Agent Harrington brows furrowed. “That’s pretty far-fetched, Ryan. Don’t you think it’s more likely Makayla is the one who did it? I mean, where on earth did a six-year- old get a cell phone?” He shook his head. “And more importantly, the idea”
“Nicholas is five and the details of how is a long story. One I’m sure his mother will be waiting to hear as well. When this is all over.” They had to make it through this. They just had to. “Besides, Steven will have Makayla restrained. It’s just his MO.”
Michael spoke for the first time. “He’s taking them to Uncle Ned’s ranch.”
The bitterness in Michael’s tone curled Ryan’s toes. “Uncle Ned? Who the devil is that and why do you think that’s where Steven’s headed?”
Michael’s eyes fell to his lap. For a moment, Ryan worried he wouldn’t talk.
“Once, when my parents were fighting, I overheard my da…” He stopped, gulped down a breath and tried again. “I heard Steven telling my mom he’d send her to Georgia and let Uncle Ned teach her how a wife was supposed to behave.” Michael never lifted his head, but Ryan heard the hiccups as he tried to restrain the sobs.
“Why didn’t you say something earlier?”
“I-I was sure he was headed back to California. When you said he’d only gone about two hours away, I remembered the ranch wasn’t too far from Disneyland. That’s where Steven planned to take me while Mom was getting her lessons.”
The thought freaked Ryan out. Lessons? He could only imagine what kind of lessons Steven spoke of. And to take the boy for a fun trip to Disneyland while his mom was being tortured into submission was beyond sick. Just like Steven.
“Do you know the address?” Ryan knew this would be a long shot. But Michael had surprised him more than once over the years with his photographic memory. If he’d seen it written down, chances were he’d remember.
Michael sat silent. Then shook his head. “I was only there once. Mom went to visit my grandmother when she was sick and Steven had a business trip scheduled with Uncle Ned, so he took me with him.”
“That’s okay. You did good.” Ryan waited for a few moments. “What about this uncles’ last name?”
Michael’s head flew up, his moist eyes beaming. “Ned Lanford. I’m pretty sure he isn’t my real uncle. Just another of Steven’s business buddies. One he did a lot of business with.”
“Very good, Michael.” Ryan smiled proudly. Keeping his thoughts on his good luck made it easier to avoid thinking about Makayla. Was Steven forcing himself on her? Was she crying? Was Nicholas? Or had he already disposed them?
The last thought worried him the most. Steven didn’t have a merciful bone in his entire body. No one double crossed him without suffering severely for it. Makayla had not only betrayed him by leaving, but she’d been with another man. Had another baby.
Ryan’s baby.
A picture of Nicholas laughing as they’d played his little “what if” game shook him to the core. He forced back the knot of emotion and focused on what needed to be done.
“We need to check the Georgia state directory for a listing on Ned Lanford. Then, if nothing shows up, check every state from here to California.”
“Is this necessary?” Agent Harrington wanted to know. “We’ll have a location from the cell phone trace in about twenty minutes.”
“Yes, it is. Every second counts.” Ryan walked away. Every word leaving his mouth was dangerous. Any minute, he knew they might take on a life of their own. And he didn’t want to say something he’d regret later.
Four minutes passed, then five. And nothing.
Ryan scowled at his new phone. Then checked it to make sure it was working. “Come on, come on.” He paced back and forth in front of his truck.
“Ryan.” Michael’s voice startled him. The boy had left the truck and managed to walk up behind him without notice.
“Yes, son?” He eased the anger from his furrowed brow.
“I just want you to know that I’m not mad at you for using us or lying to us.” Michael swallowed hard, holding his gaze.
Ryan wished it didn’t sound so bad. But the facts couldn’t be denied. Whether he admitted it or not, the truth remained. They had been using Makayla and her son to get the goods on Steven. It didn’t matter what transpired after that.
“You have every right to be.” Ryan straightened his posture and slid his hands into his pockets. “I wouldn’t blame you.”
“You said you loved my mom.” Michael’s eyes fell to his feet. “All I want is the truth now.”
“More than my own life. I love you too, Michael. That’s the truth. The using stopped a long time ago. I stayed because I wanted to. Because I needed to.”
Michael lurched forward before Ryan could move. Instead of the sucker punch to the gut he expected, Michael hugged him within an inch of his life.
Wrapping the teenager in his arms, he patted his back. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, his cell phone buzzed the most eerie ring. He opened it and thrust it to his ear in one motion.
“Find anything?” The brief pause felt like an eternity. “Great. What’s the fastest route?” He waved Michael back to the truck, mouthing the words pen and paper.
Ryan listened, watching Michael as he found what he was looking for and then headed back. He motioned for him to turn around so he could write on his back. “Perfect,” he said, scribbling down directions.
Michael straightened when he finished. “What now?”
“Got him,” Ryan said, shoving his phone back onto his hip. He smiled at the determined look on Michael’s face. “Let’s go get our family, son.”
Chapter Twenty-three
Makayla shifted in her seat and grimaced. The wounds on her wrists burned where the threads of the rope scraped her ragged flesh. She tried so hard to find a comfortable position and sit still, but no matter which way she turned, the aching in her arms and all over discomfort just wouldn’t ease up.
