The Taken Read Online Free PDF

reeled it in together. The story ended with a shocker.
    The big fish – and goddamn if it wasn’t going to be at least a fifty-pounder – had given up the fight. Dale held the net at the ready and said to Gus, “Easy, there, easy, he’ll wake up when he realizes what’s happening.”
    It was murky in the water, and father and son looked over into it, anticipating the lunker of all time. But then they saw it, and what they saw stopped them cold.
    “Oh god –” said Gus.
    The hook was in a torso. A human body. Dale was speechless.
    The terrifying vision hung in the water like it was floating in mid-air. Gus saw the body had no head.
    “Great,” said Wingate. “I guess we better call the Marine Unit?”
    She looked at her watch. It was already seven-thirty. “It’s going to be too dark to look tonight. Get someone up here for first thing and send Barlow home. Tell her we’ll see her in the morning. And hope to hell this thing doesn’t wash up somewhere before we find it.”

] 4 [
Saturday, May 21
    Charter Anglers operated out of a shack on the shore of Gannon Lake. A couple of white wooden hulls with peeling paint lay on their sides in front of the shop, and below it, at the bottom of a short slope, was the Charter Angler dock with its sign on a post at the end of it. They had a single pontoon boat tied up, big enough for five adults. It was rigged for a trip, with three rods leaning against the back railing. “I thought they were expecting us,” said Hazel.
    “I’ll go see what’s happening,” said Wingate. They parked the car on the grass halfway between the dock and the shack. Wingate knocked on the door and went in. A moment later, he was leading a man toward the car.
    “This is Calvin Jellinek,” Wingate said, leaning in the driver’s side window. “He says Ms. Barlow called about an hour ago and is feeling too nauseous to come in.”
    “You’re going to fuck up my ten a.m., aren’t you?” Jellinek said. The muscles on his arms stood out like cables. He was a strong-looking, squat man with a face ravaged by acne scars.
    “Your partner was supposed to take us out.”
    “She was, eh? Why do I think that honour’s going to fall to me?”
    “Do you know where Ms. Barlow found the … um?”
    “I know this lake,” he said. “I can take you anywhere. But why don’t you folks come back at noon? It’s the Saturday of the long weekend. I have customers. Look –” He waved behind Wingate, and Wingate turned to see a woman and two little boys coming down toward them. The boys were wearing one-piece, full-body swimsuits that looked like diving costumes. Overtop of these suits they wore enormous, blocky red life-jackets. “They drove up from Mayfair. It wouldn’t be right –”
    “What we’re here for is a little more urgent than catching bass, I think.”
    The woman and her kids were standing slightly behind him. The boys were excited. One of them said, “Can I kill them?”
    “Be quiet, Tom. You can see Mr. Jellinek is busy.”
    Jellinek leaned forward with a pleading look on his face. It was a mean look. “Come on, Officer. Three hours. It means a hundred and fifty in my pocket, and whatever it is you’re looking for, it’ll be there at lunchtime.” He turned to his customers. “You folks just head on down to the dock. I’ll be two minutes.”
    “You’re going to have to cancel this expedition, Mr. Jellinek,” said Wingate. “I’m sorry. We’ve got a marine unit coming up from Mayfair – they’re going to be here in about an hour.”
    “You going to reimburse me for my lost income?”
    “I’m sure these folks’ll make it up to you. Those boys aren’t going to let their mother off the hook.” He immediately regretted his choice of words, thinking of what was lying out there in ten metres of water. “This is more important.”
    “Jesus,” he said, shaking his head. He turned angrily and went down to join his customers. Wingate watched the boys’ faces fall in