Coveted (Completed) - Chapter 14: Chapter 14

We had taken two cars, Hector and Jamison in his whilst I accompanied Bishop, both of us silent on the journey, too much running through our minds.
We had arranged to meet with some contacts of Bishop's and Jamison men in a car park, one road behind the target. Bishop had the lap top open on the dash, showing the tracker location, as he had decided it would take too long to download the programme to our phones, and the laptop could be carried with us, so it was showing us the way.
Bishop quickly divided us into teams and we cautiously moved, a team taking the rear of the property as we took the front, the laptop showing us our destination was a ground floor flat. Jamison had handed us walkie talkies so we were in touch and on Bishops mark we pushed through the front door as Jamison breached the back.
It was empty...
Bishop growled as he lifted a delicate gold watch off a dresser "This is Maisie's... check everywhere" he ordered and our men started searching.
"He hasn't been gone long" Jamison informed us, his hand on the mattress "The bed is still warm, we must have only just missed him"
"Fuck!" Bishop shouted, sending two of his men out to search the local area, grabbing his phone out of his pocket as it rang. "Fraser" he barked before his tone changed. "Thank you Neave, yes I will send a car for you both, tell Mary not to worry" he snorted at whatever response he got before ringing off.
"Is she alright?" I ask and he nods.
"Mary has a clean bill of health and is wanting to come home and wanting an update on Maisie" he groans "Maisie will be devastated if anything happens to Mary"
"What now?" Hector asks from my side.
"We leave a man here and hope he returns, but I think we need to keep searching, how long before that woman arrives?
We look towards Jamison who checks his phone "2 hours"
Bishop nods and rakes his hands through his hair "Lets get back to the house and re-group, we need to plan while we wait for her to get here, your hacker, how good is she?" he asks Jamison.
"The best I have ever come across"
"Could she track the watch back, I don't know enough about the programme or tech to do it myself but I do seem to remember the tracker pings its location every 30 minutes. We are not going to get that access officially any quicker, so if she can..." he trails off and Jamison steps up.
"She can do it" he agrees.
We look round the flat, there was nothing here to tell us where he was, it looked like a rental place, nothing personal here except Maisie's watch and some clothes in a suitcase in the bedroom.
Picking up her watch, Bishop slips it into his pocket, his gaze scanning the room before we all head out, disappointment on all our faces as we leave, not seeing the man watching from the shadows of the building at the top of the hill. His face set in anger as he glares down at us before turning on his heel and slipping back into the shadows.
Officer Lachlan is waiting for us back at the house when we get there, his casual dress and off roader indicating he was now off duty, what did he want. He came towards the car when Bishop parked, both of then shaking hands once he was out of the vehicle. "What do you need me to do?" he asked him and I waited to see what he would say.
"Grid search, all the buildings, regardless of them being ruins or not, Stewarts a lazy bastard so it would have to be accessible by car, I doubt its on his land but you never know. I've got teams searching but they don't have your training. Where would you hide her?" Bishop told him.
We all waited as the man thought about it, "Somewhere out of bounds" he murmured his gaze searching out across the loch and hills "The range? or somewhere within the base boundaries, if he could get access" he finally said looking at Bishop.
"I'll let them know your coming" Bishop replied slapping him on the back then heading for the house, as Lochlan headed for his truck. We follow Bishop as he calls his PA "Beth, Lachlan Tate is coming up to do a sweep of the outer range, can you let everyone know he is on his way and can you organise a team to do a full perimeter check... thanks "
"This way" he called from ahead of us, leading us into a roomy kitchen where a map was spread over a table and an older man was barking instructions into a radio before marking the map.
"McDowell?"
"Commander, nothing so far, these are all clear" his hand hovers over an area on the map "the teams are now checking this area, they are a bit more remote but you never know. All of the farmsteads have been notified and are checking their own buildings and reposting back in. I've got to ask through Commander, is anyone searching the..."
"Base, Lachlan is on his way there now" Bishop tells him with a nod.
"Good, good, its where I would go" he mutters, going back to the map and writing Lachlan's name next to an area.
Its an hour later when Jamison's phone rings "Emily?" he listen's for a moment and grins "They're here"
The two SUV's pulling up at the front door just as we get there, Jamison moving to the second vehicle and pulling Emily down into his arms before pulling her round to meet Bishop, there muffled conversation registering but not out focus as we stare at the woman sat in the back of the first car... Caroline Strait.
