Efraim was silent as Geiger drove into Rock Creek Park. He listened to the steady tap, tap, tap his wife sent out, each sound in sync with his heart.
"We'll find them. Don't worry." Dave said to Efraim. "I know it's killing you, but stay focused."
"I am focused Dave. So much so that nothing else matters."
"Don't do anything rash, Beaman. Francine will kill you. I don't even want to think about what she'll do to the rest of us should anything happen to you."
Efraim smiled, he knew Dave was right. Francine would exact her revenge. He almost pitied Stetson. Almost. But he had to find her first.
"Dave? Tell me what happened this afternoon? How did they know Francine was in trouble?"
"I stopped in to say hello and heard the commotion on the transmitter. I yelled for Billy and that's when we had you paged. I thought you might have taken off half cocked to go find her."
"I never go off half cocked! And certainly not where Francine is concerned."
"Right." At Efraim's nasty look, Dave hurried on. "Look, it's no secret that you love her. We expect you to be a little over the top."
"Have I been over the top?"
"Decking Stetson and tossing me was definitely over the top, Beaman."
"Stetson deserved it. I feel bad about breaking the desk when you landed on it."
"Remind me not to grab you from behind again. Jeez, you tossed me quite a few feet."
"Adrenaline."
"It was something working there for you, buddy. Okay, what are you getting?"
"They must be heading down to the interior, the signal is getting intermittent." Efraim said, panic edging his tone.
"Stay focused buddy, we'll get her. Remember that area down by the reservoir? It's densely populated with trees and all that ground cover? They could be headed down there."
"Aren't there some old buildings down there?" Efraim shook his head as he concentrated, trying to remember the landscape of lower Rock Creek
"It's been years since I've hiked through those woods, but yeah, I seem to remember some. How about we get a park ranger to show us where they are?"
"Good idea."
Efraim watched as Geiger called dispatch at the Agency and told them what he wanted. He was getting faint sounds from the receiver, where ever Francine was, she was on foot and complaining.
It was extremely hot for September, and Efraim knew the hard time that Francine had dealing with the heat and being nine months pregnant. Every sound of effort he heard caused his stomach to clench.
"I said that Lee and Amanda are behind us." Dave said, his tone indicating he had been talking to him for a few minutes.
"Sorry, Dave. My mind is elsewhere right now."
"I know. Sounds like she's doing some hiking." Dave indicated the receiver.
"Yeah. Just what she needs right now."
They listened as Francine told her captors she needed to rest. Her husband and Geiger smiled when they heard her insist she was going to sit on the cut tree stumps, but wanted the fresh sap removed first. She was giving clues to her location, and giving her kidnappers a hard time.
"I think I know where she's at. There's a clearing in the bottom of the valley, just before it leads up to an old house. That may be where they are taking her."
Efraim nodded his agreement as he listened to the sounds from the receiver once again. Francine was walking again, complaining about the sun in her eyes. He gave a smile in spite of the situation, she was giving him all that she could to help him find her.
Dave stopped at the Park Rangers station and they were met by the head ranger who had a map with him. Lee and Amanda pulled up behind them as Efraim and Geiger were showing the rangers their Federal identification.
Quickly Efraim explained the situation, giving the ranger the latest clues to Francine's whereabouts.
"We just cleared a small stand of trees in the bottom basin. If she's headed west, she's here." The ranger told them, pointed out the area on the park map. "Take this road, and it will put you here. This is an old fire road, not many people outside of us rangers know about it. It should give you cover and put you closer to this old house. I'll lead you down, this road is easy to miss if you don't know where to turn off."
The agents nodded and climbed back in their cars. Following the park ranger, they made their way toward the fire road.
"You're not gonna believe this, Beaman, but I believe we have Dr. Smyth on our tail."
Efraim turned in the car seat to look behind him. Sure enough, Smyth's black limo was bouncing over the ruts in the road as it sped along behind them. Efraim shook his head and went back to listening to his wife.
The men who had abducted her were complaining in Gagauz, a Turkish dialect used in Moldova.
