Panic

“Why would a kidnapper change his motive halfway through?” asked Mary.

“He wouldn’t. Someone who has gone to this much trouble is hardly going to alter his tactics at the most crucial moment unless the kidnapper himself were no longer in the picture. What if there were actually two kidnappers, acting independently? Each of them with their own agenda. The second kidnapper could have somehow managed to get Christina away from the first. There’s going to be at least one dead body in this scenario.”

“Hank,” said Mary.

“Exactly. Kidnapper number one. Problem is, it’s very difficult to question a corpse. Fortunately, the bank details we found at his house should be enough to eventually trace where that money came from.”

“Hang on, this doesn’t make any sense. Why would someone pay a kidnapper in advance?”

“You get an ‘A’, Ms. Jordan! It makes no sense to pay ransom to a kidnapper in advance. However, something Locke said put the last piece of the puzzle into place.”

“And that was?”

“Consider the facts. Senator Logan is desperate to find Christina’s kidnapper, and he only brings us in once he loses control of the situation, which I found a little irregular. Add to that his secretive demeanor during our first meeting, and my suspicions were aroused immediately. Locke’s story regarding the senator’s desperate need for a large amount of cash only confirmed my suspicions were correct.”

“Okay, so how does it all fit together?” asked Mary.

“Remember the senator talked about the insurance policy he had in place to cover kidnappings? It would be relatively straightforward for him to pay somebody to stage a kidnapping of his daughter, hand over the cash, and then receive the settlement from the insurance company. He then gets the cash back from his accomplice and he’s effectively doubling his money.”

“But Christina’s father didn’t even know about Hank. How could he have set it up?”

“According to Christina’s friends, the relationship between her and Hank was secret,” said Leopold. “However, I doubt a man of Senator Logan’s status and wealth leaves anything involving his daughter to chance. I’d be very surprised if he didn’t have security keeping tabs on Christina twenty-four hours a day. Judging by Hank’s character, it probably wouldn’t have been too difficult to convince him to stage the kidnapping in return for a modest sum. In this case, twenty thousand dollars from a shell corporation that’s likely part of the senator’s charity scam.”

“Couldn’t Hank just keep the cash once the exchange went down?” asked Mary.

“Technically, yes. But I doubt he’d be alive for very long afterwards to enjoy it. Logan no doubt put some security measures in place to make sure he got the cash back,” said Leopold.

“But why go to all this trouble?” asked Albert. “It sounds like the senator is rich enough as it is.”

“The only thing Logan craves more than money is power. With enough support, Logan has a shot at the U.S. Senate, and from there maybe even the White House. We already know he has friends in all the right places. The only thing he needs is financial assistance, given that your average run for office can rack up bills in the hundreds of millions.”

“All this just to further a career?” said Mary.

“People have died for far less.”

“This all sounds a little farfetched. We can’t just accuse Senator Logan without rock-solid evidence,” said Mary, folding her arms.

“Evidence will come now that we know where to look. Subpoena the accounts in question, starting with the fake charities, and you’ll find the paper trail. There’ll be phone records too, linking Hank to all of this. I doubt he had the brains to cover his tracks properly,” said Leopold. “Find the one puzzle piece that fits, and the rest will all fall into place.”

“But that still doesn’t help us figure out where Christina is now. If you’re saying a second kidnapper has her, how do we find them? We don’t even know who this person is.”

“On the contrary, I know exactly who has Christina. It’s the same person who’s been sending people after us all day, trying to put us out of service.”

“And who’s that?”

Leopold wrote the name in large letters on the whiteboard.

Chapter 31

Stark knocked on the door to the senator’s bedroom and stepped inside without waiting for a response. They were at least an hour behind schedule, and the colonel was eager to put the next phase of the plan into effect. Logan still sat at his desk, the glow of the computer monitors bathing the dark room in a murky glow. Stark took a few steps toward the senator, who was cradling his head in his hands and breathing deeply.

“Sir? It’s time to move. We’re late for your appointment in the city,” said Stark.

The senator didn’t reply.

“Sir? We have to move. Now.”

Logan lifted his head slowly, and turned around in the chair to face his head of security. The senator’s face was drawn and his eyes were bloodshot, strained from glaring into a computer monitor for most of the day.

“What’s the point, Stark?” Logan mumbled. “It’s all for nothing. If I show up this afternoon without the money, it’s all over.”

The colonel suppressed a sigh. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. He wondered whether another approach would yield better results.

“There’s more, sir,” said Stark, flatly. “We tracked Blake to the source of the threatening emails. It seems one of the University’s professors had been pla

The senator’s eyes widened. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

“And it’s only a matter of time before Blake gathers enough evidence to link you to your daughter’s kidnapping,” continued the soldier. “He already found the cash you transferred to Hank. It’ll be easy enough for him to trace the money back to you.”

Senator Logan began to tremble. “You – you know about all those things?”

“Of course,” said Stark. “Within twelve hours of installing my team here, I knew everything about you. Your misguided political ambitions are overshadowed only by your greed and corruption. How could a man put his own daughter in danger, just to further his career?”

“Sh – she was never in danger. H – Hank is harmless.”

“Hank was harmless,” said Stark. “Viktor took care of him the night Christina disappeared. Unfortunately, Hank was stupid enough to call in the ransom demand while your daughter was slutting it up in a nightclub in front of a dozen witnesses. Thanks to Hank, three other people had to die so that I could have Christina to myself.”

“Wh – what are you talking about?” said the senator, his eyes suddenly sharp.

“I can’t believe our nation’s leaders can really be this stupid,” said the colonel, his lip twisting into a sneer. “I had originally pla

“My daughter! Wh – why do you want to hurt her?” said Logan, his voice trembling in horror.

“Her name is Christina,” said Stark, raising his voice. “And you put her in danger the minute you decided her life was worth less than your own blind ambition. She’s a necessary casualty in this war. But her sacrifice will not be forgotten.”

Logan jumped from his seat and dashed for the open door. Stark grabbed him by the collar, throwing him back into the chair. The senator landed hard and let out a yelp.