The woods were Billy’s thing, not hers. Camping and African-American women didn’t go together. At least, not for this African-American woman. After sipping more water from her hands, she crawled to a tree and leaned against it.
Every muscle, every bone in her body hurt, but nothing was broken. So that was a good thing. Her eyes closed for a moment. Sleep would be a welcome guest.
She forced her eyes open. It wasn’t time to sleep. She had to get away, but first she needed to figure out where she was.
She sighed and moved to her knees.
Using the tree for support, she stood. Time to get moving. So tired, but she couldn’t stop now. She took a step forward and another and another. It was getting dark. The last thing she wanted was to be in these woods at night.
After walking quite a distance, she heard voices.
She moved in their direction, but did so quietly, not wanting to alert them to the fact they weren’t alone in the woods. As the voices grew louder, it became apparent it was a group of teenagers.
Hard to know if they were out partying or were serious campers. Not that it mattered. She wasn’t about to show herself to them, but maybe she’d find help from them without them knowing it.
She moved away from the campsite and waited.
Darkness came and the voices quieted to a whisper.
Staying out of sight, she skirted their campfire, smelling the hotdogs. Her mouth watered. She was starving. A hot dog would taste wonderful, but she kept moving until she came to a car.
Looking around, the kids weren’t visible. If she couldn’t see them, then they couldn’t see her. At least, she hoped that was true. She tiptoed to the car, staying away from the campfire side.
It was too dark to see anything. Quietly, she opened the door.
A cell phone sat on the front seat. Just the thing she needed. After picking it up, she closed the door and disappeared back into the woods.
CHAPTER 41
Dylan walked into the waiting room. Billy Clyde sat in a chair, his head resting against the wall. After dealing with policeman, fireman, and insurance agents half the night, he’d finally fallen asleep.
The situation was unbearable. Something had to give soon. Billy Clyde was refusing to cooperate with the authorities. No big surprise there. He stonewalled their investigation into the house fire and was refusing calls from his bosses.
His eyes opened up when Dylan sat in the chair next to him.
“How’s Reggie?”
“Upset and exhausted, but she’s pretending to be tough. Come see for yourself.” Dylan figured Billy Clyde needed a distraction of some sort.
“Good idea.”
They walked toward her room in the emergency room. The last he’d checked she was sleeping like a baby.
Billy Clyde stopped. “I don’t know how much more I can take of this, Monroe. I haven’t even told the kids what’s going on. I feel like I’m losing my mind.”
Dylan put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I know. I can’t see how it will help to tell them right now. Wait awhile longer.”
“But they need to know. It’s been three days. It’s very likely, she’s...”
Dylan shook his head. “Don’t give up hope. We’re going to find her.”
“How? I doubt if any of the info from the deleted file even survived the fire.”
“Don’t forget. With God, all things are possible.”
The county sheriff walked out of Reggie’s cubicle. He was shorter than Billy Clyde but then again most men were. He was in uniform but Dylan wondered if the longish curly blonde hair and mustache were regulation.
He held a tape recorder in his hand.
He walked up to Billy Clyde, his face splotched with anger. “Are you ready to tell me what’s going on now, Mr. Addams?”
“I only wish I knew, Harvey. Only wish I knew.”
The sheriff glared at Billy Clyde but Billy Clyde looked like an innocent as he met the man’s eyes.
“I am not playing this game with you.” The sheriff poked Billy Clyde in the chest, and then pointed toward Reggie’s cubicle. “She told me enough to know that something bad’s going down. This is my county. My job to protect the people, including you and your wife.”
“And you do a fine job of it, Sheriff.”
The angry red splotches doubled as the sheriff touched the gun at his hip. Dylan wondered if the man was thinking of shooting Billy Clyde in order to make him cooperate. “I need to interview Mrs. Addams.”
“Not a problem.”
“Where is she?”
“She’s out of town at the moment. And I have no idea when she’ll be back.”
The sheriff sighed. “Her house burned down. I’d think she’d come back fairly soon, wouldn’t you?”
Billy Clyde shrugged. “You would think so, wouldn’t you? But my wife has her own way of doing things.”
Sheriff Dunn glared at Billy Clyde for a moment longer than turned to Dylan. “Your wife didn’t seem to have much information about the situation. Perhaps, you could fill me in. I’d think you’d want to find the people who put her in that closet and left her to die.”
“Oh, believe me, Sheriff, I do.”
“Then, tell me what’s going on.”
“I don’t have anything else to add to my statement at the moment. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go see my wife.” He pushed the curtain out of his way and walked away from Billy Clyde and the sheriff.
The oxygen tent was gone and she sat up eating. She looked beautiful. Her black curls framed her face. His heart swelled with thanksgiving yet again. So thankful, God had saved her.
“Hey, beautiful. How are you feeling?”
She swallowed the bite of English muffin and said, “Great, actually. As soon as I eat I’m allowed to leave.” Her voice was still hoarse. She took another bite.
Billy Clyde walked in. “Did the sheriff give you a hard time, Reggie?”