"I've heard that before." Geiger said. "Moldova?"
"Yeah. Moldova has been a smuggling hot bed lately. Usually stuff out of Russia."
"How did these people locate you?"
"I have no idea. I know my security is tight, and I've been checking it everyday. I don't even want to think about that until after I have Francine back. Then I'll find out how these men found my name." His tonedidn't leave room for doubt that he would get the information he wanted. Any way he could.
They turned off of the main road in the park onto the fire road.
"Jeez, I never would have found this road without the ranger. It's invisible."
Efraim nodded as he held onto the strap in the car. They were being bounced from side to side.
"You'll drive us out slower, or you'll shake the baby out of Francine."
"I will, buddy. Just keep thinking positively."
The ranger came to a stop in a clearing ahead of them. Geiger stopped the car and climbed out as did the ranger, Lee, Amanda, Billy, Leatherneck and Dr. Smyth. Efraim glowered at the crowd behind him, but he knew that Francine would be pleased to see everyone. Especially Stetson.
"If they're headed into the woods from the clearing you showed me, there's an old shack, about two hundred yards from here. I'll take you down, the path isn't clear and it's easy to get lost in here."
"Geiger, stay with the ranger. Lee, bring up the rear, Leatherneck, watch for any guards they may have roaming the woods." Dr. Smyth told the assembled agents. "Billy . . ."
"I'm not staying here. That's my agent and my friend down there." Billy told Smyth while Amanda nodded her agreement.
Smyth sighed and hit Efraim on the back. "Let's go get your wife."
The group followed Dave and the park ranger. Efraim was glad the ranger was guiding them, they never would have found the old shack alone. The sun was beginning to dip behind the trees in the park, casting long afternoon shadows on the ground. Patches of sunlight were in sharp contrast to the shadows, causing the group to move slower than they wanted in an effort to avoid the bright patches and discovery.
The shack came into view, heavily surrounded by vegetation. They came as close as they safely could, guns pulled as they stopped in a thick stand of trees.
Geiger motioned that he was going to walk the perimeter and for the group to stay where they were. Dave slipped into the shadows and was gone. Leatherneck pointed out to Efraim that Francine was indeed in the shack, showing him the tracking device he had. Efraim stared at the shack, trying to find a way in.
Dave came back as silently as he had left. "Looks like there are two of them with Francine. One's on the front porch, he has a modified Uzi with him. It sounds like the other is in with Francine. Any ideas?"
Efraim looked at the group. He stared at Leatherneck, in his usual uniform of jeans and T-shirt. Efraim was in a suit, but Lee had jeans, a T-shirt and a light windbreaker on. "Give me your pants and jacket, Stetson."
"What? You want my clothes?"
"I can't go up there dressed like this, it's too suspicious. But Leatherneck and I can walk up if we look like we've been hiking. That should give you and Dave an opportunity to get in through those missing boards there. Get my wife out of there."
"Billy and I will cover the front as you approach, if the Uzi so much as moves, we'll take him out," Dr. Smyth announced to the assembly, causing eyebrows to raise. Efraim and Dave knew from experience that Smyth could do it, the others would just have to wait and see.
Efraim and Lee quickly changed. The ranger gave Efraim his boots, telling him they would fit more with the look than Efraim's black dress shoes. Pulling his belt tight, Efraim made sure his shoulder holster was snug and accessible.
"Amanda, as soon as Francine gets out, you and the ranger get her out of here." Efraim told her, wanting his wife as far from there as possible.
"I will. All of you be careful." Amanda told them, looking at her husband.
Dave and Lee quietly headed toward the back of the shack while Efraim and Leatherneck moved through the woods. Dr. Smyth and Billy took up their positions on either side of the porch and waited.
"Are you ready, Leatherneck?" Efraim asked.
"Let's go get your Missus, Boy Scout." Leatherneck replied, his eyes on the porch ahead of them.
"Let's do it then." Efraim started tromping through the underbrush, making noise as he did so. "Man? I thought you said this was a shortcut to the road! This looks like woods, woods and more woods!"
