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CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Olivia was quiet over the next couple of days.

She tried to keep a smile in place as she filmed her segments. But she found herself escaping often in order to maintain her composure. And she’d talked to Lyle on several occasions.

The roses loomed over her head.

Would she get more? Was this a bad joke?

Or was there more to it?

She didn’t know—and since she didn’t know, she had to act as if this was the worst-case scenario.

That meant this wasn’t over yet. No, it was just beginning.

Then there was the root cellar. Tyson couldn’t have known how it would make her feel. He’d already apologized more than once.

But the image still haunted her.

She’d learned in therapy how people like this unhinged guy worked. Whoever was behind these new threats wouldn’t stop until he got what he wanted.

Olivia couldn’t let him win. But acting like she was fine, that this was all a misunderstanding, wasn’t the same thing as believing it.

Life continued on. She tried to keep up, to forget about the dreaded future.

Her fears made her feel guilty. After all, God didn’t give her a spirit of fear but of power. The verse ran through her head, and the more she prayed her fear would evaporate and the longer it stayed, the worse she felt.

Maybe her faith was like her smile—a facade.

“Olivia, are you ready?” Wes called down the hallway. “We’re all waiting for you.”

“I’m on my way.” Olivia checked herself in the mirror again before leaving her room. It was time to film a new segment.

She could pull herself together and do this.

She met the crew by the pool, putting aside her heavy thoughts in order to be professional.

* * *

Olivia had fun filming today. Tyson had been in an especially playful mood.

He’d actually bench-pressed her. The segment had been Wes’ idea. Then afterward, Tyson had thrown her in the pool before jumping in himself.

Wes and Chandler had joined them, and they’d all blown off steam for a while.

The break had been nice, and every time Olivia remembered it now, it brought a smile to her lips.

This smile was the real thing—not a forced one to make people think she was okay. This one was natural.

That evening she sat outside, working on some other stories she wanted to feature on her show. She needed to keep her mind occupied.

Just as she closed her computer, her cell phone rang. Though she didn’t recognize the number, she answered. She was waiting for calls back from several people for her job.

“This is Olivia.”

“Did you like the roses?” a distorted voice asked.

Olivia’s heart skipped a beat. “Who is this?”

She was answered with a choppy, menacing laugh. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

The line went dead.

Her hand shook as she held the phone.

How did this guy get her cell number? If someone was trying to mess with her, this person had carried it too far.

You can do this, Olivia. He’s just playing with you. This doesn’t mean anything.

Your abductor is dead.

She practiced her breathing, just like Lyle had taught her.

Finally, she realized she couldn’t stay outside any longer.

She would go crazy if she sat alone with her thoughts for too long.

Drawing in another deep breath, Olivia stood and gathered her things.

When she pushed her bedroom door open, she started to step inside, but stopped in her tracks.

Another set of roses rested on her bed.

She didn’t have to count them to know there were eight.