Chapter 8

EIGHT

Out at the Broken Hill Mine, Ethan Shoebridge's phone buzzed in his pocket. He frowned. No one called him at work. Not that his job entailed much physical work. He checked the miners as they left the mine to ensure they hadn't stolen any of the uncut gemstones. He didn't need to work. His involvement with the Company had made him a rich man. The security job was a coverup, a front to hide behind. In his business, every attempt to appear normal was imperative. No one would suspect a man with a wife and young kid of having his particularly lucrative and pleasurable pastime. He pulled out the phone. It was a burner. He'd never owned a regular phone that could be traced and every call recorded. It must be the Company, but they'd never given him two girls at the same time. "Yeah."

"It's Rene. I know you said never to call you at work, but the FBI came to the house and I'm in the back of the sheriff's cruiser with Ava."

Alarm bells sounded in Shoebridge's head and he started to move. "Don't tell them anything. Play dumb—you'll be good at that—and don't tell them about the doctor. Got it? If you do, they'll throw you in jail and you'll never see Billy again. I gotta go."

"Ethan, wait. I did tell them about Dr. Benson. I'm sorry, I didn't know it was a secret."

Panic welled up inside him. "That's okay, just don't tell them anything else." He disconnected and called Dr. Benson. As he waited to be put through, he went to the locker in his office, spun the combination lock, and pulled out his to-go bag. It had the items he needed to get away: emergency cash, a driver's license in a different name, and the keys to a storage locker close by that held everything he needed for a fresh start. He started for his truck with the phone pressed to his ear. "It's over. Head for the hills. The FBI showed at my house. I'm leaving now. I'll meet you at the next location."

"Don't worry. We've done this before. You know what to do." Benson sounded as calm as always.

Throwing open the door of his truck, Shoebridge climbed inside. "I know. I haven't called in yet. Get the heck out of town. They'll know your name by now, but Rene's not at the sheriff's office yet. She called me from the back of the cruiser. Rene spilled her guts about everything. I'll call in and give the Company my new number, they'll give it to you when you call. Dump your phone as usual. Catch you later." He disconnected and tossed the phone out of the window.

He took the backroad out of the mine that looped around and came out past the front entrance. He slowed at the security gates and used his remote to open them. Ahead was another short, wide road and he accelerated. The road came out right before the access ramp to the highway. It was a short drive to his storage locker from there and inside he had a well-maintained vehicle and cans of gas. Suitcases, packed and ready to go, would give him a whole new identity and a ton of cash to make him disappear. He'd swap vehicles, change clothes, and then call the Company. He arrived at the locker, made haste to fill the vehicle with gas, moved it outside, and replaced it with his truck. He changed clothes swiftly, pulled on a pair of worn Levi's, a warm winter jacket, and pushed on a Stetson, a pair of sunglasses, and his appearance was like a hundred or so men around town. He unwrapped a new burner phone and pressed in a memorized number. When the man answered, he explained his situation. He waited a few long minutes before the voice came back with the name of a town he'd never heard of. "Where?"

"It's a mining town by the name of Rainbow. There are miners' cottages all over. We'll have one ready for you by the time you arrive. Along the way, we'll find you another girl. I'll see if I can arrange a second one to cook and clean. One of our people died recently and had one really well trained. She won't try to run. I hear she's a rare beauty. Her last owner refused to sell her."

Relieved, Shoebridge chuckled. "Rare beauty, huh? As long as she can cook and clean, I'll take her. It would save raising another one and I'm fifty now. I'm not sure I could be bothered."

"I'll send her along. Your new identity will be set by the time you arrive. I'll start the backup files right away. I'll send the coordinates of the cabins. We have renovated a few in that area. Same as your last place, with a soundproof barn. It's nice and quiet in Rainbow and there are mines all over. I'll make sure you get a part-time job to make you look legit." The man at the other end of the line paused a beat. "This time, it's a fast turnover, three months max. I don't want you getting the urge to send another one to school. That's probably how they found Rene. I'll check with our cyber-specialists and see what the FBI discovered. We'll take out the agents involved if necessary. Right now, all they have is a drugged psychotic. Nothing she says will stand up in court, but Ava might be able to give them descriptions. Did you leave any photographs in the home?"

Carrying out the suitcases to the truck, Shoebridge dumped one in the back and then shook his head. "Nope. I kept it just as you recommended. No photographs of anyone. There are the master tapes of the videos I took of the girls in my den but no one can be identified by them."

"Don't worry about them, we have copies here. It's a long drive to Rainbow. I would advise that you don't stop to eat until you buy gas. You know the drill. Use cash and we'll have a new card sent to you soon. You'd better be on your way. You'll need to be well away from Louan before they know you're missing."

Shoebridge disconnected, pocketed the phone, and pulled down the door to the storage locker and locked it. Everything inside would be dealt with by the Company. That's why he allowed himself to be recruited by them. After a sexual assault charge when he turned nineteen, a man had approached him and offered to get him off the charges. He went on to tell him he could have all the girls he wanted and be paid a fortune. All he had to do was be the middleman. Alone in the world with jail time hanging over his head, he jumped at the chance and had been with the Company ever since. They paid well and protected him from the law. He loved his work. He figured he could describe himself as a girl whisperer. They came to him wild and spitting and left placid. Over the years he had gotten the concoction of drugs he gave them down to a fine art. He pushed the phone into his pocket, climbed into his new truck, and headed out of town. He wouldn't give the town, Rene, or Ava a second thought. Excitement tingled through him at the thought of a new girl and the housekeeper sounded nice too. His future was all planned out and he didn't have a care in the world. I guess I was born lucky.