minutes memorizing the driver’s name and address, and scanning through the phone numbers on the cell.
Then he back-tracked to the time he’d arrived at the room the night before.
Jake rubbed his temples as the knowledge of what was going to happen filled his memories. He picked up his gear and headed back out to the Explorer. He started the still warm engine, and drove away, this time heading back toward Idaho Falls. Zack and Cheryl would be surprised to see him. Zack wouldn’t be going anywhere tonight, and in the morning before Karin arrived, he would call Carlson and tell her what had happened.
Chapter 3
It was close to midnight when Jake pulled the rental SUV into the familiar driveway at the house of his good friends, his mind still trying to fit what he’d learned tonight into some kind of reasonable sense. He lacked too much information. Maybe it was as simple as Zack having made enemies since moving up here, but somehow Jake didn’t believe that. He was pleased to see that the pickup he’d seen forced over the road edge in the mountains was still parked in the driveway, which meant he had arrived before Zack had set off on his fateful trip. The snow was unmarked behind the pickup, indicating the truck had been in place since the snow had started. It was coming down much more heavily here than it had been in the mountain pass earlier. The front must be moving from west to east.
Jake pushed open the door, feeling a number of snowflakes land on the exposed part of his arm. He swung his legs out and stepped into the snow, closing the door behind him. The snow crunched under his boots as he walked around the front of the vehicle and made for the front door. He stamped his feet on the concrete porch once he stepped under the roof overhang and reached an area where the snow hadn’t settled. The house was dark, and he could hear the doorbell as it dinged inside. He pressed it twice, separated by a few seconds since it was likely Zack and Cheryl were asleep.
A light went on the second level off to the right. That was their bedroom, so they’d heard the bell. Jake waited patiently, and then saw the curtain by the door pushed aside as someone inside looked outside to see who it was. The door opened almost immediately.
“Jake!” exclaimed a surprised Cheryl. Zack was standing behind her, slipping a handgun into his belt.
Cheryl looked behind him as if searching for someone.
“Karin? Janna?” she asked. She looked worried. Jake hadn’t announced his plan to arrive, and the middle of the night was hardly normal.
“Just me,” he replied, stepping inside as she backed in and waved him into the house.
Cheryl closed the door behind him and Zack extended his hand. “It’s been a while, Jake. What brings you here in the middle of the night? Is everything okay?”
“Not exactly,” Jake replied. “We better get comfortable. It’s going to take a while to explain. Can you make some coffee?”
Cheryl’s face reflected her shock when Jake finished telling them about the attempt on Zack’s life.
“Someone pushed Zack off the road?” she asked. “Why?”
“That I can’t tell you?” Jake said. “Have you any enemies here? Someone who might go to such lengths?”
“None,” Zack replied with certainty.
“I suspected as much.” Jake reached into his pocket and pulled out the slip of hotel stationary where he’d written down the information he’d memorized from the truck driver’s license immediately after back-tracking. He’d also recorded the truck license, as well as a half dozen numbers from the man’s cell phone. He read the name off the sheet, along with the name of the trucking company.
“I’ve never heard of either of them,” Zack replied.
“That’s what I feared,” Jake said. “Then it is likely this is somehow related to what happened in California a couple days ago.” He told them about the kidnapping that he’d managed to thwart.
“My god!” Cheryl exclaimed. “Are they all right?”
“They’re fine,” Jake replied. “The kidnapping effectively never took place. They’ll be flying in tomorrow morning.”
Zack and Cheryl had yet to meet Janna, and Cheryl smiled in anticipation.
“They’re home alone now?” Zack asked. “Is that safe?”
Jake nodded. “I spent the whole night at home before this came up and I had to back-track. There were no further problems at home.”
Zack was shaking his head.
“I’m still not an expert on how this ability of yours works, but is it possible