Page 26 of SEAL's Resolve
“I’m Brent Maddox, CEO of Fortress Security. Your father hired Fortress to rescue you. What did the doctor say about your injuries?”
She shrugged. “I’m a little banged up.”
His lips curved. “Your father will be pleased to hear the news although I guarantee he’ll want more details. He’s waiting outside my office to speak to you.”
“Not patiently, I’ll bet.”
“No, ma’am. What can you tell me about the men who took you?”
“There were a lot of them, and they weren’t gentle.” She shuddered. “A few of them enjoyed hurting me.”
His eyes narrowed as he shifted his attention to Jackson. “Assessment?”
“Bruises to her extremities, ribs, and jaw. When they shoved her against the side of the van, Kristi hit her head which is causing headaches but she doesn’t have a concussion. She’ll be fine in a few days.”
Brent rubbed his jaw. “Torres and Durango took down five men, leaving three of the eight men that Kristi saw. According to Zane, the Gatlinburg police responded to two accidents on Hart Mountain with three fatalities. Now you’re telling me that another man tried to get to Kristi in the hospital. Is the fake orderly talking?”
“No, sir,” Rafe said. “Josh said he asked for his lawyer.”
“No report on his identity?”
“Not so far.”
“I’ll text Josh. If the man doesn’t have a record, I’ll ask Josh to send what they have to Zane. He might have better luck. Kristi, do you know what the men wanted?”
“They didn’t talk except to threaten me if I didn’t cooperate. I assumed they wanted money.” She grimaced. “I wasn’t coherent long. The drug they used to knock me out did a good job. I woke up about the time Rafe arrived.”
Brent turned his attention to Eli. “What’s the plan?”
“At this point, I don’t know. Josh says they weren’t followed to Otter Creek. How did this guy find Kristi at the hospital?”
“Her GPS tracker,” Rafe said. “That’s the only explanation.”
“If I can be tracked by the wrong people, I want the tracker removed,” Kristi said.
Brent looked at Rafe. “Opinion?”
“I agree. Unless all six of us missed a tail, which I doubt, the tracker is a liability.”
“Her father won’t agree. You know her history.”
A slight nod. “I think I have a solution to satisfy her father and shut down his tracker. Use ours.”
Kristi scowled. “I’m not exchanging one tracker for another one. I’ll still be vulnerable.”
“The only people with access to the tracker frequency are Brent, Zane Murphy, our tech wizard, and my team. Zane has so many firewalls in place that no one outside our circle can access the information.”
“You said the tracker is under the skin at my lower back. Will the Fortress tracker be in the same place?”
“I can do that,” Jackson said. “However, we also have jewelry or watches with a tracker embedded in the design.”
She breathed easier. “I like that idea much better.”
“Rafe?” Brent looked at him. “Preference?”
He glanced at Kristi. “Might be overkill, but I want you to wear the jewelry and the watch.”
“I don’t have a problem with that. Will I have to return to the hospital to have Dad’s tracker removed?”