Saved by the Rancher

by Jennifer Ryan

  “He took her. I know that bastard came here and took her. She wouldn’t leave me.”

  “Jack, calm down. We don’t know anything yet. The house looks intact. There’s no sign of a struggle. Maybe she went somewhere and just didn’t say.”

  “No. The truck and the Camaro are both here. He took her. I know it. This bad feeling has been eating at me all day. Something’s not right.” The quiet in the house disturbed him. Something tickled the back of his mind, and then it hit him. “Where’s Sally?”

  Caleb looked around and shrugged. Jack pulled out his phone and dialed his sister.

  “Summer, we’re back. Do you have Sally?”

  “No. Sally was with Jenna, like always. I spoke with the men searching this side of the property. No one has seen anything. I’m on my way.” Summer hung up.

  Jenna’s gone.

  Panic gripped Jack’s heart like a vice, threatening to squeeze the life out of him. He didn’t want to think about all the things that could have happened to her, but his mind conjured one gruesome image after another. She could be dead. He flashed back to her lying unconscious in front of the fire in the cabin and seeing all the wounds down her back and thigh. About to lose it, he dug the heel of his hand into his eye to erase the horrible images.

  The guards and ranch hands were searching. Running out of other options, Jack flipped open his cell and dialed.

  “Ben, it’s Jack. Where is she?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Where’s Jenna? Did she call you? Is she on the run again?”

  “She hasn’t called. Isn’t she with you?”

  “I just got back. No one has seen her since this morning. I’m losing my mind.”

  “She hasn’t contacted me, and she would. That’s the first thing she does when he’s caught up to her. Did she take her purse?”

  “No, it’s on the kitchen counter where she always leaves it.”

  “Check it. There should be a set of keys to lockers at a local health club. That’s where she keeps her emergency suitcase and money. If she runs, she wouldn’t leave without them.”

  Jack rifled through her purse, found the keys tucked into a slit in the lining. “They’re here. I didn’t even know she’d set this up over the last few months. She shouldn’t have had to do this. She should have been safe on the ranch with me!” he shouted, letting his rage slip the reins.

  “She probably hoped she’d never need to use it again. What do you think happened?”

  “There’s no sign of her. It’s like she vanished. Where is he?”

  “My last report confirmed he got married a couple days ago in San Francisco and left to an undisclosed location for his honeymoon. I’ll call my contact and see if I can get a definite location, or even a rumored one.”

  “Do it. I’m calling the sheriff. We’ll need their help searching for her.”

  Jack hung up with Ben. Caleb watched him shake with frustration and worry. Overcome with pent-up rage, Jack hauled his arm back and punched the wall. A huge hole gaped where his fist broke through the drywall. He didn’t feel the pain or the abrasions on his knuckles. Without Jenna, he couldn’t feel anything.

  “Better?” Caleb asked, worried.

  “No. Where the hell is she?”

  Summer and Lily walked in the door. Summer’s gaze went from his bleeding knuckles to the hole in the wall. Frowning, she asked, “Feel better?”

  Jack glared and tossed the phone to Caleb. “Call the sheriff.”

  Jack headed down to the barn to find his men, the guards, anyone to ask if they’d seen anything. He knew the answer, but at least it was something to do. He didn’t even know where to start looking for her.

  He’d failed her. That’s all he kept telling himself. He’d said he’d protect her, and he’d left her alone.

  JENNA WOKE TO the stars above her. She stared at them for a long while, shivering, she curled up as best she could to keep warm. The pounding in her head wouldn’t stop, she lost focus often. She closed her eyes and opened them again. The stars blurred and fell from the sky. At least, that’s how it appeared in her hazy condition.

  Noises came from the brush. She lay very still, unsure if it was someone looking for her, or an animal zeroing in on the smell of her blood. Watching and waiting, out of nowhere came a huge buck. He walked into the clearing about ten feet from her. He stood still, studying her before he turned to look behind him. A doe and faun followed. The deer took off with a leap, sprinting back into the trees. Tears blurred her vision and dripped down her cheeks. A family. Would she survive to have a family with Jack? She wasn’t so sure anymore.

