by Sue Lyndon
It was Brandon Andrews.
Chapter Seven
Before Ella had a chance to wonder about the outcome of the living room conversation, Ed and her father marched out of the adjoining hallway toward the foyer. At first glance, they appeared to be a united force—a united force against the visitor on the doorstep. Ella could only hope she was right in that assumption, because she dreaded a showdown with both her father and Brandon.
Ella’s mother urged her back, and the women watched the heated confrontation ensue. Brandon feigned innocence about his criminal record and loudly professed his love for Ella. He was good, but he was a liar.
Though the confrontation didn’t escalate to violence, it came close when Ella’s father threatened to personally toss Brandon off the front porch.
Sweating and scowling, her former fiancé backed down the steps and crawled into his car, but not before hurling the roses against a nearby tree. They exploded out of the wrapping with a burst of red and green.
Angela, who had remained close during the argument, closed the door and moved toward the kitchen without a word, although Ella noticed her hiding a smile.
“Well, that was unpleasant—but necessary,” announced Mrs. Emerson, smoothing her hands down her pants like she’d just gotten dirty.
Ella’s father approached his wife and kissed her cheek. “Don’t worry, dear,” he said. “We won’t be seeing anymore of Brandon Andrews.” Ella placed the tray of drinks down on a console table against the wall, feeling faint with nervousness.
Had Ed asked for her hand in marriage? If so, how did her father react?
“So what did you gentlemen discuss in our absence?” asked Mrs. Andrews, looking desperately curious.
“Oh nothing much,” replied Ella’s father in a teasing manner. When his wife swatted at him playfully, he said, “Only that this gentleman wants to marry our daughter.”
All eyes were on Ed. “That’s…that’s wonderful,” Ella’s mother said. Then she looked at her daughter.
“Will you say yes?”
“I already did,” admitted Ella, gushing with joy.
Brandon Andrews was gone, and although her parents barely knew Ed, they had seemingly accepted him with open arms.
The weeks that followed flew past like a quick wind. Ella and Ed tied the knot with a quiet fall wedding. Only a few close friends and family members were in attendance—to Ella’s great delight.
They honeymooned at private seaside cottage in South Carolina for two weeks before returning home.
Ella moved in with Ed, of course, and he insisted she redecorate to suit her preferences. She changed very little—just enough to please her new husband.
They entertained friends regularly, and Ed grew to love Ella’s friends dearly, especially her roommate from college. And although most of Ella’s friends were shocked to learn of the canceled wedding with Brandon, they grew to adore Ed.
Ed remained a bounty hunter, but Ella missed him terribly when he was gone. She kept as busy as possible during his absences, putting in extra hours for her father’s business. To her delight, she was able to work from home. Once or twice a month, she would drive into the office, but that was really just to be seen and visit with the coworkers she missed.
Brandon still worked for his father, but she was careful to avoid him at all costs. To her relief, he left her alone and was rumored to be dating a client’s daughter.
It was a happy life, a life Ella never thought she’d achieve. She’d grown up thinking Brandon Andrews was her future no matter what. She’d grown up dreading growing up, because it meant marrying a man she didn’t love. But somehow, running away and meeting a bounty hunter named Ed Peters had changed her life completely.
Sure, Ed was a stern man, but she lived to make him smile. If she disobeyed him, she knew what to expect: a long and painful bare-bottom spanking. But punishment was a part of life she had welcomed.
Disobeying Ed left her feeling so guilty that she often confessed her crimes before they were discovered.
And after she was turned over her husband’s knee, the punishment melted the guilt away and all was right in her world again.
Yes, Ed Peters was the perfect husband for Ella.
* * *
The first snow of the year came on a Tuesday morning, covering the mountain with a solid blanket of cold white. It was early November, and Ed was checking his messages in his study while Ella remained asleep. Randy had e-mailed a few items of interest, but there was one that caught his eye above all others.
