Her Dangerous Promise - Part 4: (Romantic Suspense Serial)

by Stryker, Ashley

  Thom searched around beside him for something he could use. Toward the back of the van he spotted someone else. Thom scooted closer and carefully brushed the dark hair covering the man’s face with his knee.

  Even with the tape covering the lower half of his face, Thom could tell Brad still breathed. Dried blood matted his hair just above his ear. Thom nudged him but received no response. He required medical care, fast.

  “Leave me alone,” the woman’s voice in Thom’s ear begged. Not just any voice, Mary’s voice. She was in trouble and from her tone she was terrified.

  “How could you lie to me?”

  Adam.

  Run, Mary! Thom thought, Run!

  But she didn’t run. Thom closed his eyes tight. Adam had missed the ear bud headphone Thom wore allowing him to tune in to the wire Mary wore. Helplessly, he listened as Mary pleaded with Adam.

  Thom growled against the gag. The woman he loved was in mortal danger. He paused for the briefest of moments and acknowledged that thought. He did love her, more than anything he’d ever felt in his life, he loved Mary. Without question. Without reservation.

  And she was in trouble.

  In his arrogance, he’d put her at risk.

  In order to save her, he needed to focus. He put the conversation buzzing in his ear out of his mind as best he could and searched the van. His gun, which had been on his waist, was gone. So was Brad’s. His radio was missing too. The utility belt he wore remained.

  Thom backed up to Brad and probed the pouches. He felt and discarded his cuffs, a palm sized can of pepper spray and extra ammunition clips. No knife.

  Leveraging himself against the side of the van, Thom inched his way up to his feet. He scooted closer to the handle at the back door. Just as his fingertips brushed the handle he lost his balance and crashed like a fallen tree to the floor. The sound echoed like a gunshot.

  Cursing himself, Thom tried again. Every muscle complained as he forced himself back to his feet. He hooked his fingertips under the handle and tugged with all his might.

  Locked.

  Thom slid back down beside Brad.

  Over the ear piece, Thom heard Mary cry his name.

  Chapter Six

  “Don’t hurt him,” Mary begged. She held her palm out as if the gesture alone might stop Adam.

  Adam glared at her. “You said your cat was sick.”

  Fizgig peered up at her doubtfully. He was trusting, too trusting. Even with a knife so close to his throat, he didn’t realize his danger, because if he did he would bite and scratch his way free. He depended on Mary for everything—food, water, protection. She loved the little guy.

  “He is. He would get very sick without his medicine, like I told you.”

  “You said he was shy, that no one else could touch him.” Adam held up Fizgig as evidence.

  Mary shook all over. The more she tried to prevent it, the harder she trembled. Adam would kill her cat and then her. Where was Thom? They circled each other in the living room, in full view of the front window. Thom had to see her from across the street. He had to hear her over the microphone.

  Adam stepped closer, “You said that and it was a lie.”

  “No,” Mary retreated. “Not a lie. I didn’t lie. He never lets anyone but me hold him.” Mary tried to smile but it failed to feel convincing. “He must sense something special about you.”

  A flicker of curiosity crossed Adam’s face.

  Mary forced herself to breathe, forced herself to think. She had to be brave, like Nancy. She needed to take control of her situation, for Fizgig, for herself, for her kids. This stopped tonight, one way or another.

  “He knows he can trust you,” she whispered. “He knows you won’t hurt him.”

  The knife drifted away from Fizgig’s throat.

  “That’s right,” Mary soothed. “He never hurt anyone. You don’t want to hurt him. Just put him down.”

  He was listening to her. Mary felt as if she’d convinced a pit bull to stand still. At any moment he could strike but for this one second, he seemed to listen. Awkwardly, she stepped closer to the couch.

  Mary swallowed hard. Adam wanted to let Fizgig go, she was sure of it. She inched up next to the back of the couch. Cutting her eyes sideways, she saw the baseball bat right where she’d left it. “Go ahead and let Fizgig go. You are not mad at him, right?”

  Adam bent over at the waist and set Fizgig down. “You’re right,” he said. “I’m not mad at him.” He raised his eyes to burn at her. “I’m mad at you.”

  “That’s okay,” Mary whispered. With a lunge, she snatched up the baseball bat. “I’m mad at you, too.”

  Adam spun aside but not quickly enough. The blow came down on his shoulder, knocking the knife from his hand. The next strike caught him in the middle of the back and he dropped to the ground on his stomach.

  From the corner of her eye, she saw Fizgig, startled by the activity, streak toward the bedroom. He would stay out of sight now. At least he would be safe, she thought. At least she’d been able to protect someone.

  Mary rushed to the front door and yanked on it. Locked. She fumbled with it.

  Adam snatched the baseball bat from her hand and tossed it across the room, where it struck the glass shelves displaying photos and china figurines, smashing the lot of them.

  She flipped the last lock open. Mary jerked the door open but a hand pushed past her and shut it just as quickly. She tried to turn away from that arm but his other one shot between her and freedom. With him barring her escape and the heat of him against her back, Mary knew she was trapped. He hadn’t yet touched her but she could hear his angry breathing by her ear.

  “Leave me alone,” she begged.

  “How could you lie to me?” There was genuine hurt in his voice. “You swore on the lives of the kids in your class. How could you do that to them?”

  “How could you do this to me?”

  Adam grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. He slammed her back into the door. “What I did to you? I let you go. I kept my word.”

  He pulled her toward him so their faces nearly touched. “You,” he slammed her against the door, making her head bounce painfully off it, “lied!”

  He’d kill her now. Mary didn’t doubt his intentions in the least. In desperation, she shouted, “I know about your mother!”

  “What?” Adam fisted his hands in the collar of her sweater.

  “I know she died. She left you alone.”

  Adam slammed her against the door again. “Everything is falling apart!”

  “I can help you!”

  “You called the cops on me.” He grabbed her around the throat. “They’re hunting me.”

  “No,” Mary choked. She couldn’t breathe. Adam crushed her throat, crushed her life.

  Sirens peeled in the distance.

  Adam tossed Mary to the ground. She rolled to her side, coughing and gasping.

  Red and blue lights reflected through the front window.

  While Adam stood at the window. Mary scrambled to her feet. On shaky legs, she hurried to the back door.

  Adam caught up to her. He clamped his vise-like grip on the back of her neck, pulling her up straight. “You aren’t getting off that easily.”

  Mary scrambled before him as he forced her out the back door. She screamed, “Thom!”

  Chapter Seven

  Mary stumbled in a muddy spot and slipped to her knees. From around the corner of her house, she could see the police cars pulling up. At last, Thom had come to save her, only he wouldn’t arrive before Adam spirited her away through the backyard. She cried, “He—”

  Adam crouched beside her and stuck the knife against her side. She hadn’t seen him pick it up but he had it now. The tip poked through her
clothes and pricked her stomach. “Shut up.”

  “No,” Mary squirmed, trying to crawl away from him. “You are going to kill me anyway.”

  He stood up over her, obviously affronted by the accusation. “I’m not going to kill you. I’m going to keep you.”

  “What?”

  “But if you don’t come with me right now, I will kill your friends.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Those men with the guns behind your house. I have them.”

  “Thom? Brad? You’ve hurt them?” An icy stab of dread embedded into her heart. That’s why they hadn’t come. Adam had been watching all along. He’d known they’d set a trap for him and he’d come for her anyway.

  “I will if you make me.” He frowned. “You will make me, won’t you?”

  “No!”

  “You are not going to come with me. You are going to run to the police again.” