Page 78

He allowed himself to smile when the color seeped from Josh's face. “MyBabyG23.”
Riggs snorted and keyed in the code. As he did, he walked over to where Gunner stood. "Let's see what this guy has for us."
Georgie heard the howl about the same time Riggs disappeared out of the door. There was no doubt in her mind. Gunner had found Josh. Which meant it was safe for her to leave the house. She needed to know if Josh had gone through with his threat and had another victim in the trunk of his car.
A sense of relief washed through her when she reached the car. It was unlocked. She opened the driver's door and pressed the trunk lock. Then she went to the rear of the vehicle.
The trunk was unlocked and open about six inches. Georgie lifted it and gasped. A beautiful woman with long honey-blond hair was tied and gagged. Her eyes were wild with fear, and her wrists and ankles swam with blood where the ropes cut into her as she struggled for freedom.
A muffled sound of fear came from the woman, and she tried to scoot away when Georgie reached in to help her. "I won't hurt you, I promise," Georgie spoke in as soothing a tone as she could manage. "My name is Dr. Georgina Williams, and I'm a prisoner of the man who abducted you. He is outside somewhere. His name is Josh.
"We have to get you out of that car in case he comes back here." When Georgie reached out this time, the woman didn't shy away. Georgie removed the gag and started on the ropes around the woman's wrists.
"We've got to get out of here! Are the keys in the car? Can you drive? No, I can drive. I know how to drive. We can escape. Untie me. Please, please, before he comes back. He said he'd…"
Tears exploded from her eyes, and she jerked her hands-free as the knot loosened. She gave her face a quick swipe before starting to work on the rope around her ankles. "He said he was going to fuck every hole I had, and then he was going to start cutting me up, a little bit at a time."
She ripped the ropes away and climbed unsteadily and quickly on all fours. Georgie reached to help but was too slow. The woman hit the ground face first but got to her feet, ignoring the dirt and blood.
"We have to call the—"
A second howl had her falling silent and her face going nearly white. "What in hell is that?"
"Where we need to go." Georgie looked in the direction of the sound.
"Are you crazy? We have to get out of here!" The terror on the woman's face reminded Georgie that she'd been through a terrible ordeal, making reason flee. All the woman could think of was escape.
Georgie understood that but needed to get through to the woman. She grabbed the woman's hand. "Please. Listen to me. I've been that lunatic's prisoner for weeks, so maybe I am a little crazy, but there are two heroes out there. Two SEALs who came to save me, and it looks like they saved you, too. So, I'm for going to where they are."
"For real? Navy SEALs?"
"Yes."
"Fine, I'm with you."
Georgie hoped she'd get to tell Riggs and Gunner how hearing about the Navy SEALs inspired a terrified woman to walk into the darkness where she was sure the devil waited.
Georgie started forward, each step more painful than the last. The woman moved up beside her and wrapped an arm around Georgie's waist. "Let me help."
"Thank you," Georgie accepted the aid gratefully. She didn't want to admit, even to herself, how much pain she was in. It wasn't from one thing but a collection. Josh had worked her over before he left.
"I'm Georgie," she said as she wrapped her arm around the woman's shoulder. "I guess I already said that."
"It's okay. I'm Grace."
"Let's move, Grace."
With that, they started in the direction Georgie pointed. She hoped it was the right way. Within minutes, she caught sight of a light in the trees at the rear of the house. She and Grace hurried as fast as they could, which wasn't very fast.
The moment they were close enough, they could see three men, Grace gasped. "Oh, my God."
Be it right or wrong, good or bad, Georgie felt like singing Hallejulah at that moment. There were her heroes. Riggs and the man closer to him than anyone in the world. His brother in arms, blood, and heart. Gunner Hale.
Riggs and Gunner were looking at a phone but quickly looked toward the women when Grace spoke. So did Josh. When he saw them, he bellowed, spittle flying from his lips as he hurled insults and threats at Grace and Georgie.
For the first time since this nightmare began, Georgie wasn't scared. Josh couldn't hurt her. He was pinned fast to the tree behind him. He had no more control over her. He could no longer scare her.
The relief that realization brought took her mind away from the moment, and she didn't react quickly enough when Grace snatched the firearm from her hand, pointed it at Josh, and started firing.