Chuck Dearing had escaped from the Maryland Correctional Institution in Hagerstown. According to Randy, there was a $25,000 reward on his head—just like last time. Ed jotted down the details and closed his laptop with resolve.
This time he would capture Chuck Dearing. For the money, and to keep the sleazy bastard off the streets. Ed cringed as a vision of Dearing chocking Ella on the hiking trail flashed in his mind. He had to catch him.
By the time Ed was finished in his study, he found his lovely wife humming joyfully as she cooked breakfast. Since they’d married, she had become an excellent cook. Although she’d grown up without having to learn the art of cooking, she’d adapted well to her new life with Ed. She found joy in preparing their meals, much to his delight.
“So,” Ella said, sliding across from Ed in the breakfast nook, “where are you headed today?” Ed paused. “How do you know I’m going somewhere?”
She laughed. “You have that look.”
“That look?” he asked, curious.
“Yes. Every time you have a new criminal to catch, that line above your eyebrows deepens…in thought, I suppose.” She laughed again, and Ed’s cock shifted at the sight of his wife. God, she looked breathtaking this morning. She always looked breathtaking while she was teasing him.
“You’re right,” he admitted. “I’ll be gone for a few days.”
“I don’t suppose you’ll tell me who you’re going after this time?” she asked.
“Not at all,” he replied. Ed never wished to burden Ella. Just knowing half of the names of people he’d caught would give her a heart attack. Most of the criminals he caught spent time in the news for murder. There was no sense worrying Ella. He was a professional, very good at his job. And besides that, Ella knew Chuck Dearing by name and that was one name Ed dared not speak in her presence.
“All right, fine, Mr. Bounty Hunter,” she said, feigning sorrow with a pouty lip. “But I expect you to call me once a day. You know how much I worry about you.”
“Of course,” Ed replied, confident that sparing his wife the details of this particular hunt was a good idea. She was a stronger woman than most. Never once did she have nightmares of the time Dearing tried to strangle her. But it was a topic that seemed almost taboo—to Ed. If he hadn’t arrived at that very moment…
“So will you at least tell me what state you’ll be in?” she asked, batting her eyelashes dramatically.
“Maryland, most likely.”
She brightened. “Glad to know you’ll be so close,” she replied sarcastically, but lowered her eyes when Ed’s expression grew sterner.
“I expect you to keep the alarm set at all times while I am gone,” he said. “And I also expect you to obey every other rule—especially the rule about going on walks.” Ella loved the outdoors, but Ed was firm that she be safe inside before the sun set. Once, after their first month of marriage, Ella had gotten lost in the dark during a late night walk through the forest. He’d punished her gently for being foolish then, but promised a much harsher sentence for repeat offenses.
“Yes, sir,” she said, laying the sarcasm on even thicker than before. Such behavior only angered Ed.
His only wish was to keep her safe—from herself and from the outside world.
“I’m only trying to look out for you, Ella,” he reminded her sternly. “I don’t appreciate your insolence.”
For a moment, a spark ignited in Ella’s brown eyes. But just as soon as Ed no
ticed the spark, it was extinguished. “Yes, sir,” she replied with sincerity and a noticeable pinch of fear.
Though he had half a mind to give his wife a reminder spanking, his decided to let her off—this time. She was making progress in regards to his many rules. More often, it was her wicked tongue that landed her in trouble, but at least she hadn’t used foul language lately. Even though he himself cursed occasionally, Ed despised hearing a woman use foul language, especially a woman who answered to him.
“I’m serious, Ella,” he reminded her. “You know what happens if…”
Ella cut him off, but seemed nervous while doing so. “Yes, I know,” she said, biting her lip. “I promise to be good.”
“That’s all I ask,” Ed replied, reaching across the table. Ella accepted his hand.
Before his departure, they made love hastily on the dining room table. Leaving was always equal parts torture and pleasure for Ed. When he reached the highway, he looked over the names of the witnesses who’d seen Chuck Dearing since his escape.
