Page 31 of Scorched (Killer #2)

“Get down!” She hadn’t wanted to leave Brandon alone in case the killer had set up yet another trap to capture her other son.

She hadn’t wanted to alert Melissa or the police and give the killer a reason to force his hand and kill Luke.

Instead, she’d made Brandon promise to stay low and if anything bad happened, he should run as fast as he could.

She’d given him her cell phone and made him promise not to use it until he absolutely had to.

Brandon ducked down below the seat. “I’m scared.”

“Me, too, baby. Me too.” The rain had slackened but still came down in a heavy drizzle, keeping the highway slick, with water flowing into the ditches.

On the opposite side of the bridge, she found a dirt road that led down to the river twenty feet below.

Already, weather reports on the radio had indicated the river had risen well above its normal levels.

Usually no more than a meandering stream, the Guadalupe River was known to rise up over the bridge twenty or more feet above the riverbed.

Elise, being new to the area, had yet to witness what the locals called the forces of nature in action.

She hoped she wasn’t about to capture her first glimpse.

Elise wasn’t sure her car could make it down and back up the muddy road. Unwilling to risk Brandon’s safety any more than she had, she parked her car at the top and turned in her seat. “Brandon.”

“Yes, Mama.” His head popped up over the back of the seat, his eyes wide and shiny in the lights from the dashboard.

“I’m going to get Luke.” She touched the cell phone in his hand. “If I don’t come back in ten minutes, you find Agent Fletcher’s name on my favorites list and call him. Tell him you’re at the Guadalupe River Bridge on Highway 474. ”

“Why don’t you call him now?”

“The man who has Luke said I shouldn’t call anyone, or he’d hurt Luke.”

“Then why do you want me to call?”

“In case Luke and I don’t come back, you need to get help for yourself.”

“I want to go with you.”

“You can’t. As the man of the house, you need to do what I tell you.”

His lip trembled. “I don’t want to be the man of the house. I want to go with you.”

“Please, Brandon. Please do as I say. Wait ten minutes and call Paul. He’ll help.” She reached for the door handle, peering through the windshield into the dark.

Tires had spun up the mud on the tracks leading down to the river, but she couldn’t see what awaited her there.

She turned back to her oldest son. “Brandon, if anyone but me comes back up here, you get out of the car and run as fast as you can away from here before you call Paul. Do you understand?”

He nodded, a tear trickling down his cheek.

“I love you, Brandon. And I promise that I’ll do my best to come back. With your brother.” She leaned across the seat and hugged him, pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I love you so much.”

Elise dug a flashlight out from beneath her seat and got out of the car.

She slipped and caught herself on the door, fumbling to keep the light in her hand.

After righting herself, she set off down the muddy track to the river and her youngest son.

Rain blurred her vision, mixing with the tears welling in her eyes. Blinking only seemed to make it worse.

She couldn’t go soft now. Luke needed her.

Brandon needed her and Luke to return. Her oldest son would never forgive himself if something happened to either one of them.

Failure was not an option. She slipped in the mud.

Water filled her shoes and soaked her stockings.

As usual, hindsight was twenty-twenty, and she should have changed into tennis shoes before she’d left the house.

In the ballet flats she’d worn to school that day, she got little traction in the miniature river flowing down the hill in the rutted tire tracks.

Elise fell on her butt in the mud, rose and continued her descent into the darkness, shaking the slick, cold slop from her hands and holding the flashlight as steady as possible. She shone the light back and forth, hoping to catch a glimpse of Luke.

When she reached the bottom of the road near the banks of the river, her heart beat an erratic pace, and she began to think maybe the killer had set a trap for her or her son.

Frantic now, she whirled, her light barely penetrating the rain that had picked up since she’d left her house.

A black SUV stood beside the river, the interior dark and menacing.

Elise shone her light into the interior, but nothing moved. Luke was nowhere to be seen.

The river flowed heavily, swollen from the rain to ten feet deeper than usual. The dull roar of water rushing past masked most noises .

A faint cry carried over the top of the vehicle, over the noise of the river.

Elise spun toward the bridge. Had the cry come from there?

Elise shone the flashlight beam toward the underpinnings of the bridge.

At first, she could see nothing but dark shadows and rain.

Then the shadows moved and a man holding a small figure emerged

“Luke!” Elise ran toward them, her light bouncing across the gravel and brush, flashing on and off the man and boy. “Luke!” She called out, tears streaming from her eyes, washed away by the drenching rain.

“That’s far enough,” the man yelled.

Elise halted, holding her flashlight on the man and boy.

He had something pointed at Luke’s head.

Her stomach tumbled over and over as she realized what it was.

Oh, God, he had a gun pointed at her son’s head and it wasn’t Stan.

It wasn’t even a man she recognized. Yes, he had brown hair and dark eyes like her former husband, but it wasn’t Stan.

Elise wasn’t sure if she should be relieved or not.

