life if he lost her, but the dreaded thought constantly hovered just below the surface. To finally release it from his mind was surreal.
“Yes, just really scared. What is going on, Daddy? Grandpa won’t tell me anything.”
“You’re safe now. With me. But we need to get out of here right away.”
“OK. But I really need to go to the bathroom.”
“Go, but be quick.”
Jake hugged her tightly again. Then he watched her hurry into the master bathroom. Stepping out of the bedroom, Jake was eager to find a phone and call the police himself. He didn’t want Lars driving off and then trying to grab a private jet out of the country. The man had the means to go hide anywhere. He wasn’t going to let Lars get away. While his father-in-law wasn’t responsible for Piper’s abduction, Lars’s actions had caused the deaths of several other people—and nearly Jake.
When he returned to the living room, he found himself once again standing in front of his father-in-law. Lars hadn’t tried to leave. Instead, he was taking a different approach. One Jake hadn’t anticipated since he’d never known Lars to own a weapon. But now, Lars had a gun in his hand and was aiming it directly at Jake.
Jake stiffened. Had he come this far only to be stopped by a bullet from his bitter father-in-law? Had he risked everything just to have it end this way? He couldn’t let this happen. “Don’t do this, Lars. Please. Piper is in the next room.”
“I should have done this a long time ago. Sarah deserved so much better than you.”
The man had an unstable look in his eyes. One Jake had never seen before.
“I loved your daughter. And she loved me. Sarah would not want this.”
“Piper should be with us. Not you.”
“This isn’t the answer. Hasn’t this family seen enough death? Sarah. Caitlin. Steve.”
Jake’s mention of Steve’s death seemed to jar Lars. His forehead bunched, and his eyes started twitching, like he was having a difficult time processing it. It dawned on Jake that the man didn’t know his youngest son was also dead. Lars must’ve been ignoring his phone for the past hour.
“This has to stop,” Jake said. “It’s over.”
He watched as his father-in-law’s face pulsed red with rage. “It’s over when I say it’s over. Not you.” He was not putting the gun down. If anything, Lars was clutching it even tighter. The man had lost any sense of reality. He was so far over the edge now. Jake looked around for a way to defend himself. He was too far away from Lars to make a move for the gun. If Lars wanted him gone, finally and forever, Jake could do nothing about it.
But then a familiar voice boomed out from the kitchen. “Put the gun down, Mr. Kingston!”
Lars spun around. Jake was stunned to see Dani swiftly approaching, her own gun drawn in both hands, aimed directly at his father-in-law. Where had she come from? How had she known?
Lars froze but didn’t put the gun down. He still held it in his hands, as if considering his situation. Dani moved within ten feet.
“Put the gun down, sir,” Dani repeated. “I will shoot you.”
Still, Lars didn’t relinquish his position. He seemed on the verge of making a desperate move. Would he still try to shoot Jake? Dani? Himself? But then Lars heard another voice. One that seemed to hit him differently.
“Grandpa?”
Jake turned. Piper was standing at the entrance of the living room.
Piper’s eyes quickly watered. “Grandpa, what are you doing? Please, stop.”
And that’s when Lars’s arms suddenly went limp, as if accepting reality for the first time. He dropped the gun to the floor. Then the man fell to his knees, put his hands to his face, and began to weep heavily.
Dani rushed over, kicked the gun away. Jake grabbed Piper, pulled her in close to him as his daughter continued to cry. He looked over at Dani. They locked eyes and gave each other a brief nod of gratitude. Nothing more needed to be said. They had been there for each other when they’d needed it most. Jake glanced out the front windows and noticed a group of FBI agents racing up to the house with their guns drawn. Dani was already on the phone with someone, barking out orders.