  Exhausted after only a short while, she laid her head back and slept.

  Help me, Jack. Please, help me.

  Chapter Forty

  * * *

  JACK ARRIVED BACK at the house in time to meet the sheriff and some of his men in the Great Room. The sheriff, a tall man with a huge potbelly and a sandy grey mustache in need of trimming, commanded the room. His shrewd brown eyes narrowed on Jack.

  “How long has she been missing?”

  “Since early this afternoon, maybe a little before one o’clock. Nearest we can tell. She was out back planting flowers, and now she’s gone.”

  “So, less than twenty-four hours. Are you sure she’s not off visiting a friend?”

  “She doesn’t have any friends.” Jack frowned at the thought. “She promised not to leave the ranch.”

  “I’ve known you and your family a long time. I’m not saying you had anything to do with the woman’s disappearance, but still, I need to check every possible angle. Where were you this afternoon?”

  Statistically the person closest to the victim was usually responsible. He wasn’t upset the sheriff zeroed in on him, but wasting time annoyed him. Time Jenna didn’t have if she was at David’s mercy.

  “Caleb and I attended an auction, went to the courthouse to sign some papers, and headed over to a friend’s ranch. He was with me the whole time. I’ve been calling most of the day. She hasn’t answered. Her purse is in the kitchen along with her cell phone. None of her clothes are missing. None of the cars are gone. None of my men or the guards has seen her.”

  “Mommy, why are the police here?” Lily asked.

  “We can’t find Jenna, so he’s going to help us.” Summer hugged Lily close.

  Everyone knew, but no one would say it. David could have taken Lily too. The thought of that evil man touching a hair on Lily’s head was reprehensible.

  “Maybe she’s still with that man,” Lily said, working on a Popsicle, her lips cherry red. Every head in the room turned toward her. Her big blue eyes went wide as everyone stared in disbelief.

  “What?” Jack came over to Lily and kneeled beside her, Summer’s arms locked around her protectively. “What man, Lily?”

  “The man in the woods. He looked like a bush, but his face was mad.”

  “You saw a man in the woods?” Jack asked softly, though he wanted to demand she tell him everything. He reminded himself she was little more than three.

  “Yes, he watched us plant the blue flowers. Jenna didn’t see him at first, but I did. He tried to hide.”

  Jack’s heart sank. His worst fears had come true. “What did he do then?”

  “Jenna told me to go inside for lunch. I did, but I watched out the window.”

  “What did you see?” Jack was torn up inside. His niece saw what happened to Jenna. He hoped it wasn’t anything that would haunt her.

  “The man came out of the trees. He had a really big knife.”

  “Did he hurt Jenna?” Jack asked carefully.

  “No. Jenna went into the woods with him. Sally followed and I had lunch.”

  “Why didn’t you tell anyone about the man?” Jack didn’t know what to do. She was only a little girl. She didn’t know something bad happened to Jenna.

  “Because I thought she knew him.”

  The sheriff spoke up then, having written everything dow
n. “What did he look like?”

  “I don’t know.” She shrugged her small shoulders.

  The sheriff tried again. “Was he tall? What color hair did he have?”

  “Dark. He was bigger than Jenna. His clothes looked like a bush.”

  “What do you mean he looked like a bush?” the sheriff asked, as confused as the rest of them.

  “Lots of green, like Daddy and Uncle Jack when they were in the Army. I saw pictures.”

  Jack spoke first. “Camouflage. That’s why she didn’t see him sneak up on her. If she heard anything in the woods, she probably thought it was one of the guards.”

  “What guards?” The sheriff’s interest increased.

  “We have guards watching the property. Jenna’s ex-husband has a habit of finding her and,” he considered Lily, “let’s just say, hurting her.”

  The sheriff got the picture and nodded with a frown tilting his mustache. “Who’s the ex?”