We turn and watch Bishop pull the watch out of his pocket and hand it to Emily before he leads her inside, Jamison coming across to join us, nodding at his team to get her out.
Caroline Strait glares at us as she comes round the car, security to each side of her and her hands handcuffed in front of her. There is no remorse on her face, no guilt and strangely given the situation she is in... no fear. Her gaze leaves us and scans the house in front of her, her lip curling slightly as her gaze narrows before returning to us.
"Why am I here?" she snaps.
"We have some questions for you" I respond "Before we had you over to the local authorities for fraud, theft assault and kidnapping"
Her face blanches "I don't know what you are talking about" she replies but I can hear the crack in her voice.
Bishop re-joins us "This way, we can use the office for this" he growls out and I watch as Strait gets whiter at the sight of Bishop, swaying a little before security push her after his retreating back.
Jamison grins darkly "Do you get the impression she knows who Bishop is and is now realising the danger she is in"
I nod "Lets let him lead" I say making Jamison chuckle
"I don't think you could stop him" he laughs and we all follow.
The office is a much starker room than the library, all business. Bishop is leaning against the solid oak desk glaring down at Strait who is sat on a wooden chair in the middle of the room. The two security staff moved out of the room at our entrance and we stayed against the back wall, behind her sightline.
"Miss Strait, do you know who I am?" he snaps at her and she nods, staying silent.
"Good, then I will assume you will be fully aware of what I am capable of" again she nods, "You and Stewart Duncan have sought to cause harm to Lady Greystone and that in turn causes me harm"
I can see her head start to shake and as she starts to speak Bishop holds up his hand.
"Now I believe you may not have fully understood the risks you were taking engaging with him. You were at university together, is that correct?
She nods saying "Yes" almost silently, her gaze not leaving Bishop.
"He probably told you she was an easy mark, that she deserved it, that he was more entitled to the land, is that right" his voice is calm, reasonable but we could all feel it was an act, was she buying it?
"He said the inheritance should have been his, he was left with just a small parcel of land, that everyone know it should have been his and pitied him because she had you backing her"
"And you believed him, did you check, did you look beyond your own greed and avarice?"
"It wasn't like that" she shook her head, "Stewart loved me, he needed me"
Bishop straightened "Then you should have supported him, not gone after my cousin who has done nothing wrong, yet you threatened her, stole her land and NOW HE HAS TAKEN HER" Bishops calm breaks and he shouts the last stood over Strait as she screams in fear.
"He has run and left you to pick up the blame" Bishop taunts her.
"He would never, you're lying!" she cries back, her head turning to try and see us. "He would never leave me, this is not my fault"
Jamison steps forward to Bishops side "Ms Strait, The Commander is correct, Duncan has run and left you to take the blame, however before he ran, he attacked a member of this household and took Lady Greystone hostage" he paused looking down at the woman in front of him "You are an accomplice and we are offering you one chance to prove that it wasn't all you, one chance to try to make things right"
"How?" her voice cracks on the word.
"You help us catch him and find Lady Greystone" Jamison tells her and her head hangs as she nods.
"How, how can I do that?" she asks him and I fell both glad that she is willing to help but disgusted as its clearly to save her own skin.
"No loyalty between thieves" Hector whispers from my side as Jamison and Bishop lay out what they want her to do.
A knock at the door halts the conversation as it opens and Emily is stood there "It worked?" Bishop asks and she nods, her gaze taking in the room.
"Boys, go with Emily, get a radio from McDowell" he barks at us and I see Jamison nod of encouragement. Pushing Hector towards the door as Jamison comes to take a phone from Emily, handing us his car keys before returning to Bishop and as we leave we hear him tell her she has to contact Duncan and arrange a meeting, not giving anything away.
The door shuts behind us and we look at Emily. "I found a trail from the watch, it goes to a remote location and is there for two pings before going back to town then to here" she tells us and we grin that must be it.
"Come on" we rush to the kitchen to both grab a radio as instructed and to look at the map. McDowell helping us find the route and location on the map, he had no one in that area yet, as it was on the boundary of Bishops own land and the Range it would have been some of the last areas searched.
"I'm coming with you" Emily says following us out the door "I can help direct or organise help if needed, I am also first aid trained" she points out when we try to argue and recognise with fear it would be best to have her along for the first aid alone.