Page 21 of Mystery at Rescue Ridge (Rescue Ridge #5)

W here the hell was Evie?

The question haunted Owen. Why couldn’t he find her?

“Is it possible that he forced her into the back of his vehicle and is already miles from here?” Owen asked.

Travis pursed his lips. “Possible but not probable.” He leaned forward. “The most likely scenario is that the suspect has been planning this for some time.”

“Meaning he’d always planned to abduct Simone?”

“That’s correct.” Travis picked up the pen he’d been writing with and tapped the end on the pad of paper.

“His plans were most likely rushed when she stopped chatting with him online. Then, his fixation spiraled. His recent decisions were made in haste, which might force a mistake. If he gets careless, there’ll be an easier trail to follow.

But more than likely he already has a place. ”

“He has a dirt bike. Wouldn’t that mean the site would be close to his home?” Owen was spitballing here, hoping an idea would gain traction. He needed to find a thread of hope to hang onto.

“A quick transfer makes the most sense,” Travis agreed. “He set the trap on his grandmother’s property.”

“He had to know she would defend him and not give anything away to the law.”

“That’s correct.” Travis tapped the pen a little harder.

Owen stood up and paced. It was dark by now. Long past dinner. He wouldn’t be able to eat if he tried. All he wanted right now was to bring Evie home safely.

“I’m making coffee,” he said to Travis. “Want some?”

“Yes, please.”

Owen put on a fresh pot and poured two cups. He handed one over to Travis as a thought struck. “What if he’s keeping her right underneath our noses?”

Travis rubbed tired eyes, then blinked up at him. “What do you mean?”

“He’s been spending a whole lot of time on Ashworth property recently,” Owen began. “What if he’s been mapping out a course in addition to monitoring Simone?”

Travis’s face lit up. “It’s possible.”

“The dirt bike had to have been stashed nearby,” Owen continued, his brain starting to click. “What if he always planned to take Simone on the bike?”

“Would she go willingly?”

“The setup with the fake bomb…” he said. “She would comply if he threatened someone close to her.”

They stared each other in the eyes.

“That would have been Ms. Bart,” Owen continued. “It makes sense that he would use the person closest to Simone.” He paced another lap. “The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced he has Evie somewhere on Ms. Bart’s property.”

“Didn’t the other kids like you?” Evie pressed, knowing she might hit the wrong button. Working the handcuffs, she managed to slip one of her hands out.

Lawrence squeezed his eyes shut and started to shake his head.

“Did they make fun of you?” The other wrist had been secured better in the handcuffs. Panic gripped her. Her pulse raced. She could feel her heart hammering against the inside of her ribs. “Oh, they did, didn’t they?”

Hadn’t she detected a slight lisp?

“You talk funny, don’t you? And the other kids teased you.”

“Shut up.” He started humming loudly to drown her out.

“Lispy Larry,” she continued, continuing to distract him. Damn, the right wrist was too secure. She glanced around. What could she use to fight him off?

Lawrence’s eyes opened. His hands came down. “Take it back.” He came toward her like a missile on a mission. Once within arm’s reach, he slapped her across the face.

Her cheek felt like it just exploded, and her eye felt like it might pop out.

Evie refused to back down, to cower. “So, now, what? Do you like to hurt women? Is that how you get your kicks?”

Another blow caused her head to snap to the side.

Lawrence’s skinny fingers clawed her shirt. He jerked his hand away, ripping the cotton. “This is your fault. You did this.”

“I’m not my sister,” Evie said. “My name is Evie, not Simone. You have the wrong person.”

He blinked. “No, I don’t.”

“Simone ran away from town to get away from Lispy Larry.” Evie wriggled her wrist behind her back, praying she could find the right angle to slip out of the cuff.

“Liar.” This time, he backhanded her. “Screen Siren would never do that to me. She loved me.”

Evie laughed. It was forced, but Lawrence wouldn’t know the difference. “Is that what she told you?”

Her other cheek felt the explosion as his hand connected with the cheekbone. Despair clawed for purchase inside her mind. Let it take hold, and she would stop fighting. No way. With her last breath, she would continue to fight.

“She didn’t say those exact words,” he defended. “She said I was special.”

Another haughty laugh escaped. “And you think you’re the only screen buddy she ever said that to?”

Mind made up, he was going to have to kill her. She would never submit.

Her second break came when her wrist slipped out of the cuff. With free hands, she could do a lot of damage.

“You said that,” he corrected. “You said I was special, that what we had was special.”

“Was that before or after you sent more cash?”

Face muscles pulled taught in anger, shock, and disbelief, and he delivered another blow. This time, he caught her across the mouth.

Warmth flooded her. Blood. He’d popped her so hard, her tooth cut into the inside of her lip. She smiled at him anyway.

“See what you’ve done,” she said, showing him the blood she felt on her teeth. “Am I beautiful to you now? After you’ve beaten me? Is this how you saw your relationship go down? Forcing another human being to do something that makes her want to gag?”

