Chapter 51

fifty-one

DYLAN

I’d spent the last hour tossing and turning in bed. I needed more sleep, but I was worried about Alex. If I wasn’t uneasy about his appointment in Boulder before seeing today’s email, I sure was now.

Jeremy and Connor didn’t say much when I showed them the photo, but I knew them well enough to realize they were concerned about Alex’s safety.

Bryant Security and the FBI were doing everything they could to find the man who’d been kidnapped. I could only guess how Anthony’s family was feeling. Knowing the person you love is being tortured by a ruthless terrorist organization is beyond what most people have to endure.

I turned over my pillow, then stared at the ceiling for a few more minutes before deciding to get up. Lying there, imagining what was happening in Boulder, wasn’t helping anyone. Throwing off the blankets, I slid out of bed and thought about what I had to do today.

My thick red socks muffled the sound of my footsteps as I gathered my clothes together. Everyone should be back from the hospital by eleven o’clock. Before they arrived, I’d call Ryan and ask him if there was any update on Anthony.

I couldn’t tell Alex about his colleague. Not yet. Like everyone else, he was frustrated at the amount of time it was taking to find the terrorist cell. If he knew about the kidnapping, he might take matters into his own hands.

Just as I was heading into the bathroom, my cell phone rang. It was Jeremy. “Hi. Are you leaving Boulder?”

“Alex has gone. He left the hospital about thirty-five minutes ago.”

“What do you mean gone? Weren’t you with him?”

“After he had his stitches removed, he left through a door in the staff area. We checked the hospital’s security footage. He was on his own. Has anyone emailed him while we’ve been here?”

I rushed across to my laptop. My cell phone hadn’t warned me that Alex had received another email, but I might have had more sleep than I thought. “I’m checking his emails now.”

I ran my eyes down the messages. Nothing new had arrived from the terrorist group. “There’s nothing in his inbox that we should be worried about. Apart from the doctor, did he talk to anyone else at the hospital?”

“Not that we saw. Why do you think he left?” Jeremy sounded out of breath.

“Are you running?”

“I am. Connor and I are almost at the parking lot.”

“He’s probably as worried as we are about what’s happening. Did he tell the doctor where he was going?”

“The only thing they discussed was his arm.”

Another thought crossed my mind. I opened Alex’s sent email box and groaned.

“What is it?” Jeremy asked .

“Get back to the ranger’s house. Alex emailed the terrorist cell. He’s giving them the program.”

Jeremy cursed. “Connor will call Ryan while I’m driving. We’ll ask him to contact the FBI.”

I threw on my clothes. “I should be able to stop him before he reaches his property. If Ryan hears anything, ask him to call me straightaway.”

“Okay. I’ll text you as soon as we arrive at Alex’s house.”

With a sick feeling in my stomach, I ended the call. I hoped Alex knew what he was doing. Once the FBI arrived, they wouldn’t be interested in why he was meeting the Haqani Army. He was about to commit an act of cyberterrorism, and he’d be treated like a criminal.