by April Lust
He reached up the door, and found the knob. He turned it quickly, but not quickly enough. He yanked his hand back, but it throbbed in pain. He couldn’t see it clearly, but it must be burned, the way it was hurting so badly. He had no choice but to press it against the floor to use as traction to pull Daniel into the room.
Pain tore through his hand and up his arm. His head buzzed and he couldn’t tell if the black spots were smoke or he was about to pass out. He couldn’t hear anything now over the ringing in his ears.
Some warning bell in the back of his mind said this was bad. He was about to pass out and they would die down here.
But then Daniel’s body cleared the door. This room didn’t have carpet. It was still bare cement. Which made it easier to slide the body along. It also made it cooler by the tiniest fraction.
Jace stuck his foot out and kicked the door closed. Smoke still crept in under the door, but there was less in here than there had been in the main room. He collapsed to the ground for a moment, letting the slight cool seep into his body. He was so close now. But the window seemed so far away. Miles away from him.
He had to stand. It was the only way to reach the window, and even then, it was still high. He pulled himself up, using his storage shelves. He inched his way along the shelves, his hand burning bright with pain every time he moved it. He stopped and pulled Daniel behind him every few steps. Was he getting heavier?
The shelves ended and Jace felt the brick wall. It was the coolest thing he’d felt in ages. This was the wall at the edge of the house, not an interior wall. On the other side of these bricks was dirt and cold earth, not flames and smoke.
He reached up, but the spinning in his head made him stumble back. He fell on top of Daniel. And that was it. He couldn’t get back up. He wouldn’t be able to reach the window. All he could do now was lie here with his friend, his club member, and hope that the firemen got to them before the flames and smoke did.
He closed his eyes and let images of Isabella flood him. His mouth pulled into a smile. Isabella. Where was she now? Was she home or at work still? Was she sitting in her apartment with Sara? Were they doing something fun like coloring or playing with Sara’s stuffed animals while he was lying here, dying? He’d never see her again. Would she cry for him? Would she come to his funeral?
That ass Lionel had ruined everything. Had almost killed him. Though that led him to Isabella, so maybe that had been okay. But now it seemed his angel had only saved him to give him a few more days. A few days to be with her and to see what love might be like. To know what it felt like to be cared for. He could love her. He could have loved her forever. But he was going to die because of Lionel. If only she would appear again and save him.
Maybe they would just take turns saving each other. She had saved him when he was dying on the road from stab wounds, he had saved her when the gunman showed up and threatened her. Well, okay, he’d protected her. She’d gotten away herself that time. But he had been there in case they came back.
His eyes flew open. If Lionel had sent guys to come for him again, why wouldn’t he send guys to go after Isabella again? He found the energy to sit up. But the movement was too much. His head whirled and he leaned away, raising his helmet just in time to get it over his head before he threw up. Luckily, he’d not thrown up all over Daniel.
He heaved and coughed and when he was done, wiped his mouth. The air felt cooler with his helmet off. It had protected him, but it had made things darker and his head heavier. Now he felt like maybe he could stand again. Maybe he could get them out.
He forced himself to his knees, avoiding his puddle of puke, and crawled to the wall. The edge of the shelves was there. He reached out and grabbed them with both hands, forgetting all about his burned hand until the sharp agony shot through him. He cried out in pain and pressed the hand to the cooler wall. It did little to help.
The window. It was close. He shuffled along the wall until he saw a square where the smoke was lighter. This had to be it.
He reached up to the window and pushed. It didn’t move. Right. There was a lock. He couldn’t reach it, though.
He had to turn around and get a box from the shelves. One on the floor would have to do. He couldn’t pick a box up in his current condition. He shoved one with his foot until it was under the window. Then he stepped onto it, his feet weighing a ton each as he forced his legs to move them.
He stood and almost fell again. The room was spinning around him and the smoke was thicker up here. He hadn’t put his shirt back over his mouth and started coughing and could not get himself to stop. He fumbled and felt the lock. He barely had the strength to turn it, but he heard the click.
Then the window popped open. He hadn’t even had to do anything. It just fell open. Was that right? He knew the glass tilted outward, but it’d never been that easy. He had to push it.
“Jace! Jace!”
He realized someone was calling his name. He blinked through the smoke and could make out figures. Now that the window was open, the smoke was swooshing past him, going for the new hole. But it also gave him some fresh air. He coughed again, but could breathe now.
Someone grabbed his hand. There was another hand on his other arm and he was being lifted. He landed on wet grass and lay on his back, a coughing fit taking over him. He coughed so hard he threw up again, turning his head just in time to avoid puking all over himself.
He blinked through the smoke. He couldn’t see or hear anything.
Someone grabbed him and pulled him. His back touched gravel and he stopped moving.
The smoke had gone. He could see, but his eyes burned. He rubbed them and kept coughing. Cool water. Someone poured it on him. The cold was so shocking after the heat, he shivered.
“Jace?”
He blinked at the voice. Who was there?
“Daniel,” he coughed out. “Get him out.”
“We got him. He’s right here.”
Jace couldn’t see.
“It’s okay, man. Everyone is out.”
Jace fell back to the ground, the wet gravel sticking to his face. He closed his eyes. His work was done.
Chapter Ten
Isabella’s heart stopped. She had to grab the edge of the counter to keep from falling. “What do you mean she’s gone?”
Jeanine was sobbing. She could barely speak and Isabella was having a hard time understanding her.
“Slow down, Jeanine. What happened?”
Isabella realized she was getting looks from the two customers in the store. She hurried to the back and found her purse.
“She was…backyard,” Jeanine choked out. “Then. Gone.”
“Did you hear her scream or anything? You looked for her?”
“No scream. Looked everywhere.” Jeanine was hysterical and Isabella could feel her own panic approaching that point. She had to think.
“You’re home?” Isabella asked.
“Yes.”
“I’m on my way.”
Isabella hung up and dashed into the office where Sue was doing paperwork. She looked up, startled. But the look in Isabella’s eyes must’ve told her something because her own eyes went wide.
“What is it?” Sue asked.
“Sara…” She choked on the words. Somehow, if she said them they would be more real. She wanted this all to be a nightmare. Maybe she’d sat down on her lunch break and fallen asleep and this wall all just a dream. “Sara’s missing,” she finally said.
Sue gasped in shock. “Oh my gosh. What?”
“I have to go.”
“Yes, go.” Sue got to her feet, walking with Isabella to the door, both of them hurrying along.
“I’ll call you,” Isabella said as she reached the door and pushed it open.
Sue stood in the door way, watching her, shock still etched in her face.
Isabella didn’t know how she managed to get to Jeanine’s. She didn’t remember getting into her car, pulling out of the gift shop parking lot, or making several turns.
She fumbled for her phone. It took three tries to enter the passcode. When she finally did, she scrolled to Jace’s name with shaking hands, trying to drive and not hit anything.
She called him and his voice mail picked up. She hung up and immediately called back. Nothing. She didn’t want to leave a message, so she let her phone fall to the seat beside her.
It had to be the same men that had put a gun to her head. The men looking for Jace. The men after Jace, who’d nearly killed him. Oh God. What if they had Jace, too? What if that was why he wasn’t answering? The thought made her cold.
She tried to think about what was happening right now, but her mind kept jumping. What were they doing with her daughter? She pictured Sara’s little face, how it must be terrified, and the tears flooded her vision. Did she have Cuddles with her? Was she clutching her little friend close for comfort? Was she wondering where her mommy was and why she wasn’t there to save her?
She had to stop the sobs so she could drive, but she couldn’t breathe anymore. Her chest hitched and when she saw Jeanine’s house, she was so grateful that she’d made it.
She slammed her car into park and ran from the car to find Jeanine. She was in the backyard, looking and calling out for Sara through her tears.
“Jeanine!”
She turned and ran toward Isabella. They met in a hard embrace.
“I’m so sorry, Isabella. I thought she was fine. She plays outside all the time and she’s fine. I just…I just…”
“No, it’s not your fault.” Isabella rested her hand on Jeanine’s shoulder. “Did you call the police?”
Jeanine nodded. “They’re on their way.”
Isabella looked around the yard. There was no clear sign of struggle, but she didn’t really know what to look for. Trampled bushes? Damaged trees? Jeanine’s yard was lined with thin trees on one side, bushes on the two others. Through the line of bushes were her neighbors and through the trees was a creek and then the backyards of other houses.
“Which way did they go?” she asked.
“They?”
“The people who took her.”
Jeanine blinked at her. “You think someone took her?”
“Don’t you?”
“I…I thought she just wandered off. Took her?”
Could Isabella be wrong? Maybe Sara had been playing and saw a butterfly or something and chased it? Could it be so simple? Maybe no one had her daughter at all. Maybe Jace wasn’t answering his phone because he was busy. Or didn’t want to talk to her. Could life be so wonderful?
“What happened exactly?” Isabella asked.
“I don’t know. Sara was out here playing. I went inside to get my phone and when I came back out, she was gone. I called for her. I thought she just wandered off.”
“Maybe she did.”
She was sure Jeanine had checked, but just to be certain, Isabella went to the trees and looked at the creek, up and down to make sure she didn’t see any sign of her. What had she been wearing that day? Think. Think.
