The Girl on the Yacht (19 page)

Cameron West couldn’t drive fast enough down Coast Highway toward Dana Point. Somehow, she knew that she had driven by Laguna Beach, the Montage Hotel, the cliffs, and the sea, but they were nothing but blurs going by her windows. Her mind focused on two things––get the guy,
and
do it with no one getting hurt. She pulled up to a corner where her deputies were diverting traffic. She opened her car window.

“Where’s Little Horse?” she asked the first officer.

He pointed at the unmarked car to her right.

Little Horse spotted her, climbed out, and made his way over. “Hey, boss.”

“Fill me in.” She opened the driver’s door of her Prius.

“We’ve only seen the woman. No other movement.”

“Have you cleared the surrounding houses?” She swung her feet out of the car.

He nodded. “Both sides, across the street, and behind. We did it quietly—didn’t want to spook him.”

Cameron glanced over at the dark SWAT vehicle on the side street with four black-clad individuals leaning against the door. The tallest one spotted the Prius and jogged over.

“They’re chomping at the bit to go in.” Sergeant Little Horse’s tone was disapproving. “Here he comes.”

She focused on the approaching man in black. “Joey, where are your people?”

The SWAT leader pulled out his iPad, set it on the hood of her Prius, and opened the cover. A Google Earth image of the neighborhood had blinking red and green dots at different places surrounding the house. “My guys are GPS tagged.”

She was impressed.

He pointed at three pairs of red. “Front of house on the left, front right, and rear center. They’re on high ground with sniper rifles. Nothing moves without their picking it up.” Four green dots flashed in the area near the SWAT van. “That’s our go team––if we have to move in hard.” He closed the cover on his pad. “Fill me in.”

Over the next few minutes, Cameron outlined what little she knew about Michael Wayne White. She had no real background––only that he was a disabled former SEAL, and that he had most probably killed Laura Douglas.

“He isn’t expecting us, and we know there’s a woman in there––could be his wife,” Cameron said. “So, I want to get her out and go in slow.”

“Let me go in with my team––we’ll try to minimize collateral damage.”

“I want to get the woman and any other civilians out first.” Cameron stared at him. “I’ll go up alone––your snipers can cover me.” She glanced over at her sergeant.

Little Horse winced, but nodded.

Joey shook his head. “I don’t know if I can agree with that.” He reached for his mike.

Cameron stopped his hand. “My way. If he takes me out, then you’re in charge.” She couldn’t believe she had said those words. She opened the hatch on her car and took the vest from the cubbyhole in the back. After securing it properly, she donned her powder blue jacket from the back seat and zipped it up. She adjusted her sunglasses and pushed her hair back to give the appearance of a non-threatening civilian.

A minute later, she was on the small entry porch to the house. Her mind calculated the positions of cover and the distances to each. She knocked softly.

A woman in her thirties opened the door.

“Yes?”

“Can you come outside for a moment. I need to show you something.” Cameron flashed her badge.

The woman seemed stunned, but inquisitive.

“What is it?” She glanced left then right out the front door before opening it wider.

A young boy, perhaps six, ran to the woman’s side.

“Who is it, Mommy?”

“Just a nice lady.”

Cameron felt her thoughts reset.
There are kids. How many?

“Is this your son?” Cameron asked. “He’s adorable. Do you have any other kids?” Cameron peeked around the mother and spotted another younger looking boy a few feet away.

“That’s Pauly.” The woman held her hand out to the farthest child and he came forward. “And, this is Mikey.” She held both of them close.

Cameron knelt down and placed her hand softly on the younger boy. “They are the cutest. Any other kids?” She searched the interior with her eyes.

“Just my two little men.”

“I still need to show you what I found outside.” Cameron smiled. “Bring the boys––they’ll get a kick out of it, too.”

Mikey stuck his head out trying to spy what she was talking about.

“Come on, kids, let’s go see it.” Cameron pointed down the street.

The boys’ curiosity took hold, and they both ran past Cameron on the stoop.

The mother reached for them.

Cameron deflected her attention. “You must be Mrs. White.”

