AN: I never want to let you down or have you go it's better off this way… please enjoy! And be relieved to know that it's almost done, I'm guessing a couple more chapters and I'll have wrapped it up! Thank you kindly for all of your comments (you have no idea how excited I get when I open up my email!) AthenaIceGoddess, BoscoCruzCrazy, KittyDoggyLover, Keridwen89, Orlando-crazy, cavanaugh-girl, daynaa, bhicks07, beccles, LafilmeMichelle, mini-cactus, hifromME, Katie, Nat, Susan Rose Potter, paigelynn, eternalgorithm, Angel Spirit, and spikes-storm thanks to all of you!

I Never Want to Let You Down

It was not hard to convince the county sheriff of Derby Line to gather a task force together in order to go out in search of Angler and Jordan. Chief Fiorenzo, despite the flowery origin of his name, was an aggressive man. He had been stationed in the county bordering Canada for 16 years with little more action than the average paper pusher gets in six months; a lifetime of punishment for disorderly behavior as a detective with the NYPD. He despised his station, though he was chief, it was bitter sweet, he knew he got the job because there was nobody else that would take it. He was tired of the customs officials pushing him around, always sent to do their bidding. He ached for excitement and now was his chance.

When Detective Woodrow Hoyt and Max Cavanaugh walked into his tiny department, it was as if a message sent from heaven.

Chief Fiorenzo gathered his deputies for a briefing held by Detective Hoyt. They reminded Woody of a younger version of himself. Eager with the fire of law enforcement, most of them were relatively new recruits who had probably lived here their whole lives. Their eyes glossy with pending excitement looked up to Woody in anticipation. To him they looked like puppies, and he was the leader of the pack. He felt hardened and he wondered if that were a blessing or a curse.

"OK, this man, going by the name Jarvis Angler, has murdered two people and kidnapped another, Jordan Cavanaugh. He is wanted in the state of Massachusetts and his vehicle was found, abandoned, on the I-91 two miles south of Derby Line. We can only assume he fled the vehicle for the forest with his hostage, we are sending three of you to investigate headed by Chief Fiorenzo. I will be heading the other part of the investigation. The remaining two officers, and Mr. Cavanaugh here, a retired homicide detective who has been a major part of this investigation," he volunteered to clear up any misconceptions on Max being a regular citizen., "will run ahead to the border to warn the customs officials and create a barrier." The officers exchanged looks when they heard Max's name, Woody knew that they suspected he was not only meager help in the case but he was personal to the case as well.

Chief Fiorenzo piped up; his voice was loud with the authority of an army sergeant major, "Alright, let's get organized. I want two cars out to the scene and two cars to the border."

Max took Woody aside and said in hushed tones, "Let's hope we're not too late."

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Meanwhile, Jordan was still on the run. It had taken them hours to traverse as far as they had. She figured that, considering where they were, they were near the border when she managed her escape. She knew it would not take long before Angler found she was missing and he would be jamming that button with such ferocity that she figured her hand would fall off. It had not come yet and even that left her feeling slightly nervous. She wanted the warning to know that he was coming after her because when he did, she wanted to be ready for him.

She was sweating profusely, her inch-long hair matted with dirt and grease. She felt like a broken G-I-Jane. Her only thought was putting enough distance between her and her captors but with every step she took, she knew it was not enough.

She heard shuffling behind her. Quickly she dodged off the deer trail and ducked behind a large tree surrounded by ferns. It was the most secretive hiding place she could have hoped for under the circumstances. Her eyes were having difficulty adjusting to the changing light and she hoped that her pursuer was having difficulty too. To her dismay, Dawn was quickly approaching and though the forest was thick, it could not shroud all of the light, and Jordan wished she had more time in the dark to escape unseen.

Beside her was a thick piece of wood. The end had rotted but as she held it in her good hand, the firmness of the blunt object surprised her. Her sweaty palm held it tight.

The noise of crackling branches stopped in front of her tree. Without even the sound of her breath, she leaned in closer, shutting her eyes, and silently hoping to become part of the tree. A bird chirped in the distance, then another long note. The crackling branches under the foot of heavy boots continued on the path she had been taking. She waited breathlessly for several minutes before risking a look over the lush ferns.

A gunshot rang out piercing the tree and showering Jordan with bark. She stumbled backward, rolling down a small embankment. Suddenly, as if somebody were trying to tell her something, a rabbit darted from a worn alcove under the embankment. It had a sandy bed that must have housed a stream at one time. There was no time to run so she squeezed herself into the space in the earth and the felled tree with no time to spare.

She covered her head; as her pursuer thumped above her, sand showered down upon her cramped body, and then he jumped down. Jordan could see his heavy hiking boots and the bottom of his legs, poised as if he were listening. He walked one way and then the other, indecisive in the direction she went. Then the sound of scurrying feet alerted them both. Jordan's head bolted up awkwardly, nearly smashing on the roots above her head and her pursuer turned around and dashed into the direction of the sound. Jordan thanked God for that little creature that had saved her life.

She was not sure whether she was taking a bigger chance by staying where she was or running around defenseless in the forest. She decided that staying unseen was most important although the smell of her hiding place left something to be desired. The decay of earth and animal feces were not the perfume she had hoped to be wearing today.

Uncomfortable, yet exhausted beyond comprehension, she made her bed and slept curled in the small cave. Her leg cast digging into her other leg, her feet cramped against the cold earth, her arms drawn up underneath her chest and her face sucking in the only air she could get from the mouth of her cramped opening. It was cold, damp, smelly and bug infested, but she was thankful only for her safety.

Her last thought before drifting off was of her father and of Woody, she wondered if they were doing everything in their power to find her, or if they even knew she was missing. If she could do nothing else with her life and these were her last moments before Angler found and murdered her, she wanted to tell them that she loved them.