“It won’t be much longer, Makayla.” Ricky’s statement startled her. She’d been caught up in her own thoughts and totally forgot about his odd behavior after leaving the gas station.
She decided to test him. “What’s going on, Ricky?”
“You know I can’t tell you that.” He grinned, giving her a clear view of his crooked teeth.
Low in her belly, a slow burn started. The nightmare of her past was so close she could feel it working to destroy her resolve from the inside out. “No, I mean, what did you lose back there?”
At that, his head turned, his eyes piercing her with a gaze that made her blood run cold. “I didn’t lose nothing.”
Makayla smiled. He was a horrible liar. She dared questioned him further. “Does Steven know?”
“There’s nothing to know. Look, you ain’t in any position to be asking me questions. I was trying to make time pass quicker. That’s all. Just sit there and shut up!”
His tone sounded toxic. Yep. She’d hit quite a nerve all right. “Come on, Ricky, don’t you trust me? We could work together, you know. They’re going to find us. And then what? What’s that mean for you? Jail? Tell me. What’s Steven got on you anyway? Why do you let him boss you around and treat you like a dog?”
The car swerved as Ricky swung his large arm in her direction. She saw it coming a second too late and tried to duck, but his hard calloused knuckles caught her cheekbone just before she went down. The left side of her face felt on fire. No, no, no. Just ignore it. The stinging will pass. She choked back a painful whimper, determined to keep her composure as she sat back up and glanced into the backseat.
Steven’s head popped up from where it had been resting on the seat as he fumbled for the intercom buttons. “Ricky, what the hell are you doing up there?”
“Nothing, boss.”
“Don’t give me that shit. What’s going on?”
Ricky’s expression turned grim. Makayla watched him, her cheekbone stinging. Ricky look
ed scared to death. He’d had no problem striking her before when it had apparently been Steven’s idea. But he was petrified his boss would find out now and not be happy. What the devil did Steven have on this man?
“Tell him, Ricky. Tell him why you hit me,” she whispered.
He glared at her, mouth tensed in a deadly line, daring her to say more.
She swallowed hard as the pain radiated down her jawline and then gritted her teeth to keep her tongue in check. Now wasn’t the best time.
“Boss, it was just something in the road. I swerved to miss it.”
Steven sat in silence a few seconds, studying the back of Ricky’s head. “Don’t let it happen again, you idiot. You might hurt the boy.”
“Yes, sir.” With a look that could have skinned her alive, Ricky warned her she’d pay dearly for any future outburst and then focused all his attention on the road.
Makayla decided it in her best interest to keep quiet. There was definitely something going on here she could use against Ricky. She just needed to watch and wait for the appropriate moment. Leaning back as far against the door as she could, she slid her hands off to one side in the gap behind her, then closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears resting in the corners contained.
Why did it have to sting so badly? After the numerous times she’d suffered a strike to the face all those years ago, looks like her nerves would be numb to the pain.
Just stay awake and alert, she told herself over and over. Steven was way too unpredictable. He might leave Nicholas on the side of the road first chance he got, or worse, just to spite her.
She cringed at the thought and peeled her tired lids apart. No rest for the weary.
The darkness outside made it difficult to keep up with landmarks and signs now, but she wasn’t about to let the fact hinder her efforts. If they managed to escape, she needed to have her bearings straight. Wasting precious time going in circles wasn’t an option.
As they rounded the next corner, the car slowed to a crawl and her heart raced. Had they reached their destination?
Ricky glanced in her direction briefly before he put the ear buds back in his ears. What a complete moron. He didn’t want her to hear the conversation, but there was little he could do to silence his words when he responded.
“Is there a code, sir?” He acknowledged Steven’s answer and then rolled down his window. She saw the metal box with the keypad and her heart lurched. Heaven help them. They were stopping—at least for the night. She swallowed back the bitter taste in her mouth, fear rising in her chest with each click of the button Ricky pushed.
Seconds later, the driver side window went back up and she watched freedom be taken from her once again as the car moved forward through big iron gates. She couldn’t see the thick brick wall surrounding the complex, but she knew it was there. It was always there. Her plans of escape had zoomed right out that blasted window.
Trapped. Again. With her son.
Helpless to stop the horrifying events sure to follow.
Their chances of survival were ill-fated from the beginning. Steven had promised her again and again if she ever tried to leave him, he’d find her. No matter how long or how far. She couldn’t escape. Not forever. And when he did find her, he’d make her regret the day she’d ever been born.
She believed every word and cursed her frailty. She should have killed him years ago. Should have put an end to her misery, and Michael’s, instead of running like a coward. But she couldn’t stand the idea of being in prison. Of someone else raising her child. Of just who that someone would actually be.
Steven’s father was killed years before they even met. She’d made the mistake of asking how he died only once. Most of that night was still a blur, but the scars on her body from Steven’s reminder that a good wife never asked questions would never heal. His mother, on the other hand, as cruel and vindictive as her son, had been alive and caused trouble every chance she got. The woman would put ideas in Steven’s head about Makayla having affairs or flirting with the help and Steven believed every word. There had been no way Makayla was going to risk that woman raising her son and turning him into a monster like she had Steven.