The woman, obviously confused, exited the house and left the door open behind her.

“What’s down there?”

“What’s your first name?” Cameron kept asking questions.

“Nancy.” The woman responded involuntarily.

“Nancy, we’re concerned about you and the boys.”

The woman stopped and turned toward Cameron.

“Don’t worry, you’re safe now. That’s my sergeant.”

Little Horse was corralling the two boys on the sidewalk.

The suddenly frightened woman started for them. “What are you doing with my kids?”

“Nancy, listen to me.” Cameron prodded the woman to move in the direction of Little Horse. “Let’s get down the block and I’ll fill you in.”

Nancy reached for her boys and took hold of their hands. “I don’t know what’s going on, but my husband will get to the bottom of this. You don’t want to mess with his kids.”

“Nancy, we’re here
for
Michael.” Cameron had to get the woman refocused.

Two SWAT officers grabbed the three family members and hurried them toward the Sheriff’s cars at the end of the block.

“Michael? What do you want with him?”

“We need to question him.” She paused. “How tall is Michael?”

“He’s six-five. You don’t know what he looks like?”

Cameron showed the picture. “Is this him?”

“That’s Michael. That’s his Navy picture from fifteen years ago. Is this about the SEALs?”

Cameron shook her head. “It’s the only picture we have.”

Nancy looked at it again. “He hasn’t changed much. Except his eyes seem so much darker now.” She turned her face away and then stopped when she saw the patrol cars. “What’s going on, and why are there so many cops? What do you want with Michael?” Obviously agitated and frightened, her voice exposed her vulnerability.

Cameron sensed the woman was about to shut down. “May I call you Nancy?”

She nodded

“What a beautiful house you have. Nancy, is Michael in the house?”

The woman just stared at Cameron trying to make sense out of the moment.

“Nancy, it’s really important for me to know if Michael’s in the house right now.”

She shook her head.

“He’s not in there?”

“He left about an hour ago to get some things.”

“Did he go to the grocery store, the pharmacy, where?”

“He didn’t say. He just left.”

Cameron keyed her mike. “He’s not in the house––go in.” She turned back to Nancy. “What kind of car is he driving?”

“A black Suburban.”

Cameron re-keyed her radio. “He’s driving a black Suburban––probably close by. Get every car on the streets to keep an eye out for it. Do not engage this suspect. Find him.”

Nancy’s eyes widened.

“What’s this about? Why are you looking for Michael? Whatever you think he did––it wasn’t him.”

Down the block, Cameron heard the SWAT team going from room to room, shouting, “Clear!” “Clear!” “Clear!”

Joey came out of the house and walked over to Cameron. “You’re good to go. But, there’s a locked room off the garage––some kind of closet with a heavy wooden door. The guys are working on it.”

“Nancy, do you have a key to that room?” Cameron asked.

She shook her head. “It’s his office. It’s where he keeps his guns and stuff.”

Joey called on the radio to his team. “Weapons in the room––take it slow.”

“We’re drilling out the lock––be inside in a minute,” a voice came back.

Cameron waved over a uniformed officer. “Watch over her and the kids. Have someone get them something to drink.”

“I want to go back to my house,” Nancy said.

“Not right now––maybe later.”

“But, my things?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll go check it out for you.”

Cameron went to the house and entered the front room. She made her way past the toys strewn across the living room floor. When she came through the kitchen, she saw the lead SWAT officer push open the office door off the garage.

As it swung open, he stared into the room. He froze, raised his clenched fist, and gave the hand signal to back out.

Without realizing it, she had pulled her gun from its holster and held it in front of her, in the ready position. She slowly advanced while the three officers backed out in military fashion.
Why am I going the wrong way?
Her survival instincts told her to run, while her curiosity drove her feet forward. Glancing into the open space, her eyes saw what he had seen. She felt the adrenaline surge in her system.

Cameron’s radio made a static click before someone spoke, and she nearly jumped out of her skin.
Get control
.

“Get the bomb squad here,” the voice on the radio said.

“Is everybody out of the house?” Joey responded.

“Investigator West is still in there.”

