by Jill Sanders
“Call your mother first. You can tell me over cake.”
“Right.” She did a little dance. “We’re getting married.” She squealed as she pulled out her phone again. She did a little dance as she walked around the kitchen, talking to her parents as he cut the cake with the words, ‘Carrie, I love you. Will you marry me?’ on the top.
Chapter 15
She couldn’t believe everything she had to do before the big fundraiser event downtown. With Josh’s help, they bought more kennels and cages for the animals that would be ready for adoption that day.
The morning of the event, which was being called Local Pride Business Day, she’d never been more nervous.
With several other townspeople’s help and four trips in the truck, they had all the animals under the shade of a large oak tree. Her mother had brought several smaller animals from the vet’s office that were up for adoption as well: several gerbils, mice, a few bunnies, and even ferrets.
Josh and Parker set up two large pop-up tents and moved most of the animals under them in rows. Some were still under the tree. The shade would last most of the day and she figured she could always move them around later, if needed.
A table and chairs sat in the front of her booth, with all the adoption paperwork. A large banner with her logo on it hung in front of the tent.
There were more than a dozen other tents filling the grassy area. Several food tents were set up and Iian had pulled out the large grill they used for Fourth of July parties. Meats were cooking, filling the area with wonderful smells.
The Miller brothers were in full force as well with a portable stone pizza oven, soda machines, and even a snow cone maker.
People started flooding in and she got so busy, she forgot that she hadn’t eaten lunch. A plate with a barbeque sandwich and fries was set in front of her as she was writing up her tenth adoption form that day.
Josh smiled down at her. “I figured you’d be hungry.” He leaned on the table and handed her a soda. “And thirsty.”
She stood up and kissed him. “I was. You read my mind.”
“How’s it going?” he asked. He’d been helping her all morning but had taken a break.
“Mama terrier is being adopted now.” She glanced over to the happy family playing with the small dog.
“Good. You guys really pulled this off today. Everyone’s talking about making this a yearly thing.”
“Really?” She glanced around. The entire town had come out to stroll through the local business tents.
Even the library had pulled out some old boxes of used books that they were selling for a dollar each. Families strolled past booth after booth. She’d wanted a moment to walk around but had been way too busy so far.
“Riley said she’d come sit and watch the booth for you sometime soon, so you can walk around.” He’d helped her out from the start, talking to people about the animals, showing them, putting them back in the kennels, and moving them when the sun moved. She couldn’t have survived the day without him.
“That would be wonderful.” She sat back down and dug into the sandwich while she filled out the forms for the adoption.
An hour later, Riley showed up. “Sorry. I got busy looking at all the wonderful stuff and helping my mother out. She’s sold more than twenty paintings.”
“Everyone in town loves them,” Carrie said.
“Yes, it’s because they usually have to pay an arm and a leg at a gallery for them,” Riley joked. “She’s selling them at the Pride discount.” She sighed and took Carrie’s chair. “How’s it going around here?”
“We have five cats and three dogs left. All the small animals went first.” She laughed. “I’m heading to the bathroom, then I’m going to stroll around and see everything. I might even spend some money.” She waved as she walked away. Josh was busy handing a small dog over to a family who were looking at him. When he glanced up, he waved and mouthed, ‘Have fun.’
She nodded and started to make her way across the grass towards the porta-johns. Stopping at each booth on the way, she got caught up talking to everyone she knew.
At the first booth, she’d tasted all the honey from the local farmers and found out that she enjoyed the clover honey best. She even purchased a jar of it for herself. She normally bought the honey when it was in stock at O’Neil’s. The next booth was a jewelry tent run by a few older ladies she knew from church. She found four matching bracelets with small hearts and different colored jewels on them and bought them for herself, Sara, Riley, and Lilly.
The next booth was wood turning and she got caught up in watching a man she’d known all her life turn a bowl from scratch.
When her bladder called to her, she made a beeline to the bathroom but had to wait five minutes before her turn.
After, she found a kettle corn booth and bought a large bag of the yummy goodness and nibbled on it while she walked around to enjoy the rest of the booths.
She bumped into many people she knew, so it took longer than she thought it would to get through it all. Riley texted her to tell her that they had adopted out two more dogs and three cats and that she should take her time coming back.
She walked over and chatted with Megan, who was giving out popsicles to the kids in front of the library. Then she spoke with Lacey, who had an official mayor’s booth and was handing out registrations for voting. Carrie quickly filled one out since she’d forgotten to do it when she renewed her license earlier that year.
She went over to Allison Jordan’s area and drooled over all the beautiful artwork Riley’s mother had made. Several of her pieces were hanging up in the Oar, along with Iian’s great-grandmother’s artwork.
She bumped into Luke and Amber as they were trying to find their two teenagers in the crowd and then went over to the booth in front of the fire station and chatted with a few of her friends. It wasn’t any surprise that Jacob, Riley’s twin, was over there helping hand out treats to the kids.