Randy had sent the information just a few minutes ago. Although the cops had obviously already interviewed all those on the list, Ed was hopeful.
Witnesses were always more willing to speak with bounty hunters than actual law enforcement officers.
A few more catches like these and I can retire for good, Ed thought, pressing the gas pedal to the floor.
Typically, most cases kept him on the road for four days or less. The last time Chuck Dearing was wanted though, the criminal had been on the loose for an entire week. Of all the wanted people Ed had chased during his time as a bounty hunter, Dearing was the cleverest of them all. Not only that, but the man was merciless when it came to his own survival.
He’d proved that just trying to strangle Ella for her meager backpack supplies on the trail a few months earlier.
As much as it pained Ed to push his dear wife from his mind, it was necessary if he was to clear his head properly for the hunt. The next few days would be about tracking Dearing down and nothing else.
Yes, Ed would make an attempt to call Ella once a day for reassurance, but nothing more. The former cop was in the zone, racing toward the last known whereabouts of a dangerous criminal who’d escaped from prison.
To Ed’s dismay, the first contact on Randy’s list wasn’t at home. In fact, the address was nearly vacant. There was a chance no one lived in the little house in the suburbs of Hagerstown at all. Making a mistake like this was unlike Randy, so Ed dialed his assistant at once.
There was no answer, so Ed raced toward the second contact on Randy’s list, ignoring the worry that hovered like a thick fog. But this next house was even more secluded and abandoned than the first one. Still, Randy didn’t answer his phone. The fog of worry thickened when the third contact was simply the empty lot of a recently demolished warehouse.
Something was wrong. Yes, something was terribly wrong.
The former cop pulled to the side of the road and made a few phone calls. After ten minutes, Ed was even more concerned. According to his friends in the Maryland system, Dearing hadn’t escaped at all. In fact, a trooper friend of Ed’s had claimed the criminal was just denied parole last week.
Again, Randy’s phone rang and rang. No answer.
The fog of worry thickened into a solid white clay.
Ed’s trusted assistant had provided him with not just one piece of incorrect information, but several.
A cold wind ripped through Ed’s chest. He dialed Ella with shaking fingers. The phone rang as endlessly as it did for Randy. The answering machine picking up after the eighth ring, time and time again.
Though he couldn’t pin a specific reason on the cause of these recent events, Ed knew without a doubt that he had been betrayed by Randy. He’d trusted the young man for years, but a handful of false crumbs of information pertaining to an imaginary bounty didn’t occur by accident. Not when those crumbs would lead Ed on a path two hours from home…
…and two hours away from Ella.
Ella! Ed contacted his nearest neighbor and the local authorities. Both claimed they were on their way to his home to check on his wife, but even that knowledge didn’t ease Ed’s fears. He was no idiot.
Randy had lead Ed on a false trail for a reason. And he suspected that reason was to draw him away from Ella. But why?
Yes, Randy had met Ella a few times during the past months. They were friends and nothing more.
Randy was a total geek and never seemed interested in girls, not even Ella. So why would he draw Ed away from his beloved wife?
As he raced toward home, driving faster than he’d ever gone before, Ed kept coming up empty.
Obviously, Randy was a traitor and Ella was in danger. That was the only explanation in Ed’s mind.
His wife not answering the phone after repeated attempts only confirmed his fears.
He prayed and prayed for her safety. He blinked back tears each time he imagined harm coming to Ella. Please be all right, he prayed. Ella, please be all right.
Five minutes later, Ed received the phone call he never wanted to receive. The alarm company was calling to report a possible break-in. He hung up on the operator, knowing the authorities would soon arrive, as well as the neighbor.
There were only two possibilities. Either Randy wished to harm Ella himself or Randy was aiding someone else who wished to harm Ella. Both possibilities made Ed want to retch. Ella was a sweet girl and a faithful wife. The thought of any harm being visited upon her gutted him.
