Love Inspired Suspense June 2021--Box Set 1 of 2, page 13
“You mean, until the bears are safely on the boat and heading out into international waters,” Will clarified.
“No.” Poppy shook her head. “That might be what he meant but that’s not remotely what he said. He said he was taking Danny until he got his hands on the second bear cub, which he apparently didn’t have yet, and sold them both to his buyer.” Her emerald eyes met Lex. “Right? Can you back me up on this?”
“I can,” Lex said. He grabbed a kitchen chair and sat down beside her, until he was eye level with Will and could see the screen. “My mind was most definitely a mess at the time, but I’m pretty sure she’s right about the second cub thing. And I distinctly remember him saying he had a buyer.”
“A buyer,” Will repeated. “Singular?”
“Yup,” Poppy confirmed. “One he was meeting tomorrow.”
“Well.” Will leaned back in his chair. “That sounds a bit different than an overseas animal auction.”
Eli raised his hands, palms up.
“Hey, don’t shoot the messenger,” he said. “I’m just reporting what the internet is saying. Not that I’ve verified it’s true.”
“We know,” Poppy told him.
She ran her finger over her lip in a subtle gesture that Lex knew meant she was thinking.
“People do lie,” he said after a long moment. “He was kidnapping my son, after all.”
“People lie for a reason,” Poppy countered. “They do it to get out of trouble or to get some advantage. Why not just tell us he’s kidnapping Danny until the boat leaves? Why lie and say he doesn’t have the second bear cub yet or that he already has a buyer?”
Lex looked from Will to Eli, waiting for one of them to answer. Instead, Poppy’s gaze was fixed on him.
“I don’t know,” he said, feeling flustered. “Maybe because they still hadn’t captured the second bear cub by that point and coming after Danny would keep us from stopping them or act as a distraction.”
“But why?” she prodded. “Why not just go capture the bear cub? Why come here first?”
“Maybe he tried to grab Danny and when that didn’t work he went and captured the bear cub?” Lex suggested. “No, that doesn’t make sense. Because he wasn’t out of my sight long enough to travel into the park, get to the glaciers, capture a bear, come back and post it online. So, I don’t know, maybe he has an accomplice or there’s more than one set of poachers? But again, that doesn’t make complete sense.”
He looked down at the printouts spread on the table. There were some new pictures of the bears, one in a cave and a couple side by side in cages. He frowned. It was like his subconscious was telling him there was something wrong with the pictures but he couldn’t place it.
“Either the kidnapper lied, something in the post is false or these were done by two separate people,” he added.
He glanced at Poppy’s face and suddenly realized the smile that had ignited in her eyes had that same spark as when they used to jog together, urging each other on, making one another faster and stronger.
“Thank you,” she said. “My brain gets too caught up on one way of thinking sometimes and hearing you come up with different ideas always helps with that.” She looked back at Will and Eli. “Lex is right. Something doesn’t mesh here.”
Lex glanced back down at the papers in front of them and blinked as he finally realized what he was seeing. No, it couldn’t be.
“Wait. These two bear cubs are the same bear!” he exclaimed, pointing from one to the other. “They just switched it from one cage to another and took it from a different angle to look like it’s two different animals.”
Poppy met his eyes and finished his thought. “But they still only have one bear.”
Eli shook his head. “Why didn’t I see it?”
“Because you’re a tech guru, not an animal expert,” Poppy said. “I’m sure if they’d added a weird filter you’d have caught it immediately. Was this posted after I reported the attempted kidnapping attempt?”
“Yup,” Eli confirmed.
“Then it’s still possible we can stop the second bear cub from being poached,” she said. “No second bear cub means no boat leaving first thing tomorrow for the animal auction, means more time to find and stop them. Of course, it’s always possible they already have a buyer lined up and the auction is a ruse, too.” She turned to Lex. “How do we find the second bear cub before they do? Any guesses?”
All eyes turned to him. Right, so everyone was counting on him to figure out the location of a rare baby bear cub in one of the world’s largest national parks based on a few pictures where he knew the bears had been, and his own intuition.
He prayed for wisdom. Then he felt Poppy’s hand take his and squeeze it.
“You’ve got this,” she said. “And don’t worry about getting it wrong. My whole theory about this case might be, as well, and we all get it wrong on this team sometimes.”
Had she always been so understanding and he’d been too caught up in his own insecurities to see it? Or had she mellowed with time and teamwork? Maybe it didn’t matter—they were here now. Lord, help me see what I need to see. His eyes scanned the new posts, the printouts from the day before and a map of Glacier Bay. Then he took a deep breath.
“Okay, this is just an educated guess” he began. “But judging by the shading in this background of this picture here, this cub is near an ice cave.” He pointed out each step of his explanation as he went. “Due to the time of year, the location of the bay we found where the poachers were coming ashore and the usual roaming habits of bears, I’m thinking that if the second cub wasn’t poached she’s likely with the mama bear somewhere near...here.”
His finger came to stop on a small inlet about twenty minutes away by boat from where they’d stopped earlier.
