Tahoe Skydrop (An Owen McKenna Mystery Thriller Book 16) by Todd Borg

Author:Todd Borg
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: private investigator, lake tahoe, tahoe, great dane, owen mckenna, spot
Publisher: Todd Borg

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

I left my stakeout place and hustled down the mountain with Spot. We rushed through the forest. Spot can run downhill at high speed. He got far out in front of me, then turned and looked back up the mountain to see what was taking me so long.

I thought about what I’d seen as I hopped and slid and scrambled down the slope. Why would three armed men be up on a lonely ridge guarding Jonni? Two men, unarmed, would have been sufficient to keep a 24-hour-a-day eye on Jonni. In fact, unarmed men would do a better job, because any hiker coming through the woods who happened to see the armed men would likely report it to the police. Clearly, these men didn’t care about efficiency and common sense. They cared about a macho sense of intimidation, even if their subject was a young child. Perhaps the people behind the kidnapping felt that their efforts to acquire a billion-dollar software prize suggested extreme support measures. It’s the same principle people miss in countless situations. Anytime you have something very valuable, the more extreme your protection, the more you announce that value to the world. Hiding value in plain sight is often a safer approach.

When the guard talked about a password, it made me wonder if Jonni somehow had the key to the stolen software.

In addition to excessive guard forces, one more thing seemed obvious.

The men I saw were merely enforcers. Their general, the decision maker, was someone else. I had no way of knowing if he was on or off the premises. The man on the phone when we’d been shot at was called Lucas, and he had a strong accent. I’d heard enough words from the men at the lodge to know that none of them had an accent.

A half hour later, Spot and I were down the mountain and climbing into the Jeep. I checked my cell reception. There was none in this remote location.

I drove out toward the highway, checking every half minute. As I thought about what I’d tell Vince, I came to an uncomfortable conclusion. It made sense to tell him his child was okay. But he would be agitated and would demand that I tell him where his kid was so that he could storm the castle. Such an action would be unwise and probably unsafe for Jonni.

Saving Jonni would require a careful plan. We would need to consider all possibilities. If we just charged up the mountain, the guards would intercept us, maybe kill us, and maybe decide that keeping Jonni alive was too much of a risk.

I decided to act in Jonni’s best interest, and not tell Vince I’d seen his kid. From what I’d witnessed, I believed that Jonni would still be alive in the morning. With planning, we could figure out the best way to rescue Jonni.

When I came to an area with cell reception, I called Vince.

“Any word from the kidnappers?” I asked.

“No! Those bastards said they’d let Jon go!”

“Let’s not jump to any conclusions.

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