  “David Merrick. Last I knew he was in San Francisco. His wedding was a couple of days ago. I have someone checking to see where he is now. I don’t know, maybe he came and took her. Maybe he had someone else take her. From what Lily said about the man, my guess is it’s David. Her description fits. Where Jenna is concerned, he likes to do his own dirty work.”

  “Okay, we’ll check him out. Let’s send some men into the woods behind the house, see if we can’t find tracks. She could still be out there.” The sheriff’s blunt statement made the situation that much more real. It was a real possibility she was lying dead out in the trees behind the house. Every instinct Jack possessed told him to rush out there, search every square inch of land until he found her, but reason and training prevailed. They needed a strategic approach if they had any hope of finding her and thwarting whatever diabolical plan David had in store for her.

  “She’s been gone all afternoon. She could be anywhere,” Jack said, distracted by his wandering thoughts.

  “Let’s begin the search where she was last seen, and see if we can’t determine which direction they went.”

  “Fine. The men have checked most of the immediate area around the barns and family cabins. We’ll meet you outside and work our way north along the pastures.”

  The sheriff and his men headed out to the back patio, taking out their flashlights to look around for clues. It would be slow going in the dark.

  “We’ll find her, Jack. I know we will,” Summer tried to reassure him again. It didn’t help.

  “I pray she’s alive when we do. Take Lily home. You need your rest. We’ll call when we find her.”

  “Jack, call Sam. We talked about this, remember? It’s time.” She’d spoken to Jack shortly after Jenna decided to stay. They agreed Sam could help in some way if Jenna got into trouble. This was big trouble and Sam’s FBI training and experience would be invaluable. Jack knew his twin brother would keep him sane if something bad happened to Jenna.

  “I hate to take him away from his work, but you’re right. We need him.” Jack pulled out his cell phone and dialed Sam’s number. As usual, he got his voicemail. “Sam, it’s Jack. I need you to come home. It’s an emergency.” That’s the only message he left and all he needed to say.

  Lily squirmed excitedly, squealing, “Uncle Sam is coming? Yeah!”

  “Come on, Sunshine. You and me are going home. Uncle Jack and Daddy will look for Jenna.

  “Call me no matter what time and tell me when you find her. She’s okay. I know it. She’s a survivor. We just need to find her.”

  Jack hugged his sister. Her body trembled and tears rolled down her face. She didn’t need to be here enduring this stress when she was pregnant. “Go home, little sister. Take care of yourself. Caleb and I will call when we know something. Have one of the guards stay with you. I don’t want to take any chances.”

  “I’ll have one of them stay on the couch.”

  Caleb hugged his wife and daughter. “I’ll be home when I can. Get some rest.” He held them close for a few moments.

  Jack’s arms were empty, making him ache as he watched Caleb and Summer. He turned his back on them and walked away, needing to do something besides wallowing in his misery and thinking about what might be happening to the woman he loved. She was out there, and he needed to find her.

  Chapter Forty-One

  * * *

  JENNA WOKE AT dawn, cold to the bone but alive. For now. The sun peaked over the hills, brightening the horizon. She welcomed it because it meant the temperature would warm up soon. Groggy and thirsty, she turned to her side and awkwardly pushed herself up and leaned back against the tree. She didn’t hear anyone looking for her, only the sound of the wind in the trees, birds chirping around her. Didn’t anyone know she was gone? Jack would know. He’d come for her.

  Help me, Jack.

  With single-minded determination, she stood, gained her balance as her head spun. She braced herself against the tree. Her hands hurt, everything hurt. The pain sometimes overcame her. She had to stay awake. Move. Find Jack.

  Face raised to the sun, she tried to picture the ranch, figure out the route David brought her. Hesitant about her decision, but needing to do something, she made the decision to head east toward the rising sun, and hopefully Jack.

  I love you, Jack. I’m coming home.

  EXHAUSTED, FRUSTRATED, AND going out of his mind, Jack almost believed he heard Jenna calling him. Crazy, just the exhaustion and his conscience calling to him. They spent all night looking for her, only to discover Sally, badly injured and near death in the brush out behind the house. Caleb rushed her to the animal hospital, hoping they’d found her in time. Sick over the dog’s injuries and the possibility he might lose her, even more devastating, Jack knew the bastard had a knife and was willing to use it.