“So, Lex and I head there,” Poppy said without a moment’s hesitation. “We look around and see what we can find.”
“Sounds good.” Will nodded. “Scout and I will stay here and cover the home front and make sure Gillian and Danny are safe.”
“Perfect,” Poppy continued. “Worst-case scenario and there’s nothing there, everyone will still go ahead with the existing mission as planned to locate, investigate and intercept any potential ship taking the bears overseas for an illegal animal auction. We’re just making sure we’re covering our bases.”
“Hey, I’m not saying we’ll find anything,” Lex added quickly. “It’s just a guess.”
“An educated guess, based on your experience, knowledge and expertise,” Poppy reminded him. She reached over and squeezed his hand again, this time not letting go as quickly, and as her eyes met his for a split second it felt like they were the only two people in the room. “Whatever we find, I believe in your hunches and think it’s worth pursuing.”
“Looks like Lorenza’s evening plans are being interrupted, after all,” Eli chimed in.
“But knowing her, she won’t mind a bit,” Will said with a chuckle. “But whether the poachers have got a buyer already lined up to buy the bears tomorrow or they’re shipping out by boat to an overseas auction in the morning, it sounds like this case is wrapping up within a few hours one way or the other.”
Lex took a deep breath as an unexpected pain filled his chest.
In other words, one way or the other, Poppy was leaving his life and going back to Anchorage tomorrow.
* * *
As expected, Lorenza wasn’t the slightest bit bothered when Poppy called and interrupted her evening and was quick to sign off on their plan to check out the location Lex had identified on the map. It felt good to have her boss believe in her, even when she was chasing a hunch. In fact, Lorenza seemed even more concerned at how tight the timeline was and suggested expanding the mission into a stakeout. Poppy, Lex and Stormy would make their way to the glaciers, locate the area Lex had suggested and hunker down for a few hours somewhere to see if there was any suspicious activity. Then, if there was nothing by sunrise, they’d come back to Gustavus and regroup with a video meeting with the rest of the team.
Poppy napped for a few hours, ate a late dinner and packed some snacks, then got dressed into her rugged outdoor gear and met Lex outside by the truck shortly after 2:30 a.m.
It was a quiet drive through the Alaskan wilderness at night to the national park, punctuated only by the sound of the engine purring, the tires brushing the road beneath them and Stormy’s softly wheezing half snores coming from the back seat.
At first Poppy didn’t think much of the fact that she and Lex had barely exchanged two words since leaving, and for that matter not really talked much after ending the video call with Eli. After all, she was exhausted and she imagined he was, too, if not more so. Her body ached from being up and moving in the middle of the night on too little sleep, along with the wear and tear of having fought for her life more than once in the past couple days. She felt like she needed to sleep for a week, or at least a solid twelve hours, to rest and recuperate.
Considering the physical strain of what Lex had gone through, she was sure his body was pretty sore, too.
She glanced his way. The darkness of the night around them had deepened his eyes and cast long shadows down the line of his jaw. Lex seemed older than he had in her memories, but more handsome and wiser, too, like his heart and mind had been weathered by the life he’d lived without her.
She turned and looked back out the window, knowing they only had a few hours left in each other’s lives and yet not knowing what to say. The sky had cleared, leaving a tapestry of bright stars shining above them.
No, there was more to the weariness inside her than just what her body had gone through. Her heart felt tired and heavy, too, like she’d put all of her painful and complicated feelings for him on ice when he’d broken her heart, but in the past two days they’d all come back demanding to be felt. She had no idea what to say to the amazing, complicated and incredible man sitting beside her and no clue where to even start, so she sat and prayed, and even let her mind drift a little as they drove to the national park.
“I’m fairly confident that we weren’t followed,” Lex said as they reached the docks. “I took a route that’s near impossible to drive without headlights on and tight enough in places that I should’ve seen running lights.”
They got out of the truck and walked down to where the water lay a deep and black roll of velvet at their feet. She shivered into her jacket as her eyes adjusted to the light. They got on board and Lex started up the engine. The boat stayed close to the shore as it cut through the darkened waters, past shadowy islands and glaciers.
As she glanced at him in the dim boat light, she couldn’t help but notice the frown lines between his eyes.
“You okay?” she asked eventually. “You look worried.”
He shrugged. “I just don’t want to let you all down.”
“Oh, don’t worry, you won’t,” she said. “You’ve never let me down.”
She’d said the words lightly, hoping to sound reassuring and break the thick tension that seemed to fill the night air. But his frown deepened.
“You weren’t disappointed when you found out that I’d gone to an Alaskan trooper’s recruitment event and your boss recommended I stick with being a park ranger?” he asked. He still wasn’t meeting her gaze.
“No...of course not. Lorenza clearly saw that you’re great at what you do. And I think everybody’s really thankful you’re a park ranger right now—I know I am.”
Again, she was trying to sound lighthearted. But still, he didn’t smile.
