The Belial Stone(87)

The trade-off, though, was that she was having difficulty holding onto her tools. And her back was screaming from being hunched over for so long. She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to stand up once they finally allowed her to.

She couldn’t remember ever being so physically exhausted. Tom had seemed to retreat into his own little world, but Laney knew he must be in even more pain than her.

As the sun finally slipped below the horizon, Laney looked up expectantly. She breathed deep. The work would have to end now.

Spotlights glared on across the enclosure, bathing the dig site in high-voltage light. She looked around in stunned disbelief, her hope plummeting.

Lights were strung across the entire enclosure. She hadn't noticed them before. Despair threatened to send her into unending river of tears.

Beyond defeated, she picked up her brush and began removing more dirt from the granite in front of her. When will this day end?





CHAPTER 70



The plans for the assault on the compound lay on the kitchen table. They would go in just before dawn. Henry was busy explaining the plan to Jordan, who had just returned from the other house. The police were still investigating, and they weren’t buying Jordan’s story completely. But Jordan had been able to prove that he’d just flown in, and they’d been unable to hold him.

Jake tried to focus on the conversation, but Laney’s face and then Tom’s kept flashing through his mind, distracting him.

Henry put his hand on Jake’s shoulder, pulling him from his thoughts. “You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

Henry didn’t say anything, just waited.

Jake sighed. “What do you want me to say, Henry? We’re going to go rescue the men from the compound and by doing so, sign Laney’s death warrant. So, yeah, I’m great.”

“I know it's an impossible choice. If we go in, we're signing her death warrant. If we don't, we're signing the death warrant of every man in that place. Tell me what you want me to do, Jake, and I’ll do it. If you don’t want us to go in, we won’t.”

Jake raked a hand through his hair. “How can I say that? Tom’s in there and I’ve seen what those men are going through. How can I say that saving them is wrong? I just don’t understand why Laney has to pay the price for their lives.”

Jake’s cell phone rang and he looked down. Yoni. He’d gone to scout out the compound one last time to make sure there’d been no changes in security. “Yeah?”

“She’s here, Jake,” Yoni said.

“What?”

“Laney. She’s at the compound.”

“Are you sure?” Jake asked, not daring to hope.

“I’m sure. I got a good look at her when they escorted the prisoners to the sleeping quarters.”

“Does she look okay?”

“No noticeable injuries,” Yoni said, his tone upbeat.

“Thank God.” Jake released a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding.

“‘Thank God’? I think that Padre has been a good influence on you.”

“What about security? Any changes?”

“Yeah. They’ve beefed it up. There’s an extra patrol truck on the fence and more guards at the enclosure. We’re going to need more men.”

“Okay. We’ll figure it out.” Jake hung up.

He turned to find Henry grinning at him. “So, now it looks like we’re saving everybody?”

Jake returned the grin “Yup."

Then the grin slid from his face. “But they’ve beefed up security. Yoni thinks we need more men.”

“We can’t get them in until tomorrow, at the earliest.”

“Why do we need more men?” Jordan asked.

“They’ve increased security at the site,” Jake replied, staring at the map.

With a smile, Jordan pointed to the sleeping enclosure on the compound map. “I think we have more than enough men. We just need to get them weapons.”





CHAPTER 71



The living room was a buzz of activity as they made the final preparations for the assault. Jake finished packing the ammunition into his bag. Yoni was working on the assault team’s communications. Patrick was familiarizing himself with the weapons they would be using, and Henry was reviewing the plan, adjusting as he saw necessary.

Jake tested the pack for weight. Good. He glanced over at Patrick.

The news that Laney was at the compound had given Patrick a renewed determination. If anyone got between Patrick and his goal of saving Laney, God help them -- although Jake liked to think that with the Father on their team, God wasn’t going to be helping the other side much.

Even without divine intervention, though, he had a feeling that Father Patrick was not a man that you crossed easily. Much like his niece.