“There’s an old logging road not far from here. Leads to a deserted logging camp. They’ll never find you there.” He reached out and ran a finger along her cheek. “You were so sweet, so willing to please. Maybe we’ll give things one more go for old time’s sake. You just might die smiling.”
Her stomach twisted and she batted his hand away. “You’re disgusting.”
He laughed. “Now, now. No need for name-calling.” He started the car and pulled from the darkened parking lot.
Headlights shone in the side mirror as another vehicle approached from behind.
“Get the hell off my ass, jerk,” Mark complained. “I can’t see for shit with those headlights glaring.” He slowed and opened his window, flagging the other driver to go around him.
Heather recognized the vehicle as the truck from the convenience store. At least it looked the same. She wished the driver would have stayed behind them so someone would know where Mark had taken them. But the truck passed and the taillights faded into the mist that had begun to form.
Mark slowed, watching the side of the narrow road. “Finally.” He cut the wheels hard to the left and onto a rutted dirt path. The Mercedes bounced over the ruts, the bottom scraping every so often.
“This can’t be good for a Mercedes,” Heather said.
“Shut up.”
The headlights swept across a clearing where two small buildings sat in a state of disrepair. “Honey, we’re home.”
He stood with a flashlight, waiting for her to get Amanda out of the car. Popping the trunk, he removed a canvas bag. Then he led the way to one of the buildings.
“How did you find this place?” Heather asked.
“A little research. Brilliant, isn’t it?” He forced the door open and flashed the light around the inside. “Sorry I didn’t have a chance to clean.”
He removed two battery-powered lamps from the bag and set them on the filthy desk. His cell phone bleated, indicating a message. “What do you know? I have a signal all the way up here.” He put the phone to his ear, then began to laugh. “I guess someone called the wife on me.” He turned on the speaker so she could hear the message from Corinne Hastings. “Looks like I’ll have some explaining to do when I get home.”
Heather knew she had to buy time, keep him talking. “Why does Corinne want the baby?”
“Who the hell knows. Probably so she can rub my nose in my indiscretion every day. And there’s her pro-life stance. What could be better for an election than holding up a baby—one your wandering husband fathered—and loving it as your own? Dumb bitch. I’m sick of her politics and her pretences and her holier-than-thou attitude. I might be going down for this, but I’m taking her with me.” He stopped moving and faced her. “If you’d just stayed put a while longer, we could have worked this all out. And she’d never had to have known about the money. But, no, you had to run.”
“I’ll give you back the money. I have it.”
“You’re really clueless, aren’t you? Do you have any idea how much of Corinne’s money I’ve siphoned off over the years? And she would never have known. But, now, you’ll go to court and testify and she’ll start asking all kinds of questions. You’ve heard the expression take the money and run? Well, that’s what I fully intend to do. I think I’ll like Brazil.”
He snapped the cell phone closed. But she noticed he hadn’t turned it off. She wondered if anyone would think to track the GPS.
Amanda began to cry again.
“Now what’s wrong with her?”
“She’s probably wet.”
“Well, change her.”
“The diapers are in the car. Will you get them?” She feigned laying the baby on the filthy desk.
“And you wonder why I don’t want the brat.” He paused in the doorway. “Don’t even think about trying anything. There’s nowhere to go up here.”
Her thoughts raced as she frantically scanned the shabby cabin. The windows were boarded over. Mark slammed through the door. His eyes followed her gaze. “Don’t even try.” He tossed the package of diapers to her. “Change her and shut her up.”
“I can’t lay her on this desk. It’s filthy. Give me your jacket.”
He removed his jacket and threw it toward her. “You’re a pain in the ass, both of you.”
She spread the jacket on top of the desk and laid the baby down. Keeping on eye on Mark, she felt the pockets for the car keys. Nothing.
Mark paced the room, his agitation growing.