That morning they had cereal for breakfast. Sara still had on her pajamas and she spilled milk on them when she tipped the bowl to drink the leftover milk. Her pink kitty cat pajamas. They’d gone into her room to change, put the pajamas in the hamper and picked up…
Her mint green shirt with a glittery heart on the front. That was what she was wearing. And black leggings. With her silver sparkly flats. She loved those shoes and Isabella could barely manage to get her to take them off. “But they sparkle, Mommy!” she’d protested one night when Isabella was trying to get her to take them off to get in the bathtub. “They don’t need to be cleaned,” she’d protested, which didn’t make any sense. Isabella had pointed out that if they were sparkly and didn’t need to be cleaned, then she better leave them out of the tub, or the glitter might get cleaned off. That had been enough to make Sara immediately kick them off. She’d let nothing take away her sparkle.
Isabella looked up and down the creek again, making sure there wasn’t one of those sparkly shoes sitting on the shore. She walked back up the bank and crossed through into each neighboring yard. No sign of her anywhere.
“I did look everywhere,” Jeanine said.
“I know you did.” Isabella patted her shoulder. “When did the police say they were going to get here?”
“They said right away, but it’s been several minutes.”
Of course. To them, it was probably just a kid who wandered off. Not an extreme emergency. They’d be here soon, but likely wouldn’t come with sirens wailing, flying down the street.
“I’m going to drive around a little,” Isabella said. “Call me as soon as they get here.”
“Okay.”
In her car, Isabella called Jace again. Maybe she should leave a message? She called back and this time when the voice mail recording came on, she said, “Jace, please call me back. It’s Sara and it’s an emergency.”
She drove up and down the street slowly, pulling over when another car was behind her. She called out for her, but saw no signs of her. No a shoe, her stuffed bunny, nothing. She turned around again and drove back.
Would Sara even have wandered off? That seemed so unlike her. She liked Jeanine and always looked forward to going to her house. She wouldn’t just leave without some reason. She wasn’t the type to wander off. Even in stores, she clung to Isabella and would point and tug at her mother to go look at something rather than go over on her own. She was the type to cling, not to wander. So would she really have left Jeanine’s yard to go exploring?
As much as she wanted to believe it could be true, Isabella had to admit that just didn’t sound like her child at all. Sara wouldn’t wander off. Certainly not so far that she couldn’t be quickly found. Certainly not so far that looking for her by car wouldn’t locate her. No. Isabella had to face the truth. She’d been taken. And she’d most likely been taken by the men after Jace. Though there was always the possibility that Craig had shown up and snatched her. At this point, Isabella didn’t know which would be worse.
If Craig had taken her, he might hurt her, but that was less likely at this point. Craig only hurt people when they didn’t do what he wanted. Though if he’d tried to take Sara and she’d resisted, he could easily have smacked her to get her to listen. But that would be the worst of it. Probably. He wouldn’t kill his own child, would he? Or hurt her worse? He might use her as bait to get Isabella back. And what would he do when Isabella refused him?
The thought terrified her. But if Lionel and his guys had her, wouldn’t that be worse? They’d beat up Jace very badly. Almost killed him. Thought they’d killed him. So clearly they were violent people. But a child? She was only bait for them to get to Jace, which had to be why they had her. If a man had held a gun to Isabella’s head to get info about Jace, then surely this was about Jace, too. They wouldn’t rest until he was dead. But they wouldn’t go so far as to kill a child over it, would they?
She pulled back into Jeanine’s driveway and saw that a police car was there. An officer exited the car, closing the door behind him. He’d just arrived.
He turned to her when she got out of her car and she said, “I’m the mother. It’s my daughter who’s missing.”
“Is this your home?”
“No, this Jeanine’s house. She watches my daughter. She was here when she was taken.”
The officer made notes in his notebook. “Taken?”
“Sara wouldn’t just wander off, and I have reason to believe that she was kidnapped.”
“Let’s go inside and discuss this.” The officer gestured toward the door.
They went in and Jeanine came to meet them. They sat at the dining room table and Jeanine first relayed what she’d told Isabella of how Sara had just vanished.
“But you said you believe she was taken,” the officer said to Isabella.
She nodded. She had to be very careful about how she answered this. She knew enough from life with Craig to know that any police attention on the MC was bad news
. If she told him that part of the story, it might get Jace in trouble. But she still wasn’t sure who it was—Craig or someone after Jace—so either reason should work.
“My ex was abusive. We had to leave him abruptly and I think he may have found us and taken Sara.”
The officer scribbled down more notes. He asked about Craig. Name, last known address, etcetera. She gave him all the info she had. He’d radioed some of Craig’s physical appearance details to the car that was driving around the area. They’d look for Sara and keep an eye out for someone who looked like Craig as well.
When they finished talking with the officer, she sat with Jeanine, waiting. The police would be coming back in an hour with an update. They turned on the TV and tried to watch, but every time the phone rang, they jumped up, and Isabella couldn’t keep from checking out the window constantly. She walked to the back door, the front door, pausing in the middle to watch Jeanine talk on the phone and glance at the TV. Jeanine had the whole neighborhood looking for Sara.