Riley and Jacob were as opposite as night and day. It wasn’t that Jacob wasn’t talkative or outgoing, he just had to know you first. He was more like his father than Riley was—the tall, dark, and silent type. Since Carrie had known him all his life, she was immune to his charms, but gauging from the string of girls in town walking past his booth, not everyone was.
She walked by the Baked booth and saw that the line was just as long as the one for the Golden Oar. The brothers were working side by side along with a few teenagers from town that they’d hired to help out. Several of the girls working the booth had at one time worked for the Oar.
She ran into Mason, who was apparently looking for his girlfriend.
“Lost her already?” she joked.
“I swear, I just turned my back.” He smiled. “This kind of thing isn’t really to her liking. She’s spent half of the time sitting under a tree.” He shrugged. “But I’m enjoying myself.” He got a text. “Oh, she had to run to the bathroom.” He sighed. “I’ll see you around.” He waved after her.
She was strolling through the last booths when she heard a small sound from the alleyway. Without thinking, she set her bags down and started searching around the dumpster for what she thought was a small kitten in distress.
She didn’t have any time to scream as the blow to the back of her head caused her world to grow dark.
* * *
Josh helped the family to their car with their latest addition, whom they were calling Buddy. The amber-haired dog couldn’t have been happier to be sitting in the lap of the ten-year-old girl, who was all smiles as they drove away.
He waved to them and turned back to the booth in time to see Riley pull out a homemade sign that read. “Out of animals.”
“We did it.” She smiled at him. “Can you believe it?” She did a little booty jiggle then surprised him and rushed over and hugged him. “This will definitely help the two of you start building the new sanctuary.” She frowned. “We need to find Carrie and tell her she’s out of animals.” She chuckled. “That
just sounds weird. For as long as I’ve known her, she’s been surrounded by hurt creatures.”
“Oh, she still has plenty, they just weren’t ready to be adopted yet,” he reminded Riley.
“Right.” She nodded, her eyes scanning the thinning crowed. “A lot of people are closing down.” She glanced down at her watch. “Wow, I can’t believe it’s almost six.”
He frowned and glanced down at his own watch. He’d been so busy talking and helping people that he hadn’t realized it was so late. “What time did Carrie wander off?”
Riley turned back to him. “Four.” Her eyes scanned the people. “Everyone’s leaving. She should have been back long ago.” She turned to him. “Call her.”
He had already pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. The phone rang and on the fifth ring, switched over to her voicemail. He frowned as he left a quick message.
Riley pulled out her own phone and dialed Carrie. “Message.” She hung up. Then she turned around and, spotting someone, rushed away from him. “Robert,” she called back to him.
He saw Carrie’s father across the grass area and dashed after Riley.
When he arrived, Riley was already explaining that they hadn’t seen Carrie for almost two hours and that she wasn’t answering her phone.
“Easy.” Robert’s smile was firmly in place. “Let’s have a look around. She probably got caught up talking to someone.” He glanced around. “I’ll take the north and east sides, Riley, take the south, Josh…”
“West got it.” He was already darting off in that direction.
“Call if you find her. We’ll meet by the fountain in fifteen minutes,” Robert said after him.
As he made his way around the booths and people, he called her name over and over. He pulled out his cell phone and texted her a message after trying to call her several more times. He asked everyone he bumped into if they had seen her.
Several people joined in the search with him as if it was a game. They joked and laughed, saying he’d lost his fiancé already.
Something in his gut twisted the longer he searched. When everyone met by the fountain, he wasn’t surprised to see almost everyone who remained at the event crowded around.
“Alright.” Robert stood on the edge of the fountain, getting everyone’s attention. “What we know is, the last time Josh and Riley saw Carrie was a little after four…” Robert glanced down at Riley and him and they both nodded in agreement. “Who else saw Carrie today? Maybe walking around?” Several people raised their hands. “Do you happen to know what time?” he asked. Several people called out times between four-fifteen and four-thirty. “Anyone after four-thirty?” he asked.
“I talked to her at four-forty-two.” Mason stepped forward. He held up his phone. “I got a call from Sophia while I was talking to her.” He frowned down at his phone. “Sophia wasn’t feeling well and decided to go home,” he said softly.
“Okay.” Robert jumped down and moved over to Mason. “Where were you? Did you see which direction Carrie went?”
“She had her hands full with some bags…” he started.
“These?” Carol, one of the clerks at O’Neil’s, stepped forward holding up a few bags.
“I found them sitting at the corner.” She pointed. “I was taking them to the lost and found area.”
She moved forward, and they opened the bags. “Yes, Carrie bought those bracelets from me,” Henrietta Henderson said, stepping forward. “Hester and I started making those after Hanna passed.”
“Can you show me where you found these?” Robert asked Carol. They followed her to the corner just around from his own building.
“Right here. They were just sitting on the curb.” The woman motioned.
Robert looked at Josh. “Spread out,” he said, and everyone started walking down the alleyway.
“Here,” someone called after a few minutes, causing Josh’s heart to speed up. He raced over to look down at Carrie’s phone lying on the cement with a shattered screen. It was buzzing with new messages.