Heather picked up Amanda, soothing her. She fought to keep her voice calm. “Mark, it’s not too late to stop this. If you leave now, you’ll be in Canada before I can get to a phone. I’ll stay here until morning.”
“Shut up! Just shut up.”
She bounced Amanda in her arms when the baby whimpered. “If you’re leaving the country, there’s really no need to kill us.”
“Maybe I just want to clean up the mess and start over. No one will know I was even here. My loving wife has been the one tracking you down. Her brother will have to testify to that fact.” His smile and the wild look in his eyes made her tremble. “It’s perfect. I get rid of you and take down the great Governor Hastings at the same time.”
“So why don’t you just do it? Get it over with.”
He whirled and strode toward her. “This is my party. You’re a guest. I’ll decide when it’s over.” He grabbed her arm and dragged her toward a closet.
Heather clutched Amanda with her free arm. When he opened the closet door, she balked. She hated small, enclosed spaces. “There’s no need for this. We can’t go anywhere.”
“I have something to take care of. I want you here when I get back. That’s when the real party’s gonna start.” He shoved her inside the closet and a lock clicked.
His footsteps faded as he crossed the room, then the door closed leaving her in the dark and in complete silence. Her body shook and she tried the doorknob. She turned and something covered her face causing her to step back and gasp. Her arms protectively covered Amanda who now slept peacefully.
Heather kissed the baby’s head. “I’ll get us out of this somehow. I promise.”
When Mark returned and released her from the closet, light had begun to break outside.
“I need to use the bathroom. And then I need to feed the baby again.”
“Give her to me.”
She turned to keep him from taking Amanda from her.
“I’ll hold her while you use the bathroom.” He took the baby in his arms. Amanda took one look at his face and wailed. “Hurry up. It’s behind that partition.”
Heather rounded the corner to find a rusted and blackened toilet devoid of water. Her stomach rolled and she fought down nausea as she undid her jeans and relieved herself. She noticed something in the back wall of the cabin. A door. Did it lead outside or just to another room or closet?
Amanda shrieked and Mark shouted, “What the hell are you doing?”
She jerked up her jeans and hurried back to Amanda. “You were gone a long time. Where were you?”
His cold stare sent shivers through her. “Digging a grave.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jake raced through the airport and out to the curb where Angie waited. He tossed his bag into the back of her SUV and climbed in the front. “Any news?”
“No. They’ve got everyone up on that mountain—local police, states, and the FBI. I’m scared for her, Jake.”
“Let’s go to my place. I need my truck.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going up there and find her.”
She pulled from the curb. “They won’t let you through. I was up there most of the night. They have a command center set up at the gas station and the road blocked to traffic.”
“I don’t plan to stop and ask permission. I know that mountain. I’ve hiked there often.”
She sighed and cut into the passing lane, jamming her foot down on the gas. “Then I’m going with you.”
“You seem to forget that I’m driving. And I know that mountain, too.”
Once they were out of traffic and heading toward the mountain, Angie said, “So, I have to ask—do we call you Father Steve now? Boy, that was a shocker.”
“I can imagine. No, I’m still Jake. I left the priesthood.”
“You’re sticking around here then?”
Jake knew what she was trying to ask and figured he may as well tell the whole story. “I’ve learned some things about myself in the past couple of years. I’m not sure I was ever cut out to be a priest. The reasons I had for choosing that vocation weren’t enough. There are a lot of ways to help people, to make a difference.”
“There are.”
“I imagine the news was the topic of discussion at Rusty’s?” he asked.
“Oh, yeah.” She laid on the horn and tore around a slow-moving pickup truck.
Jake braced himself. “Do you believe Heather’s innocent, that she’s the victim here?”
“Don’t you? C’mon, Jake. That guy is crazy and he kidnapped her and the baby.”
“His baby.”
“If you don’t believe her, why are you charging up the mountain to rescue her?” When he didn’t answer, she continued, “The only thing she’s guilty of is having poor taste in men. Well, in one man, at least.”