No, she was strong. Strong… Strong… Strong .
But the repetitive words felt like ashes in his mouth.
Even as his speedometer passed one hundred, he felt it wasn’t fast enough and urged the SUV on and on, up and over the mountains of I-68 like a hurricane on wheels.
The local police station called with dire news. The house was a disaster zone and the neighbor was found shot in the leg in the driveway. They promised to send Ed a composite sketch of the suspect as soon as possible, but he was still an hour away and felt completely helpless. The cops couldn’t locate Randy any better than Ed could, not even at the young man’s apartment. Ed continued to turn the situation over and over in his mind, searching for that missing link, the connection that would lead him to Ella’s whereabouts.
Never before had Ed Peters felt so frightened, or so angry and determined. I’m coming for you, Ella, he thought, steering off the highway well before his own exit.
* * *
This isn’t really happening, Ella told herself. But it was a lie. This really was happening. It was her worst nightmare and a nightmare so horrible she’d never once imagined it.
She was completely at Brandon Andrews’s mercy, seated across from him in the living room of his parents’ Deep Creek Lake cabin. His eyes were glazed over with an emotion she found hard to read.
Maybe it was anger. Maybe it was sorrow. Maybe it was confusion. Or maybe it was a combination of all those emotions.
While his expression was eerie, nothing frightened her more than the gun resting on his lap.
An hour ago, he’d shot a man in her driveway—a neighbor who’d obviously come to check in on her—
most likely at Ed’s request. The house alarm had been blaring for a few minutes before Brandon finally got Ella into his car, tied up in the backseat.
“This is a lie,” Brandon said, holding up Ella’s wedding and engagements rings in one hand. “This is such a lie.” A few seconds later, he was throwing them into the lake outside as Ella watched helplessly through the window. She was still tied up, ankles and wrists bound, so stopping Brandon was out of the question. You have the upper hand for no w, she thought, wishing Ed would burst through the door.
But it felt like a hopelessly stupid wish. How would her husband know where to find her? Brandon had shown up out of the blue.
“Throwing my wedding rings into the lake doesn’t erase my marriage to Ed,” she said defiantly once Brandon took his seat again.
“How about till death do us part?” he asked, his eyes flashing as he stroked the gun.
Ella didn’t dare respond to that. She was terrified but numb at the same time. Half of her knew to be afraid, but the other half of her wished to escape Brandon any way she could, even if it meant that half of her mind floated out the window. She was not really there. This wasn’t really happening. She was going to wake up in Ed’s strong arms. She was going to wake up and forget all about this dream. This nightmare.
Just another minute…
But the minutes ticked by, and Ella didn’t wake up. This was real life, no matter how horrible and unjust it was. Brandon taunted her with cruel threats as the gun rested in his lap, casually at the ready. He wasn’t even himself. The Brandon she’d known wasn’t a pleasant man, but he was transformed somehow—pushed over an edge from which there seemed to be no return.
“Please, Brandon,” she finally managed, swallowing the burn in her throat. “Please let me go.
It’s been months since—”
“Shut up!” he bellowed, causing Ella to jump.
Outside a motorboat sped by, leaving a line of white water tailing behind far across the lake. The window behind Brandon was open, but no one would hear them. The closest house belonged to her parents, and they weren’t visiting anytime soon. All her hopes were pinned on Ed. She repeated his name inside her head like a secret prayer, as if beckoning his arrival was possible by mere thought alone.
Remember the matching cabins, Ed, she prayed.
Remember the lake. Remember… Remember…
“You made me look like a fool, Ella,” he said, fidgeting with the gun again. “You and your stupid parents and this Ed fellow who’s twice your age. You really fucked everything up, but somehow I came out of this looking like the bad guy.”
The bad guy? He broke into her house and tied her up. He shot a man in her driveway. And now he was threatening her with the gun. He was the bad guy. But Ella dared not voice those thoughts aloud.