We last read Chapter 17, in which Sapphire Angel sneaks into the office of Chief Biggins, after hours, to find out what the chief is hiding about the shooting near the nuclear power plant. She learns that Biggins has lied to her — the officer who investigated the shooting was not on vacation, but had been suspended by Chief Biggins on the same day Beth had met with Bud Tanner. As Sapphire Angel continues her search of the office, she hears people enter the police station and approach the office. She is not alone.
This is the second story, so if you want to start from the very beginning, you can jump over to book 1, and begin with the Prologue of Sapphire Angel, Superheroine. Or to start at the beginning of book 2 (this story), click over to the Prologue of Power Play.
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Sapphire Angel's eyes darted about the room as the sound of footsteps and voices came down the hall. Short of crashing through the window, she had no other way out of the room. She eyed the large stuffed bear in the corner, where the beast reared up on a boulder. She darted to it, keeping to her tiptoes, and slipped behind the animal just in time. Someone flicked the light switch, and light flooded the room. Sapphire Angel didn't dare peer out from behind the bear, whose massive legs were each as wide as the superheroine's slim waist and kept her hidden from anyone in the room.
"Alrighty, here it is," the voice of Chief Biggins drawled.
"Nice trophies," another man said. She didn't recognize the voice, which was flat, low, and firm.
"Aw, damn," Biggins answered. "That ain't nothing. I get stuff like that every year." As he chuckled Sapphire Angel imagined his belly rumbling.
The sound of footsteps approached her position, and her heart pounded. She wasn't sure what she would do if they discovered her. She could fight her way out of here, but assaulting a police officer wasn't an option.
The footsteps stopped just a few feet away. "Quite the bear," the unrecognized voice said with no emotion. Sapphire Angel held perfectly still, her body tense. If the man fully inspected the bear and walked around it, he would discover her.
The seconds dragged on and Sapphire Angel was afraid to breathe. As the man examined the animal, a foot came into view and inched forward, and then his shoulder, wearing a business suit.
A cell phone rang, and the shoulder and foot disappeared from view. She fought back an exhale.
"What's up?" the unknown voice answered. There were a few moments of silence before the voice spoke again. "Okay, thanks. We're heading there now to check it out."
A beep signaled the end of the call, before the same voice spoke again.
"It's almost ready," the voice said. "Let's go."
The footsteps retreated and moments later the room went dark. Sapphire Angel finally exhaled.
Less than a minute later she heard the main door and screen door open and close in succession. She peeked out from behind the bear and confirmed she was alone, before hurrying across Biggin's office and through the secretary's office. She darted to the front door, the carpeted floor muting her footsteps. When she reached the door, she peered out its small window into the parking lot, and spotted three men standing around a police cruiser.
She made out the flabby form of Chief Biggins without difficulty. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she also saw Xavier Wheldon, the CEO of StarPrime and the owner of the Pegasus Club. She recognized him from her earlier research. Even in the dim light Sapphire Angel noticed his neatly pressed suit and his dark, slicked-back hair. A huge individual with a military-style buzz cut stood next to him. The man stood well over six feet tall and wore a t-shirt that showed off his rippling muscles.
Wheldon and Biggins spoke for a few moments, while the muscular man stood to the side, scanning the surrounding area. A bodyguard, no doubt. She stood back from the window so he wouldn't notice her in the darkened building.
The men didn't move toward the building, but walked toward their vehicles. Biggins climbed into a police cruiser, while Wheldon and the bodyguard entered a black Mercedes. Wheldon drove, while the bodyguard climbed into the passenger seat. The cars moved, heading off into the night.
Sapphire Angel waited only a moment before rushing out the door and locking it behind her. She sprinted to her car, and moments later the engine purred to life. She kept her headlights off as she sped past the station, turning down the same alley used by Wheldon and Biggins.
Coming to the main road, she looked to her right and saw a pair of taillights in the distance, heading up the incline out of town. Over the next five miles she followed the vehicles around a series of turns, keeping her headlights off and deactivating her brake lights with another button on the dash. It became clear they were headed toward the plant or to Wheldon's land.
After a few more minutes, they reached the same dirt road she had visited earlier in the day. The vehicles pulled onto the shoulder and their headlights turned off. The heroine scanned the surrounding forest, spotting a flat area just off the road, behind a large growth of vegetation. She guided her car there, letting it glide to a stop.
Sapphire Angel retrieved a small pair of binoculars from a metal briefcase below the passenger seat and exited the vehicle. She eased her door shut and darted toward the other two vehicles. When the parked cars came into view, the men were not in sight, but she heard voices ahead in the forest. The costumed woman stalked off after them.
The woods had changed in the time since her earlier visit, as Beth. It was now the early morning hours, and floating mist clung to the bed of the forest, creeping up the trees and among the vegetation. Forest creatures cackled and shrieked in the distance, as if objecting to the intruders in their domain. Moonlight peaked through the clouds and the trees, casting twisting shadows on the ground.
As Sapphire Angel crept toward the voices, she saw the three men ahead. If her imperfect sense of direction was correct, they marched southwest. One of them carried a flashlight as they weaved through the forest, creating a dull halo of light in the mist. She picked her way toward it, avoiding any fallen limbs underfoot. She guessed the road to be behind and to her left, as she angled away from it and deeper into the woods.
As she followed, Sapphire Angel realized her precarious situation. If Wheldon or his companions discovered her, any chance of stealth would be gone, and so would any chance of learning their plans. Even worse, someone like Wheldon might employ an army of guards, and they could descend on her. She was confident in her abilities, but didn't want to test her limits. She needed to take some chances if she wanted to learn anything, but she could be cautious. She continued forward, following the light, but also looking about for other signs of life.
The flashlight ahead paused and shone back in her general direction. She froze, fearing they had detected her, but a moment later she realized the light was shining not at her, but off to her left. When she glanced in that direction, she saw movement through the woods. Someone was heading her way.
Sapphire Angel lunged to her right, slipping behind a large tree. She held her breath as footsteps got closer. She waited until curiosity got the best of her, peeking out and spying three men dressed in black uniforms and toting rifles. They marched forward less than twenty yards away, heading straight for her position.
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Ugh....this is LITERALLY giving me anxiety, like.....what the heck? Between that scene with the bear trophy and now the ending part with the flashlight.....oh, well. I’ve got, like, two and a half hours of free time right now, so I should be able to get through a good chunk of this book! Let’s continue!