Jake stared forward at the roadblock ahead. “Pull into the gas pumps.”
“I don’t need gas.”
“Just pull up there and get out.”
She headed into the parking lot and motioned to one of the policemen that she was pulling up to the pumps. She slid down from SUV. “I’ll see what I can do, but I’m pretty sure they’re not going to let us go any further.”
“That’s why I’m not asking.” He moved behind the wheel and gunned the engine. Gravel sprayed out behind the vehicle as he sped around the roadblock and up the mountain. In the rearview mirror, he saw two uniformed officers scramble to get into a car to give chase. He floored the gas pedal.
The narrow, winding mountain road was treacherous and his heart pounded as the SUV fishtailed around a curve. Angie had told him the gas station attendant followed them the night before and that Mark must have taken one of the old logging roads. A glance in the mirror told him the police car hadn’t caught up yet. He slowed in the thick fog as he came to a rutted road that disappeared into the woods to his left. Cutting the wheel sharply, Jake turned and tried to avoid some of the deeper ruts. This had to be the right place. It had to be.
*
Mark had paced and rambled for more than an hour. But he hadn’t touched her or taken Amanda from her. For that, Heather was grateful. She needed to distract him, break the escalation in his train of thought. “I need the rest of the baby food. It’s in the car.”
He stopped and whirled around to stare at her, looking almost surprised at her presence. “What?”
“She’s hungry. I need her baby food. If you want, I can go and get it.”
“Yeah, right. I’ll let you just walk out the door. I’ll be right back.” He lifted the gun and pointed it at her. “Don’t try to run. I won’t miss.”
The second he was out the door, she picked up Amanda and hurried to the door she’d seen in the back of the cabin. It opened to the outside. Holding Amanda tightly against her, she ran, following a narrow path deeper into the woods, trying to hold onto a sense of direction toward the road they’d turned off from. Morning fog masked the light, made it difficult to see more than a few feet ahead. It was still a better option than staying and waiting to be shot.
“Heather! You can’t go anywhere. If you’re not careful, you’re going to kill yourself out there.”
His shrill laugh sent chills up her spine. She huddled behind thick overgrowth and shushed Amanda. She could hear him moving closer. He would find them soon enough if she stayed there.
She looked to her left. A path cut back through the trees and toward the dirt road. She clutched Amanda in her arms and made her way along the path. She could hear Mark moving deeper into the woods, calling to her.
She broke into the clearing and reached the Mercedes. As she’d hoped, the keys dangled from the ignition. Ripping open the driver’s door, she placed the baby on the passenger’s seat, slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. No time for a car seat. She hit the gas and spun the car around, one hand on Amanda.
Mark swore as he raced from the trees and into the clearing. A bullet dinged off the hood of the car. She sped up, careful not to bottom the car out and have it stall.
She rounded a turn and slammed on the brakes, veering off the road. A black SUV headed straight toward her. It came to a stop in a cloud of dust. Terror filled her. What if Mark had an accomplice? Her only desire was to protect Amanda. She crawled across the console, threw open the passenger side door and clutched the baby, prepared to run back into the woods.
“Heather?”
The familiar voice brought her to a halt. She looked over her shoulder. “Jake?”
He rushed toward her. “Are you both okay?”
“We have to get out of here. Mark’s crazy. He has a gun and I’m sure he’s headed this way.” The words were barely out of her mouth when a bullet zinged by and exploded in the trunk of a pine.
“Get in the SUV.” Jake took Amanda from her arms and shoved her toward the idling vehicle.
A police car with lights flashing and siren blaring pulled in behind them. The two cops jumped out, guns drawn.
Jake lifted one hand, palm out. “I’m not armed. But he is,” Jake said, motioning to the man who now stood in the center of the road, gun aimed.
“Drop the gun, Hastings,” one of the officers shouted.
“I don’t think so.”
A second later, a loud bang was followed by silence.
