Page 40 of Once Vanished
The shotgun blast had echoed across the water, across the trees, across the years separating then from now.In that moment, Riley had crossed a line—not as an agent enforcing the law, but as a mother protecting her child.
Standing at that same spot now, Riley felt the demands of that action.She had killed before in the line of duty, had faced down monsters and walked away relatively unscathed.But that night had been different.That night had changed her in ways she was still discovering.
“There’s nothing here, Riley,” Bill said, his voice gentle but firm as he completed his circuit of the area.“No footprints, no disturbances, no signs anyone’s been here in a long time.”
Riley nodded, unable to speak past the knot in her throat.She turned her gaze to the water, remembering how it had closed over Peterson’s body, carrying him several yards downstream before the current caught him against a fallen tree.How April had collapsed against her, both of them standing knee-deep in the river, holding each other as if they might shatter if they let go.
What struck Riley now, with the clarity of distance, was how that trauma—as shattering as it had been—compared to her memories of her own captivity at Peterson’s hands.Before he had taken April, Peterson had held Riley prisoner in a crawlspace beneath a house, keeping her in darkness, tormenting her with a blowtorch, the heat searing close enough to her skin that she could feel her hair singeing, smell her own fear.
Those days had been a nightmare she still revisited in her worst dreams.But somehow, the threat to April had cut deeper.Her own suffering she could bear; the thought of her child suffering was unbearable.
And now Jilly was in the hands of a different monster.
“He sent us here deliberately,” Riley said, the realization dawning with cold certainty.“Not because he was coming here himself.But because he knew what it would do to me.To remember this.”
Bill’s expression hardened.“He’s playing psychological games.”
“And I walked right into it.”Riley pressed her palms against her eyes, fighting back despair.“While we’ve been out here chasing ghosts, who knows what he’s been doing with Jilly?”
“It was a diversion,” Bill said firmly.“He needed us away from somewhere else.”
“But it was more than that.It was because he knew it would shake me.Weaken me.”Riley took a deep breath, fighting against exhaustion and forcing her mind back into analytical mode.“He’s studied me.Learned my triggers.He knows about Peterson—details that weren’t in the official reports.”
“He’s read your psychiatric files,” Bill concluded.“Mine too.”
Riley opened her mouth to respond when her phone buzzed in her pocket.Her heart lurched at the sound, every cell in her body suddenly on high alert.She pulled it out, already knowing who the message would be from.
Unknown: I hope you enjoyed your little trip down memory lane, Riley.Such a shame I couldn’t join you—I’ve been rather busy elsewhere.Perhaps we can visit this place together someday soon—you, me, even April.A family outing to commemorate the moment you became what you truly are.For now, though, I’m somewhere else entirely, and I’d be delighted if you’d join me.Come alone.Here’s where to find me:
Beneath that text was a pinned location—GPS coordinates that, when tapped, opened to a map showing a spot Riley didn’t immediately recognize.
Then came a final text with these chilling words:
Unknown: Come alone this time, or someone will surely die.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Riley stared at Leo’s message on her cellphone, then lifted her gaze to meet Bill’s.They both knew what Leo was demanding.They both knew what was at stake.And they both knew she couldn’t possibly comply with his demand:Come alone ….
“He’s escalating,” Bill said.“This is what he’s been building toward.”
Riley slipped the phone into her pocket.“We need to get back to the car.Now.”
They turned away from the river—away from the site where Peterson had died, away from the ghosts that haunted this patch of muddy shoreline—and began picking their way back through the woods.
Riley mind was racing ahead of her body.Leo had chosen this moment carefully, sending them to this particular place to weaken her resolve before making his next demand.The psychological manipulation was elegant in its cruelty—force her to revisit her darkest moment, then demand her compliance while she was still reeling from the memories.
“If it’s not Jilly at those coordinates,” Riley said, ducking beneath a low-hanging branch, “it could be Officer Martinez.”
Bill nodded grimly.“Either way, we’re looking at a hostage situation.”
As they navigated an incline, Riley’s phone buzzed again.She pulled it out, expecting another message from Leo.Instead, Garner Hogue’s name flashed on the screen.
“It’s Hogue,” she said, accepting the call and switching to speakerphone so Bill could hear.“Paige here.You’re on speaker with Agent Jeffreys.”
“We’re tracking your texts, Paige,” Hogue’s voice crackled through the speaker.“Those GPS coordinates Leo sent you—we’ve identified the location.”
“Where?”Riley asked.