“It was fine, Billy. The man’s doing his job.” She swallowed the last bite of the English muffin. “I didn’t lie. I told him about the men and the closet.”
“That’s fine, Reggie. I wouldn’t want you to lie.”
With a finger, she motioned for him to come closer. He did. “Closer.” He leaned toward her. She reached up and pulled him down to her and kissed his cheek. “Thanks.”
“For what?”
“For being you and for building those secret doors in your closets. If Theresa hadn’t told me about it, I would have died.”
Billy smiled. ‘And everybody tells me I’m paranoid.” He cast a glance at Dylan and puffed up his chest. “Guess I’m not so crazy and paranoid after all.”
Dylan half-hugged his friend. “I for one will never complain again about your paranoia. In fact, I embrace your paranoia.”
She looked from one man to the other. “Please tell me what’s going on. Where’s Theresa?”
A phone rang. Billy Clyde pulled it out of his pocket. He looked at Dylan, shrugged, and walked out of the room. Dylan looked at Reggie. “I need to go. It could be important.”
He looked at Reggie. She sighed with a smile. “Go on. I’m sure you’ll tell me when you can.”
Dylan walked out of the hospital and found Billy Clyde sitting on a bench. He sat down beside him.
“Where are you, baby?” Billy Clyde hit the speaker phone button when he saw Dylan.
“I don’t know.” Theresa’s voice was weak and weepy. “I’m in the woods but don’t know where. I found some people camping and stole their phone.”
“Go back to them, baby and ask them for help.”
“No, I’m afraid to. I don’t want to put them in any danger. And it’s easier to hide if it’s only me. Use your GPS thingie you have to find me before they come back.” Her voice turned shrill and panicked.
“Breathe Theresa. I need you to stay calm. I’m going to get you, but we have to find out where you are first. I don’t have the triangulator with me.”
“Why not
? Where are you?”
“Here’s what we’re going to do. You need to hang up —”
A sob. “No, Billy. I don’t want to.”
“But you have to, sweetheart. You need to save your battery as much as possible. As soon as I hang up, I’m going to call Mark Johnson and tell him to put a tracer on my phone. Then you call me back in about five minutes and we’ll have the location in a jif. Keep moving. Don’t worry, I’ll find you.”
“I know you will, Billy. I love you.”
After the connection was broken, a myriad of emotions played on Billy’s face, then he took a deep breath and reopened his cell phone. He hit a speed dial number. “Mark, no time to explain, but I want you to run a trace on my phone. Find the location of the next phone call I get.”
Billy paced as the man on the other end apparently asked him questions. “I said I don’t have time to explain. You get me the location of the next phone call. Get it set up. Now.”
He looked at Dylan. “She sound okay to you?”
“She sounded wonderful. A little upset which is understandable.”
The phone rang.
CHAPTER 42
Dylan rushed in the room and Reggie’s bedside. He leaned in close, his voice low. “I can’t explain it now, but I’ve got to go. Theresa needs us, but I don’t want to leave you.” His face mirrored the anxiety in his voice. “She’s been kidnapped, but we know where —”
She heard his words but had a hard time comprehending them. Theresa kidnapped. She had a thousand questions, but they would have to wait. She grabbed her husband’s a hands. “Don’t worry about me. Go help Theresa. I can take care of myself.”
“Are you sure? I can—”
“I’m absolutely sure. Go help my friend.”
He started to turn but then came back to her. His lips pressed against hers, warm, tender, and loving. Tears sprung to her eyes. She held him tightly and returned his kiss.
He released her and their eyes met.
Her heart thudded. Not only was Theresa in danger but so was Dylan and Billy Clyde. Anything could go wrong while they were rescuing her. This could be the last time she...She smiled and pushed him away. “Go. I’ll be praying. For all of you. I love you.”
He gave her that sexy smile and turned.
Tears leaked out. Oh, please keep him safe. Keep them all safe.
Kidnapped. Why would someone kidnap Theresa? That was crazy. Theresa was so good, so loving. She volunteered at the schools as a nurse and was a midwife for their extremely rural area. Who would want to hurt her?
Billy must be frantic. Billy. Reggie’s thoughts slowed. No one would want to kidnap Theresa—it had to have something to do with Billy and his work for the government.
Her mind flashed back to the closet and the banging.
They must have been destroying his computers. But why?
Maybe the kidnapping was about money. Billy was a rich man. Reggie had no idea how rich, just that they were rich. People kidnapped rich people for the ransom all the time.
Oh, God. Keep them all safe. I don’t know what’s going on, but You do and I know you have all creation in your hand. You know the number of hairs on our heads and you know the stars by name. Please pour your protection over them.
CHAPTER 43
Dylan looked over at Billy Clyde. The big man had to be in pain and exhausted, but he refused to acknowledge it. He had one goal—finding his wife. And Dylan knew the big man wouldn’t let anything stop him.
They’d lost phone contact with her over an hour ago as they trudged through Cacapon State Park in the darkness. The GPS coordinates led the way.
Billy Clyde’s boss had come through and managed to get a trace on her phone call before it went dead. At least, Dylan hoped that was the only reason she’d disconnected so abruptly and wasn’t answering any longer.