"Shut yer trap! That's all you've done today is complain. Jeez man, I'm not taking you fishing again. First you lose the pole, then the map, then the car keys! You're a disaster!"
"The car keys aren't lost, they're locked in the car. So, watch it! And you're the one who sunk the boat."
"That was an accident! Anyone could forget to put the plug in."
"Look! A house! Maybe there's a phone here," Efraim said loudly as he started to approach the shack. He noted that the man on the porch tried to hide the Uzi, which Efraim knew gave them the advantage.
"Hey! Howdy up there!" Leatherneck yelled. "Where the hell are we?"
They watched as the guy waved at them, obviously trying to get them to move away.
Efraim bounded up the stairs, careful to jump the cracked step and the missing board on the next step. "Hey, how's it going? Hot afternoon, isn't it. Look, you gotta phone here? We lost our keys, our boat and our map. We want to call the ranger's office and have them come rescue us."
The man just looked at them and turned and shouted into the shack. Efraim took up position by the only window into the place, standing in front of the logs where the man had hidden the Uzi. Leatherneck was on the porch, giving them the advantage of flanking fire.
The first man was talking to the one from inside the shack, both standing in the doorway, and out of the sight of the room Francine was in. Efraim took the opportunity to look in the window. He saw Dave and Lee helping Francine out the back and he winked at her as she looked over her shoulder at him. As soon as they disappeared through the missing planks, he felt a deadly calm overtake him as he waited. He understood the second man as he told the first man to get rid of him and Leatherneck. When the first man asked how, the second man told him to shoot them.
Efraim carefully pulled his gun and saw that Leatherneck did the same. Efraim took a breath and called out. "Hey. Look, do you have a phone or not? It's an easy enough question to answer."
As he had hoped, both men came out onto the porch. The first man panicked as he saw that Efraim blocked his access to the Uzi he had stashed. The second man pulled a Beretta on them.
"We have no telephone here. Now leave."
"Jeez man, you don't have to pull a gun on us, we just asked if you had a telephone." Efraim started to walk towards the men and then pretended to trip over a loose board in the porch, causing him to fall into the man who had the gun. Leatherneck took out the first man while Efraim had the one with the gun on the porch with his hand on the man's throat.
The Beretta fired, hitting the remaining support of the roof, causing some of it to fall on them. Efraim got the gun away from the man and pulled his own SIG and put it between the man's eyes.
"Beaman! Let me get him. You better get back to Amanda and Francine. Now. Francine needs you." Lee was digging through the remains of the roof, tossing the pieces off of Efraim and the man he held the gun on. Leatherneck had the first man cuffed and was pulling him up the trail.
Efraim saw Billy and Dr. Smyth reach the porch, but he wasn't about to let the man go who had taken his wife.
He focused on the face of the man who was gasping under the pressure of Efraim's hand on his throat. Efraim was absorbed in watching the man's face change color as the breath was slowly being choked out of him. He felt a hand on his shoulder and eased up.
"Beaman, your wife needs you, she's in labor. I'll take care of this one, he's not going anywhere." Lee carefully watched Beaman, knowing that he was capable of choking the life from the man who had taken Francine captive. He kept his voice steady as he trained his own gun on the kidnapper.
Efraim stood up, shaking his head to clear it from the deadly fog that had momentarily overtaken him. "Is she okay?"
"Yeah, she wants you. I think the climb and stress may have induced the labor. She's mad as hell at me, and Amanda's none too happy either. So I suggest you hurry and get up there before she decides to take it out on you." Lee told him as he yanked the man off the decaying porch, cuffing him none to gently.
Dr. Smyth ran up the path with Efraim, matching him stride for stride. They reached Francine, Amanda, Dave and the ranger. Francine opened her arms to Efraim who pulled her into his own.
"Thank God you're safe. Thank God. I don't know what I would have done." Efraim buried his face into Francine's neck, inhaling the sweet scent that was hers alone.
"I knew you'd come. I knew it. I wasn't afraid, I knew you'd find me." Francine said as she cried into his chest. She stiffened and gave a slight moan, breathing until the contraction passed.