He’d already killed two women, and he held her son at gunpoint. But knowing it wasn’t Stan had a strange impact on her. Almost relief, if she could have allowed herself the luxury of relief in such dire circumstances.

“Mama!” Luke reached out his arms.

Elise stumbled and fell to her knees. “Please, don’t hurt him.” Her chest tightened, her breath catching in her throat on a silent sob. “Please. You want me, not him.”

“You got that right.”

“Let him go. I’ll go with you. I won’t even put up a fight.”

“Very convenient. The other ladies didn’t put up a fight either. They thought they were with someone safe.” When Luke wiggled to get out of his arms, he shook the boy. “Be still!”

“Let him go!” Elise staggered to her feet and ran forward.

Luke kicked out, landing a foot in the man’s privates.

He threw Luke to the side and doubled over, his hand coming up to aim the gun at Elise. “Don’t come any closer.”

Luke lay on the concrete beneath the bridge, his body limp, unmoving.

“What have you done to my son, you monster?” she growled through gritted teeth, anger overcoming her fear.

He grunted and halfway straightened, the barrel of the gun level with her chest. “Not nearly what I plan to do to you.”

“Why? Why are you doing this to me? I don’t even know you.”

“Yeah, but somehow, you and your family have managed to kill my career. I feel like I should return the favor.”

Paul didn’t wait for Alvarez to get back with him on the GPS location of Cain’s cell phone. “Get in the truck, Mel.”

“Where are we going? We don’t know where Cain took her until we hear back from Alvarez.” Despite her arguments, she left Elise’s house on Paul’s heels and climbed into the truck beside him.

“He killed the other two women out by the river.”

“Yeah, in two different locations. Each up different highways. If you take the wrong route, you could double our time getting back to the right one.”

“I can’t wait while he’s got her.” Paul’s throat tightened. “He’ll kill her.”

“Do you think it’s all because of a promotion he didn’t get?”

Paul gave a brief nod.

Mel shook her head. “Unbelievable.”

“I should have had him transferred as soon as I came in. None of this would have happened if I’d dealt with the problem instead of ignoring it.” Paul slammed his palm against the steering wheel. “It’s all my fault.”

Mel gripped the handle above the door when the truck swerved. “You didn’t know he’d go psycho. You couldn’t have guessed he’d do what he’s doing.”

“I should have.” He should have seen the signs much earlier. “Two women died, Mel. Because of me.”

“Paul, you’re not a mind reader. You can’t go around believing the worst in everyone. Cain was supposed to be on our side—one of the good guys.”

“I should have seen it. Then at least two innocent women wouldn’t have become victims. Maybe even three.” His throat closed off on the last word. He couldn’t let Elise be the third victim. Whatever it took, he had to get there in time to stop Cain.

“If you believed the worst in people, you’d never have fallen in love with Elise.”

“Who said I’m in love with Elise?” Although he tossed the words at Mel, he couldn’t deny it.

What he felt was stronger than any emotion he’d ever experienced with any other woman.

If she died, he’d never get the chance to follow through and explore the possibilities of a happily-ever-after with her.

Mel snorted, rolling her eyes his way. “You are in love with her, so don’t try to scam me. A woman can tell.”

His stomach knotted. How had he let this happen? How had he fallen in love with her when he’d only known her a few days? And how hopeless was loving Elise? “She doesn’t want another man in her life. Stan really did a number on her.”

“Yeah, but if I’m not mistaken, she’s falling in love with you, too.” Mel stared across the interior of the truck at him, her eyes shining in the light from the dashboard. “Given time, you two can work past the killer-ex thing. ”

Paul whipped out of the driveway onto the road. “None of it matters if Cain kills her.”

“Then let’s find her.” Mel stared out the window. “You know she might have tried to call you on your cell phone. Have you checked your messages remotely?”

“Call my cell phone number.” He gave her the instructions to access his messages, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel as he waited in the middle of the road.

“Here. Your messages are coming up. You have two.” Mel shoved the phone against his ear.

“Paul! Luke is missing.” Elise’s panicked voice filled his ear. “I can’t wait for you, I have to find him. I’m sorry I’m breaking my promise to stay put, but I have to go home.”

Paul’s jaw tightened at the fear in Elise’s voice. He quickly skipped to the next message.

“Agent Fletcher, sir. This is Brandon Johnson.” The boy sniffed into the phone. “Please come help my mom. We’re at the Guadalupe River bridge on Highway 474. Please hurry.”

Paul dropped the phone into Mel’s lap and swung the truck in the direction of Highway 474 leading north out of Breuer.

“Who was it?” Mel asked.

“Brandon Johnson.” A scared little boy who might not live to see the next day. And if he did, he might not have a mother or little brother to go home to .

“You know where they are, don’t you.” Mel held onto the handle above her door, her expression grim.

“Yes.” He told her what he’d heard. “Ten minutes. It takes ten minutes to get there.”

“Make it five.” Melissa grabbed the handle above the door and held on.

Paul held the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles turned white. They had to get there in time. Elise needed him and he wouldn’t let her down. Not again.