“Robert.” Amelia grabbed her husband’s arm. She’d joined the group shortly after they’d entered the alley, when Robert had called her. Tears streamed down her face as she looked down at the phone.
Robert knelt, and he followed the man’s move. He touched something on the ground, and Josh’s heart sank when his fingers came back covered in blood. Carrie’s father’s eyes met his and Josh knew at that moment he’d do anything to see Carrie just one more time.
Chapter 16
Carrie woke to the soothing hum of a car engine. The darkness fooled her for a moment into relaxing and shutting her eyes again. It was the pain in the back of her head and her hands that made her jerk her eyes open again.
Her hands were tied tightly behind her back with what she thought were large zip ties. She wiggled for a moment to try and free them, which only caused pain to shoot up her arms into her shoulders as the ties cut into her skin.
Blinking, she tried to look around. Her head ached, and she could feel dried and dripping blood mix as it trickled down the back of her neck.
She realized that she was in the trunk of a car when she noticed the glow of brake lights as the vehicle slowed down.
She’d been kidnapped. Her heart raced, and her breathing quickened as she frantically struggled against the ties. When she tried to kick out, she realized her legs were tied to her hands, which pulled them backwards behind her body.
No matter how hard she wiggled, she couldn’t break free. Giving up on that option, she felt around behind her for anything that she could use to cut herself lose as the car continued to drive at what felt like a high speed.
She could hear cars passing them as if they were on a highway. Several semis shook the car as they passed as well. There was only one highway out of town, so they were either heading north towards Portland or south towards California.
Closing her eyes, she tried to make a mental map. She’d seen someone doing it in a movie once, but it was no use. She hadn’t been awake during the first part of the trip and she had no clue how long she’d been out, so it didn’t really help. Besides, they were still traveling straight on a highway.
She knew the ride would be coming to an end soon and desperately searched the trunk for anything to defend herself. All she found was new carpeting.
Then a memory played, and her father’s voice shouted at her in her mind.
“You can do this. Think! Don’t let anyone make you a victim.” His voice echoed in her head.
Suddenly, the memory of a summer when her father had taught her how to escape this exact situation flooded her mind.
With renewed energy, she looked around for the latch that all newer cars have in order to open the trunk from the inside. She frowned when she didn’t see it at first. Her eyes had adjusted enough that she could see the black tape that someone had placed over the glow-in-the-dark handle, so she wouldn’t see it. Someone had planned this ahead of time, which scared her even more.
Once again, her father’s voice broke into her fear.
“Focus Care Bear. How are you going to get out?”
Twisting as the car continued down the highway, she brought her hands around and reached for the edge of the carpet. Pulling the carpet back, she felt around for the spare tire. She smiled when her fingers brushed the rubber, and she continued groping around. Sighing when her fingers wrapped around a crowbar, she pulled it free. Sticking it behind her back, she twisted it quickly in the ties holding her hands.
The cable cut into her skin, but she continued to twist until she heard the zip ties snap. When her hands were freed, she did the same to her feet to get them loose.
Then she waited until the car slowed enough to use the latch as she gripped the crowbar to her chest.
Her mind turned towards Josh as every moment with him in the past few months played in her mind. Closing her eyes, she fought back tears as she remembered how he’d proposed to her, how they had dreamed of a new life rebuilding th
e sanctuary together, and even starting a family.
When the car slowed enough that she knew they were turning off the highway, she started keeping track of turns. First, a right turn off the highway, which could have been any exit at this point. Another right and then the car sped up as if they were on a frontage road. A quick left and another right after almost five minutes of driving, a left onto a bumpy dirt road. She could smell the dirt as the tires kicked it up behind the car.
She had to hold on to keep from hitting her head on the top of the trunk. Gauging that the car was traveling less than ten miles per hour, she pulled the release lever and took a deep breath before jumping into darkness.
She landed on her left hip and rolled, holding the crowbar tight to her chest. Her head bounced a few times on the dirt road, causing her to cry out with pain.
When she stopped rolling, she glanced around quickly and was relieved when the car lights continued down the road.
It took her a second to get to her feet. The blood circulation to her hands and legs was so bad, she had to slap her hands on her thighs to wake them up. All the while, her eyes were glued to the fading brake lights, making sure that whoever had taken her wasn’t turning around to come after her again.
Finally standing, she held the crowbar as she started running down the dirt road. She estimated that they had been on the dirt road for less than two minutes, which meant almost a five-minute jog. When she finally reached pavement, she took a deep breath of relief and glanced around. The road was dark, and, from her position, she couldn’t see any road signs.
She kept checking behind her as she started running again in the direction they had come.
When she saw a car coming from behind her, she darted into the bushes and hid as it quickly passed by. It passed another vehicle coming in her direction and she jumped out of the bushes and stood in the middle of the road, waving her hands frantically.
The truck came to a squealing halt and she held her breath as the driver rolled down his window.