He reared his hand back to deliver another blow, then caught himself mid-strike. He sat back on his heels and smiled. “I know what you’re trying to do to me. You think I like it rough. You think fighting is my kink. But you guessed wrong, Screen Siren.”

“My name is Evie.” She injected truth to break through the fantasy.

If she could burst the bubble, could she break the person?

“I work in Dallas. I’m living in my sister’s house because she is away on a trip.

” The last lie was solely to keep the possibility of fulfilling his fantasy alive in order to spare Evie. “Evie,” she repeated. “Say it.”

“Oh, Screen Siren. This isn’t how I’d envisioned this moment between us happening at all. Be a good girl and sit still so I can finish setting up our date.”

“This is no date. I’m being held against my will.”

“No, you’re not, silly. You can leave any time.”

“If that was true, I wouldn’t be sitting on the bed right now.”

He reached over. She flinched.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Screen Siren.”

“ Evie! ”

He pulled the torn cotton blouse together like he was buttoning a shirt. At least she had some coverage now, not that it mattered. Lawrence had the upper hand in this situation. Not for long, you sonofabitch.

Lawrence turned to scoot off the bed, his back to her. She had to strike now or the opportunity might not come up again.

Evie launched herself at his back, wrapped an arm around his throat in a chokehold, and squeezed with every last bit of strength she had left.

Owen explained the situation to Ms. Bart in a three-minute call. “Do you have a building or barn on your property that’s no longer in use?”

“As a matter of fact, it’s old as dirt and falling apart at the seams, but there is a barn,” she said, then detailed where the barn could be found. “I’ll call someone to sit with the kids in case they wake up.”

“Absolutely not,” Owen said. “I don’t want you anywhere near the barn.” He didn’t use words like, We might be too late. Hell, he couldn’t allow himself to think them, either. Ms. Bart’s belief in speaking things into reality couldn’t be tempted with something as important as Evie’s life.

“Okay,” she relented after a thoughtful pause.

“Travis is here, and we’re heading over together.”

“Good.” The hesitation in her voice caused his imagination to run wild. Did she believe they were too late? “Bring our girl home, Owen.”

“Yes, ma’am. That’s the goal.” He was careful not to make empty promises. As much as the thought of entering an old, broken-down, neglected barn haunted him, based on his recent experience, he’d trade places with Evie in a heartbeat if given the chance.

“I’ll see you soon.” With that, Ms. Bart ended the call. The determination in her voice struck a chord.

Owen turned to Travis, who’d already stood up with his keys in hand. “Let’s go.”

Evie tightened her grip to the point her arm went numb. If she let up, she was sure to be killed. She had to escape. Now.

In the next second, Lawrence jerked forward and then rolled. Evie flew off, landing on the mattress before bouncing onto the hard dirt. She landed face-first with a mouthful of soil. She spit, and then tried to jump up.

She didn’t make it very far before being smacked in the back of the head with something substantial. A wooden post? Stars filled her eyes as her vision blurred. A wave of nausea washed through her. She tamped it down and forced her mind to focus.

Scanning the area in front of her, she searched for anything to use as a weapon before the next blow.

She heard a grunt behind her. A second before being hit again, she rolled left and out of reach. The wooden post smacked the dirt instead.

Lawrence shrieked as he lunged toward her.

Her long legs had always been her strongest feature. Using those long legs, she drew her knees back to her chest and then kicked. The bottom of her foot connected with his chest and throat area. He immediately grabbed at his neck and sucked in air as he was catapulted to one side.

Taking advantage of the momentary break, Evie made a run for the door. It was barely light enough to see the lock. She tried sliding the barn door open anyway. No luck.

The couple of seconds it took her to try the lock gave Lawrence a chance to catch up to her. His bony fingers sank into her right shoulder and spun her around to face him. He pushed her against the door. The old wood splintered, jabbing her in the back with what felt like tiny needles.

“Think you can get away from me?” Lawrence’s voice was a high-pitched squeal at this point.

“Help!” Evie shouted. No one might hear, but she had to take a chance.

Gathering her strength, she fisted her hands, ready to throw a punch. Her back hurt. Her head throbbed, and she clenched her back teeth so hard she feared her molars might crack.

Lawrence’s laugh was half-cackle, half-screech. The sound imprinted on her brain. It was also a warning because the fact that he wasn’t afraid to let her scream meant they were all alone in some abandoned barn far from anyone or anything that could help.

She’d already warned herself not to expect the cavalry to show, but this reality bit harder. It confirmed no help was on the way. Lawrence had the upper hand. And even if she managed to escape this building, she would have to find her way through the woods with him two steps behind.

You’ll have to kill me before I go willingly back to that bed.

Evie took a punch in the chest so hard that it broke a hole through the last of the wood, and she tumbled out of the opening.

She rolled onto her side, jumped to her feet, and ran like hell as Lawrence forced his way out.

Completely turned around in the dark with nothing recognizable, Evie picked a direction and ran.