He wanted to say something, but what could he say.
“This place is over 6000 acres.” Billy Clyde turned back toward him.
“Nice to know.” Dylan swatted a mosquito away from his face.
“Need a break, Monroe?”
“Not me. I’m right behind you.”
“Keep talking and making lots of noise. That way we scare off any bears that might be in the area.”
Dylan’s eyes roved over the wooded area, not that he could see anything in the darkness. “Bears?”
“Yep. And it’s a lot easier to scare them away if we make noise. We don’t want to sneak up on them and make them mad.”
“Don’t they go to sleep at night?”
“Sometimes, unless they’re hungry.”
Dylan started singing.
“I said make some noise. I didn’t mean to make their ears bleed.”
“So funny. Big Man.” Dylan’s leg throbbed from the snake bites, but he’d never admit it to Billy Clyde. The man had saved his life more than once when they were in the Marines together and he was only too glad to repay the favor now.
He lost track of time as they tramped through the woods and talked about inconsequential things. At times like this it didn’t do to dwell on the big things. Stay focused on the present.
Billy Clyde looked up from the portable GPS. “OK. We’re getting close to the coordinates of the last time she called. Let’s stop a minute and catch our breath.”
Each man drained a water bottle, repacked it, took out their guns and looked at each other. After a short prayer the two of them walked. Now they were quiet. Bears or not, they didn’t want to alert any two legged predators that might be lurking about.
They moved through the woods silently as if on foot patrol in enemy territory which was the truth.
****
The nurse removed the IV from Reggie’s hand. “As soon as I get the doctor’s signature you can go but your husband hasn’t returned yet.”
“It’s not a problem. Can you recommend a nearby motel, hopefully within walking distance or does Berkeley Springs have a taxi company, by chance.”
The nurse stared at her a moment. “Do you need help?” Her voice was filled with compassion.
This was a good person, Reggie could tell. “That’s very sweet of you to be concerned, but I don’t need help. Just a motel room until my husband gets back. There’s been an emergency he had to take care of.”
“Are you sure?” The nurse looked doubtful.
“Really. It’s fine.”
The nurse nodded. “OK. I’ll be back in a bit.” She turned and left the cubicle.
Reggie wondered where Dylan and Billy Clyde were right now. Her stomach churned at the danger they were in, but she’d married a man with a warrior’s spirit. And that meant he would gladly put himself in danger to help another.
Dylan had done it for her without a moment’s hesitation and he barely knew her at the time. And she would expect him to help others regardless of the danger to himself, especially Theresa and Billy Clyde.
Such special people. She wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for them.
The nurse walked back in with a smile pushing a wheel chair. “Your chariot awaits you. I’m taking my break and I’ll drive you down to the motel.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I want to. No arguing about it.”
Tears filled Reggie’s eyes. God really did have a way of making things work out for the best.
CHAPTER 44
A full moon had lit their way, but the darkness of the night had turned to dawn hours earlier. The air was as thick with tension as it was with humidity. The rain would be here soon. Neither he nor Billy Clyde talked any longer. The only sounds were their breathing along with the sounds of the woods. They’d left civilization hours earlier.
In front of him, Billy Clyde stopped.
Dylan froze in mid step and with deliberate slowness lowered his suspended foot to the ground. Neither man made a sound. Billy turned and motioned for him to move to his left.
As quiet as a lioness stalking her prey, Dylan moved through the trees.
He moved forward. Dylan took his time moving. Sweat trickled down his back. He watched and listened for any signs of other people.
A movement to his right.
Theresa stepped out from behind a tree.
Relief flooded through Dylan.
Billy appeared to fly through the air because a second later he was at his wife’s side and kissing her. He held her head gently in his massive hands and kissed every inch of her face.
“I hate to break up this reunion but we need to get out of here.”
Theresa walked over and hugged him. “I knew you’d be here. I can always count on you.”
“Always.”
She turned to Billy Clyde. “I want to go home.”
Dylan looked away.
“What’s wrong?” Theresa looked at the two men. “I can see it in your eyes.”
“We’ll talk later, hon. Right now, Dylan’s right. We need to get out of here and back to the van. Can you walk? If you can’t, I can carry you, gladly carry you.”
“I can walk.” She looked up at her husband. “I’m exhausted and want to go home.”
Dylan cleared his throat. “Let’s go.”
****
It had been more than twelve hours since Dylan left her in the hospital and she hadn’t heard a word from them. She could only imagine the worst. Her cell phone was her constant companion, but she didn’t dare call them since she didn’t want to endanger them any more than they were.
After the very kind nurse drove her to the motel in the early hours of the morning, she’d managed to sleep some, but precious little. Every time she closed her eyes, horrible pictures flashed through her mind. She had no idea what was actually going on except they were in danger.
All of them.
Selfish. That was the only way to describe her, selfish and self-absorbed. Here she’d been worrying about petty things when Theresa’s life was in danger. How did God put up with her? Shame washed over her.
She walked to the night stand and opened the drawer.
Killer Reads: A Collection of the Best in Inspirational Suspense Page 99