"We have to get you to the hospital." Efraim looked around, looking for someway to get Francine out of the woods without walking. "I'm gonna have to carry you, hon. You can't walk out of here. It's not that far, can you hang on?"
"To you? Forever Efraim, forever."
"That's my girl. Up we go. Jeez, what did you eat this afternoon, an entire buffet? Ouch! That hurts!"
"Don't insult a woman in labor, John."
Efraim smiled at his wife as he walked as fast as he could through the woods. The ranger was leading them, Amanda was doing her best to stomp down anything that might trip him.
"I have to stop. I'm sorry hon, I know you need to get out of here, but I need to stop for a minute." Efraim said, placing Francine on her feet as he tried to catch his breath. He was surprised as Dave walked up and picked Francine up and started walking her out.
"If you think helping me now is going to earn you any points when it comes to repayment of football debts, you have another thing coming, David Geiger!"
Dave laughed at Francine. "I wouldn't expect any from you. I'll collect from that weakling of a husband of yours!" He taunted her.
"We'll see what you have to say in another five minutes!" She shot back at him.
Efraim had caught up and watched as Dr. Smyth hurried ahead. Dave stopped and handed Francine over to Efraim.
"Changed your tune, huh Dave?" Francine said as she wrapped her arms around her husband's neck.
"Yeah, you weigh a ton, Francine."
"I'll get you for that!"
"I know you will, kid."
"Oh Efraim! I'm having another contraction." She breathed through the contraction then relaxed. "That was longer than the others."
"Hang on Francine, the cars are just ahead." They hurried into the clearing and Dr. Smyth motioned them to his limo.
"It's more comfortable than the other cars, and you might need the room." Smyth said as Efraim put Francine on the seat and climbed in. Amanda got in with him and helped Francine get comfortable on the seat.
"Thanks, Dr. Smyth." Efraim said, and he meant it.
"Take care of her, or you'll answer to me." Smyth told him. "Don't worry Francine, my driver will get you there in time. We'll see you at the hospital."
"Thank you. Ohhhh, another one!" She grimaced as another contraction overtook her.
"She's about three minutes apart now, Efraim. You're going to have to look and see if the baby is crowning." Amanda told him, pulling the door shut. They heard the limo engine start and felt the car move.
"Amanda, I've only read about this, I don't know how to do this!" Efraim said, fear lacing his voice.
"Efraim, look at me," his wife ordered. "You read all about deliveries just in case you had to deliver the baby. You have to deliver our baby. I trust you, I love you. I need you to do this, please." .
Blowing air through his teeth, he helped set about doing what he really didn't want to do; deliver their baby. He focused on what he was doing and was surprised to see that things were progressing quickly.
"We're not gonna make it. Amanda, find towels, as many as you can."
"Oh B, another one! Is something wrong? Why is this happening so quickly?" Both Efraim and Amanda could hear the fear lacing her questions.
"Francine, sometimes it happens like this. Efraim needs you to stay calm and do your breathing. Don't worry, you and the baby will be fine," Amanda assured her, the voice of experience trying to sooth a new mother.
Efraim explained what he needed to do, watching and waiting for the next contraction.
"I see the head!" He exclaimed, smiling widely at his wife.
"I want to push Efraim." Francine told him, panting as she had been taught at their Lamaze classes.
"Hon, on the next contraction I just want to check and see if the cord is around the baby's throat, so just hold on for me, we're almost there."
"I want this to be done now! Efraim, please?" Francine yelled at him.
"I know, baby, hang on, we're almost there." He told her, trying to feel the baby's neck. He slipped the cord off the neck and let out a relief filled sigh. "Okay, next time, push!" He told her, watching the determination on his wife's face. "We can do this, hon, you and me. Alright?"
He watched Francine nod and saw the intense concentration on her face. He knew she was having another contraction and watched. The baby's head was completely free, a cap of hair visible.
"One or two more, hon. You're doing wonderfully. Hang in there!" Efraim told her. They didn't have to wait long, the shoulders were next and the baby slipped into Efraim's hands.