  No telling what he’d do with the knife on Jenna. How far would he go this time? That thought set Jack’s muscles solid as stone and had him desperate to comb every house, barn, farm, acre, mile to find her. Whatever it took, he’d never stop searching.

  They hadn’t found a single trace of her. She’d vanished into the woods. Jack was thankful they hadn’t found her dead, but with the temperature dropping at night and the fact she’d been gone for so long, his thoughts turned morbid. If she were alive out there, she wouldn’t last another night. Jack knew it, and it was eating him alive.

  What if she wasn’t on the property anymore, but somewhere else? The enormity of that thought swamped him in misery.

  Caleb crashed on the couch. Jack drank coffee, trying to stay awake and alert. Midmorning now, the sheriff organized the men to start searching the other side of the property. Jack hoped they’d find Jenna soon. They had to find her. If he lost her, he didn’t think he could live.

  He’d talked to Ben again. Jenna hadn’t called him, or his office, to say she was on the run. Ben’s source reported no news about Merrick’s whereabouts. The honeymoon remained a closely guarded secret, kept under wraps from the press.

  The sheriff tried contacting Merrick International, only to be told David was on his honeymoon. He hadn’t really thought the sheriff would have any better luck getting information from the Merrick family or the corporate office. David had gotten away with this many times before, but he wouldn’t get away with it this time. Jack would make sure of it.

  The phone rang and Jack jumped to grab it.

  “I’m on a plane. I’ll be home in an hour.” Sam received Jack’s message and knew he wouldn’t have called unless the situation was dire.

  “Thanks, Sam. You don’t know what this means to me.”

  “What’s going on? Is it Mom and Dad? Summer? The baby?”

  “No, they’re all fine. It’s Jenna. She’s been kidnapped. Just get here,” Jack said wearily.

  “Who’s Jenna? And who kidnapped her?” Sam didn’t hide the surprise in his voice.

  “Jenna is my fiancé and her ex-husband kidnapped her yesterday.”

  “Fiancé! Well, I’ll be damned, brother. Okay. You got the local gu
ys looking for her?”

  “We’ve been out all night. We think he took her into the woods on the property, but he could have had a car stashed and taken her anywhere. He stabbed Sally. She’s still at the hospital. We don’t know if she’ll make it. We really have nothing.”

  “I’m sorry about the dog, man.”

  Jack appreciated the sentiment, but with Sally in good hands, his thoughts were on Jenna and finding her.

  “So he’s armed and dangerous. All right. Who’s the ex? Maybe I can start with him?”

  “David Merrick. You heard of him?”

  “As in Merrick International?”

  “That’s the one.”

  Sam whistled. “That’s big money. If he’s got her, he could take her out of the country and hide her forever.”

  “I don’t think he did. He just got married. I think he came to tie up loose ends. Namely, Jenna. She owns a big junk of Merrick International. He wants it back, in addition to being obsessed with her. It’s a long story. Get here, and I’ll tell you everything.”

  “On my way. We’ll figure this out, and we’ll find her.”

  “We need to find her. She’s everything, Sam. I can’t lose her.”

  “So it’s like that, huh. Your Jenna must be something special to bring you out of your stupor and back into the real world. I’ll do everything in my power to make sure we get her back,” he assured Jack. “I thought maybe you’d end up like me, spending too much time working and not enough time living.”

  “I’m only alive when I’m with her,” Jack responded, choked up.

  “We’ll get her back.” Sam hung up.

  JENNA SPENT THE morning walking and resting in intervals. Weak from blood loss and lack of food and water, she had to rest more often than she liked. Her head cleared in the warm sun, making it easier to concentrate on her surroundings. At one point, she realized she’d walked in a circle. Her vision doubled and she pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. Frustrated, she found a relatively soft patch of grass, lay down, and closed her tired eyes. She didn’t think she’d run this far from the dirt road, but maybe in her panic she’d covered more ground than she realized.