Page 157 of Beneath the Mountain Sky

We have a son…

Who was up here with a monster.

Until Willow ran.

“H-how did you get free?”

She struggles with another sob, fighting for control over her emotions so she can tell us the important information. “He would leave for days at a time and return with supplies like baby formula and food. I-I tried to breastfeed and couldn’t. My milk never came in, so he made sure we had what we needed. Anytime he was gone, I searched every inch of that cabin for anything to help, and I found some old maps of the mountain.”

My breath catches.

The maps on the wall of the office flash through my mind.

They led us here.

To answers.

And the ones she found helped her escape.

“I saw where we were.” More tears spill over, soaking my bloody hands and her cheeks. “I knew I could go through the gorge, to the river, and follow it down.”

“Jesus Christ, Willow…”

Every muscle in my body goes taut, anger vibrating through me so intensely that I’m not sure I can contain it.

“The night of the storm, he had gone to town… I managed to pry one of the old boards off the side of the cabin and slip through the opening. I took the baby, and I ran, only…” She sobs, and I cling to her tighter. “He came back, and he caught up to me near the river. He fired a warning shot. He tried to take our baby from me.” Her voice cracks. “We struggled, and I fell into the river.”

I drag her face to mine, so close I can feel every frantic breath she takes fluttering over me. “Where’s our son?”

Horrible images of the rapids float through my head…

Of Willow hung up in the water, almost lifeless on that tree…

If the baby fell in with her…

“He has him.” She sobs again. “He has our boy.”

A rage unlike anything I’ve ever felt consumes me.

I begin to tremble as hard as she is.

She had our baby up here.

Alone with that monster.

He took her.

He took my son.

He took my family.

I brush my lips across hers, so desperate to make it all go away and redo the past year. “We’ll get him back, Willow. We’ll get him back, and I’ll make that motherfucker pay for what he’s done to you. I promise.”

20

KILLIAN

My eyes meet Connor’s and Liam’s over Willow’s shoulder.