In a way, Amanda thought it was good. She saved money because her own thermostat rarely needed to come on. When it was too hot, she remedied the situation by sliding open her balcony door overlooking the rear alley.

Dinner was uneventful. When the dishes were done, Amanda read to Megan for a while and put her to bed. At ten o’clock she watched some of the news on the CBC National, then went to bed herself.

It was after midnight when the intruder entered her bedroom while she was asleep. He took his clothes off quietly and stood for a moment at the end of her bed. The sight of Amanda’s head on her pillow aroused him. He put on a condom and moved closer.

Amanda awoke to the feel of a latex-gloved hand over her mouth and the sharp edge of a knife at her throat.

“Not a sound, my lovely, or you’re dead,” whispered the man, his hot, moist breath in her ear.

Amanda tasted the latex from the gloves and her eyes widened in fright. She lay rigid, afraid to move or utter a sound as he slowly removed his hand from her mouth, while pinning her to the bed with the knife on her throat. She felt him rip her pajama top open and heard the sound of one of her buttons bounce off the wall.

Amanda prayed she was having a nightmare. The only light in the room came from a streetlight in the back alley. In the shadows of her bedroom, she could not accurately make out the man’s face. It was an eerie white, as if he was wearing a Phantom of the Opera mask.

Chapter Four

It was the following Monday afternoon when Corporal Jack Taggart drove the black SUV along a backcountry road. Beside him sat his partner, Constable Laura Secord. In the back seat was Helen Reed, who was directing Jack on where to drive. They were slightly over an hour’s drive from Vancouver and southeast of the city of Abbotsford.

Jack, in his late thirties, was wearing blue jeans and a woollen plaid jacket, which hung open, revealing a black T-shirt. He had an athletic build and was currently sporting a black goatee and his hair was combed straight back. It gave him a look that could best be described as a sinister arrogance. For those who did not know him, they might presume he was a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang.

Laura, a few years younger, had long curly autumn-coloured hair and was also wearing jeans, along with a V-neck green T-shirt stretched across her stunning figure. She had a look of innocence about her, which led some to believe she was naive. She was anything but, especially since working with Jack. It was her appearance, coupled with a sharp mind, which had landed many criminals in jail.

Both Jack and Laura were trained undercover operatives with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and were assigned to an Intelligence Unit in Vancouver. Their primary objective was to dismantle or disrupt criminal empires. They did it primarily through working undercover, turning informants, and using wiretap information.

Helen Reed was their informant. She was living in a common-law relationship with a man by the name of David Peltier who was actively smuggling crystal meth into the United States. Peltier had a volatile and violent temper, as was evidenced by Helen’s frequent trips to obtain medical care. She had been treated for anything from a broken jaw to a broken arm.

The first time it happened, Peltier cried afterwards and begged forgiveness. He said it would never happen again. But of course it did. Peltier never cried anymore for what he did to her. He simply promised he would kill her if she ever tried to leave him.

It was a promise Helen knew he would keep, so she was always careful to go to different medical clinics for treatment. She knew if she only saw one doctor, it might raise questions as to how she could be so accident-prone.

A week ago she was still recovering from two black eyes and a broken nose when she parked her car at a shopping mall. That was when she met Jack Taggart. He didn’t look like a cop and at first she thought Peltier was pulling a prank. After seeing his identification and allowing him to buy her a coffee, she knew it was no prank.

Jack had been targeting her boyfriend and knew she was being beaten. He told her nobody deserved to be treated like that. He explained how men like Peltier work and how the women they prey on lose all self-confidence and worth until the psychological hold on them seems impossible to break.

Helen listened, but didn’t say a word … until he told her he had a way to get her out, if she would help him. He made a promise he would never disclose her identity to anyone except his partner. He also said he would not take any action against Peltier without consulting with her, to ensure her safety.

Earlier in the day, Jack introduced her to Laura and they were going to a drug drop-off location Helen knew about.

“This is it … yeah, Henderson Road, I had forgotten,” said Helen.

Jack drove along the road and saw that it ran parallel with the United States border, which was directly beside them. The road was well treed on both sides and there was no traffic.

“There! That’s it,” said Helen, pointing to a tree with a broken top. “I let him out here at about two in the morning, then swing back two hours later and pick him up.”

“So actually it will be early Thursday morning when you let him out,” confirmed Laura.

“I guess. It’s Wednesday night when we go to the storage locker. Gotta get it before it closes, but after that … yeah, very early Thursday morning if you want to get technical. At that time of night there’s no traffic around, so if he sees anyone, he’ll know there’s heat.”

“How often do you make the trip?” asked Laura.

“About once a month on average. I’ve done it four times so far.”

“Do you do any dry runs?” asked Jack.

“Like stash it in a ditch someplace and then come here to see if the cops are waiting? So if they grab us here at the border, we ain’t got nothing?”

“Exactly.”

“Naw, we ain’t never done that,” replied Helen. “Talked about doing that the first time, but we never did.”

“What about someone standing six?” persisted Jack.

“He could have a lookout, but I’m not sure. I’ve never seen anyone. He does get a call on his cellphone before we come out, but then he gets a lot of calls, so I don’t really know.”

“Any idea on how much meth he’ll be packing across?” asked Laura.

“Not for sure, but I’m thinking at least twenty keys. I could ask, but I think he would tell me it’s none of my business and probably give me a smack.”

“Don’t do anything to jeopardize yourself,” said Jack.

“All I know is that right now it’s in the storage locker, but he is supposed to hang on to it until Wednesday night to make the delivery.”

“Why the wait?” asked Jack.

“I dunno. Somethin’ to do with the Americans getting their shit together.”

“Will it only be you and him in the car?” asked Laura. “What about the Big V guy you mentioned?”

“I told Jack earlier, I’ve never met the Big V and got no idea who he is. My old man once mentioned he was off to see the Big V. At the time I knew he was going to meet who he worked for, so that’s how I come up with that name.”

“Would sure be nice to find out who he is,” said Laura, glancing at Jack.

“Maybe if you don’t pop him Wednesday night and give it a bit more time, you could find out,” said Helen. “Can’t you like, get a bug on his phone or somethin’?”

“Getting a bug is a lot harder than most people realize,” said Jack. “Besides, in my books, busting some dope dealer isn’t worth the risk of you getting another beating. We’re not waiting. The asshole is going down.”

Helen nodded silently. She believed Jack would protect her from the first time she met him, but she felt even more assured. She sensed he was a man who kept his promise. “My old man’s been busted before,” noted Helen. “Last time he was sentenced to six years and was out after one.”