“Look,” she said. “Do we need to talk this out? Because I’m sorry if I made you feel like I was disappointed in you or something. I guess I’ve always been really driven and pushed myself, and maybe that made me push you. But I never meant to make you feel less about it. I loved you and everything about having you in my life. You helped me be better and stronger than I ever was without you.”
Again, he didn’t answer. It was like he was having some internal argument with himself that he wasn’t letting her in on. She prayed that whenever he did choose to open up, God would help her find the right words to say.
Silence fell between them again, and eventually the boat slowed as he pulled into an inlet and brought the boat to shore. Dense trees surrounded them, jagged rocks spread out underneath. They started up the slope on foot in the darkness as stealthily as they could, sticking close together with Lex leading the way and Stormy bringing up the rear. Lex’s flashlight swung a low, slow beam across the slippery ground. The rocks by the water’s edge gave way to scrub and then dense fir trees.
“See?” He gestured first to scuff marks on the ground and then patches of bark worn off the trees. “Bears have definitely been through this area. Unfortunately, we can’t tell if they’re the ones we’re looking for.”
She shuddered, remembering what it had been like to come face-to-face with the brown bear the day before. “Can you at least tell if they’re friendly bears or unfriendly ones?”
Finally, she got him to crack a smile.
“Never met a friendly bear in the wild,” he said. “Don’t think bears are designed to be. Although I’ve spent time at the wildlife conservation center outside Anchorage. It’s really extraordinary how they rehabilitate animals and return them to the wild. There’s hope that if we find the first bear cub soon enough, and he’s in good enough shape, they’ll be able to take care of him and then return him to a full, natural life in the forest again.”
And if everything worked out as they hoped right now, the cub’s sister might never even be poached.
Finally, he stopped in front of what looked like just another cliffside, seemingly no different than countless others they’d passed. Lex shone his light over it, and she saw the shimmering iridescence of the walls of an ice cave cutting into the rock.
“The bears won’t be living in this one,” he said. “It’s too shallow for their needs. But there are several deeper ones nearby that they might be in and if we stake out here we should be able to hear if anything happens in the surrounding area. And I’m not about to go around knocking on caves looking for sleeping bears inside.”
She chuckled. “Probably wise.”
One up-close-and-personal bear encounter had been enough for one trip. Carefully they stepped into the cave, set a waterproof tarp down against one wall and sat on it side by side. The cave walls were freezing to the touch. But Stormy lay her huge, fuzzy bulk over their feet, snuggling up against Poppy’s legs, filling her with warmth. Lex’s flashlight beam ran over the walls and she watched as they glimmered in shades of purple, blue and green. Then he switched the light off and pitch-black filled the space around them.
“Welcome to your first stakeout,” Poppy murmured. “Although usually we’re in a car or apartment building, nowhere this beautiful.”
“Thank you.” Lex’s voice came from the darkness. “Now what?”
“Now, we wait and make boring small talk,” she replied. “Stakeouts are a whole lot of boring suddenly followed by a short burst of excitement.”
“Got it,” Lex said.
They sat for an hour and then a second one, with whispered chatter in between long lapses of silence. She told him about being partnered with Stormy, the K-9 training they went through together, some of the cases they’d worked on and the unique challenges of living with a dog the size of a small pony. He told her about his marriage to Danny’s mom, how Debra’s life had been a mess and she’d needed him. He’d married her and then they’d had a baby in the hope it would fix things, but it hadn’t. Then she could hear warmth fill his voice as he talked about being a father and how deeply he loved his son. They also reminisced about some of the good times they had together and some of the moments they’d thought were bad times but realized in retrospect weren’t as big a deal as they’d thought they were.
After a while, she found her side brushing his and her head touching his shoulder, and finally his arm slipping around her. Eventually they saw the soft gray light of the world lighting outside the cave. She glanced at her watch. It was almost five in the morning.
“We give it one more hour and then we call it a bust and head back,” she said.
“You seem very calm about the fact I could be totally wrong about this,” Lex asked.
“Because I have complete faith in you,” she said, “and nobody’s right all the time.”
“Yeah, but maybe I don’t want to let you down, again.”
“Again?” She turned toward him and felt his hand brush her back. “Yes, Lex you ended our relationship and broke my heart, because you didn’t see our marriage working and you thought that’s what was best for both of us. But when it came to being a solid, caring and reliable man, you never let me down. Sure you weren’t always the best at picking up on minor stuff, but I knew you’d always be there for me if I really needed you.” She pressed her lips together a long moment and debated how much more to say. Then again, she’d be leaving his life in a few hours. If she wasn’t going to be fully honest with him now, she might never get the opportunity to. “I just never thought you believed in yourself. And I wondered if that’s why you were so focused on helping everybody else instead of figuring out what you wanted in life.”
He didn’t answer for a long moment and she wondered if she’d said something wrong.
“I mean, clearly I was wrong to push you into becoming a trooper,” she added quickly, “and maybe you are living your best life working here in Glacier Bay now.”
“My mother thought I use to shrink myself to make other people happy because I wanted to avoid conflict,” Lex confessed. “She was who I was talking to in that one-sided pocket dial conversation I accidentally left on your phone before we broke up.”