“Cameron, get your ass out of there. This guy was a Navy SEAL. He knows how to blow things up.”

She contemplated a couple of things. The two-way radio waves could trigger it––she reached down and shut it off. Next, she thought about the kids and sensed that he wouldn’t have rigged anything to go off in the house.

Cameron took a step closer to the open doorway. She could see the old wooden desk with neat piles of bomb-making paraphernalia spread out on its top. She couldn’t take her eyes off the screw driver, wire cutters, and the remnants of red, yellow, and black copper wires. She took another step closer to the room and scanned the recesses––a tall black safe in the corner, a bookcase on the wall opposite the desk, a single rolling desk chair pushed up against a white metal cabinet with its twin doors open to an assortment of electronic components. She glanced at the desk again––a laptop sat open on one side.

Something wasn’t right. She realized that there were no explosive materials on the desk––or the cabinet––or the bookcase––only various electrical parts.

Where is the C-4 or whatever they call it these days?
The safe––the huge safe in the corner, that’s where he would keep it––away from the kids. She turned her radio back on. “Little Horse, come in here.”

An unexpected voice came on the line. Cameron’s captain was outside the house up the block. “West, I’m ordering you out of the building.”

“Cap, I’m okay.” She calmed her voice. “The device is probably in the safe. Really, it’s okay. I need Little Horse in here.”

“Not until the bomb squad says it’s clear.”

Cameron clicked off the radio before he ordered her back outside.

At that moment, her sergeant appeared in the doorway of the kitchen. He gave a grim smile and shrugged his shoulders.

She returned the smile, knowing that he had sneaked in without clearing it with the captain.

“Good to see you.” She glanced toward the garage and the room farther inside. “We don’t have much time. We need to get anything useful out of the room before the bomb unit tears a hole in the wall and turns the place into drywall dust to take out the massive safe that houses the explosives.”

She started looking through the open cabinet.

“You
do
know that if it goes off inside that safe, it’ll probably take out the whole neighborhood––just like an oversized pipe bomb.”

She remembered her class on explosives and how a device becomes more powerful when enclosed in a solid container. She stared at the safe. “That’s one big pipe bomb.”

He nodded.

“Keep looking. I’ll be right back.” She walked out to the kitchen and turned on the radio.

“Evacuate for three blocks––tell the people it’s a gas leak.”

“Is Little Horse in there with you?” her captain asked.

“Yeah.” She immediately turned off the radio.

When she came back into the office, Little Horse gave her a tense grin. “What are we looking for?”

“You know the drill. When you find it, you’ll know.”

They worked their way around the room examining everything.

“The wife is pissed,” he said. “She overheard the guys talking about the bomb.” Little Horse shuffled through some papers in the bottom drawer of the desk. “The wife said he’ll never see his kids again.” Little Horse grinned. “That guy’s toast if we don’t find him first. She gave up his phone number, and I’m having the lab track the GPS.” He closed the drawer.

“Nice job.”

He stared at the top of the desk. “What about the computer?”

“I’m not sure we should move it or turn it on until the bomb squad checks it.” She looked at it and spotted a small green glow on the side––it had been on––only the screen had timed out and was dark. She and Little Horse stood opposite one another, contemplating.

“Well, Investigator West, what do you think this time?” He had an expression that suggested he was deciding to leave the room.

She put her hand up without saying a word then pointed to the two cords leading out of the back of the computer.

He froze.

The first line went to the printer on the middle shelf. The other one went toward the top shelf and ended at a camera facing the room.
That’s strange.
She looked over to the laptop and then back at the camera. Then it came to her.

The bomb tech appeared in the garage and waddled over looking like a super-sized Gumby.

“What are you two doing in here?”

“Just checking things for you.” Cameron signaled Little Horse and the tech to go to the kitchen.

They followed.

“What’s up?” Little Horse asked.

“The camera on the top shelf––the red light’s on. He’s recording us.”

“Or, watching a live feed,” Little Horse said.

The bomb tech’s eyes grew enormous. “That’s not good. You better get your asses out of here in case he has a remote detonator. And keep those goddamned radios off.”