Just give her the opportunity now and nothing would stop her from making certain Steven never hurt anyone else again. The knowledge of what Steven had managed to bring her to chilled her to the bone.
She understood all too well what her intentions required.
She’d need to become no better than Steven.
A cold-blooded killer.
Chapter Twenty-four
After driving through the front gates and down a good five mile track of winding paved road, they stopped and waited. For what and how long, she wasn’t sure. The clock in the limo had blinked an annoying 12:00 o’clock for the entire trip. Not knowing how long they’d actually traveled on the highway or the exact time drew out every terrorizing second. Throw in the fact Steven was acting overly irritated in the backseat where her son lay sleeping and she was fighting hard to keep it together.
She looked over her right shoulder and strained through the passenger side window into the darkness. A shadowy image of a large house hovered only a few feet away. But the car’s headlights were pointed in the opposite direction and did little to help her see any further. No lights illuminated the inside of the house or the outside for that matter. Her throat tried to constrict closed as foreboding rose in her chest.
Where were they?
Why didn’t they get out of the car? Go inside?
Wouldn’t it be safer to move under the cover of darkness?
Thankfully, a dim glow started creeping over the horizon and one of her many questions was answered. Morning usually began around 5:00 a.m. at the Carter house, with the sun not too far behind. Okay. So it was around six, maybe? That made her feel a tiny bit better. Too bad a cup of coffee wasn’t on the menu for the morning. Sipping that hot liquid energy would do wonders for her nerves right about now. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to savor the memories of that first morning cup.
All semblances of peace evaporated with the slam of the back door. She jumped in her seat, spinning around to check on Nicholas before peering out the back window. Her son was fine. But Steven now stood on the outside of the car, puffing hard on a cigarette as he paced back and forth. She’d never seen him act like this. Aside from his angry outbursts, he was always in control. Nothing ever shook his resolve.
This can’t be a good sign.
A quick glance back at her son and she held her next breath. The unexpected slamming of the door stirred him in his sleep. He rubbed his eyes with both hands and yawned before rolling over to face the back of the seat, content to keep on sleeping. She let out the inhaled air slowly, more than a little relieved. That was best. He didn’t need to be up running around and getting on Steven’s last nerve. Especially now.
She licked at the moisture forming on her upper lip. Their fate pushed ever closer.
Where are you, Ryan?
He was searching. She felt his frustration. The not knowing if they were still alive or hurt had to be tearing him apart piece by piece. He was a strong man—a man who’d given up the last ten years of his life to protect her and the boys. How could she have been so clueless all these years?
He’d told her about his military background, about losing his wife and unborn child in some kind of bizarre gang related incident. Now she was thinking his terrible loss had more to do with his dealings with the FBI instead. A fact he’d neglected to tell her about. She shivered at the thought of losing one of her children or Ryan. It would destroy her, leaving an empty hole she wasn’t sure anyone would be able to fill. Yet even after all the suffering he’d gone through, for some reason, he’d opened his heart and let her and Michael in—allowed himself to love again.
A knot tightened the back of her throat. She would forever love him for that. No matter what happened between them when this all ended, she would never forget the sacrifices he’d made to kee
p them safe.
Ricky fidgeted in his seat beside her, his large hand swiping at the sweat on his brow. His uneasiness freaked her out the most. Was it Steven’s odd behavior that had him on edge as well or the mysterious item he’d lost? Not that it mattered exactly what it was. His attention focused on Steven to the point of being eerily abnormal could work in her favor and give her the upper hand she needed. She’d taken defense classes and studied the vulnerable spots on the body. The nose, the eye sockets, the throat and the obvious but difficult to hit, groin. Opportunity was all she needed.
That one allusive risk she’d been waiting on for hours.
Dang it. If only she’d been able to figure out a way to leave a trail behind—anything that might lead Ryan and the FBI in the right direction. But with her hands bound behind her back and Steven’s goon watching her every move, the extra effort only drained her and worked to steal what little hope she clung to.
Stop it. Don’t go there. You can’t afford to let despair take over. Nicholas needs you.
She eyed their surroundings again, the dirt road they’d traveled down now visible. Just as she’d feared. They were off the main road. Inside the boundaries of someone else’s large estate. Property owned by one of Steven’s associates. She studied the tidy grounds now lit by the bright morning light. The land was flat and endless. Very little landscaping. No place to hide if they did get the chance to make a run for it.
The situation couldn’t get much worse.
Steven pounded a fist on the trunk. “Ricky, let’s go. It’s time.”
Ricky flinched in the seat beside her at Steven’s outburst, his large frame, so powerful, so intimidating, yet he looked almost childlike at that moment. He almost appeared human and she started to wonder again about how he became involved with Steven. Had he had a choice? Was he blackmailed, coerced in some way? There was a glimmer of compassion trying to form inside her, but she forced it back.
Betrayals of the Heart Page 17