Jake put his arm around Heather, drawing her against him. “It’s over.”
She clung to him, burying her face in his chest.
“Come on. Let me take you home. Are you hurt?”
She shook her head. “No, we’re okay. I just want to go home.”
He helped her into the SUV and handed Amanda to her. “I’ll be right back.”
Jake strode to where the police officers stood over Mark Hastings. He said something to them, motioned to the SUV, then nodded and walked back to her. “They’ll need a statement from you. We’ll go down to the gas station where they’ve set up camp.”
He turned the SUV around and headed back to the mountain road.
“How did you know what was going on?”
“It was on the news. I was in Florida with my family.”
She hugged Amanda close and rested her chin on the baby’s head. “You probably saved us both by showing up when you did with the cavalry.”
“I ran the roadblock and they were chasing me.”
“How did you know where to look for us?”
“The kid from the gas station followed you last night. The police were waiting for the fog to clear enough to move in.”
“But you didn’t wait.”
He glanced at her. “All I could think of was you and Amanda alone with that maniac.”
Two police cars screamed past them, heading up the mountain.
“So, you know about us. You called her Amanda.”
“I saw the news.”
She nodded. “I saw the news, too. We’ve both been keeping secrets.”
They reached the gas station and Jake pulled into the parking lot. Angie and two police officers all raced toward the vehicle.
Angie pulled the door open and reached for the baby. “Oh, sweetie.” She looked up at Heather. “Are you okay?”
When her feet hit the ground, reality hit her brain and she began to shake. Angie pulled her close. “Oh, honey. That had to be terrifying.”
Heather leaned into her and cried.
A female officer waited a moment, then said, “Miss Carlson, I can take you and your baby to the hospital t
o be checked out.”
“We’re okay. I just want to go home.”
“I’ll take them home, officer.” Angie kept an arm around Heather’s shoulders.
“We’ll need to get a statement, Miss Carlson,” the police woman said.
“Can’t it wait? She and the baby have both been through an ordeal,” Angie said.
The officer spoke with a detective, then returned to them. “Someone will come by in a few hours unless you want to come to the station.”
“I’d appreciate it if they’d come to my house. I’m exhausted and I need to see my mother,” Heather said.
Angie held out her hand to Jake. “Keys.”
“I’ll drive.”
“Fine.” Angie climbed into the passenger’s seat.
“I’ll ride in the back with Amanda. Take it slow,” Heather said.
In the car, Heather held the baby in her lap and let her head fall back against the headrest, closing her eyes. Tears trailed down her cheeks.
When they pulled into the driveway behind Abe’s house, Brooke raced down the steps and pulled Heather into a hug. “Oh, thank God. We were so scared.”
“I was, too.” She leaned into her friend and cried.
Her mother stood at the bottom of the steps, tears streaming down her face. Heather broke free and ran into her mother’s arms.
Angie walked by them. “I’m taking Amanda upstairs and giving her a bath.”
“Thanks,” Heather said.
“Let’s all go upstairs,” Brooke said.
Jake hesitated, “I…uh…” He looked to Heather. “Can we talk for a minute?”
She nodded.
“We need to talk about everything. So much has happened.”
“This isn’t the time, Jake. Or is it Father Steve?” She started to walk away, then turned back to him. “You should have told me. I told you the truth, and you… You slept with me, let me believe you were someone else. I can’t begin to tell you how that hurts. How that shames me.”
“Heather….”
But she was already hurrying up the steps.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Heather wakened to sun streaming through the bedroom window. She had slept for hours. A nightmare replay of the events had jarred her from sleep once, screaming. Her mother had crawled in with her and held her until she was once again able to sleep. Now she lay alone in the late afternoon light. Voices drifted toward her from the living room. She sat up and stretched, touching fingertips to her swollen lip and remembering Mark’s slap. She shuddered when she thought of Mark, the demonic look in his eyes, then the realization he’d taken his own life rather than be captured.
Protection Page 24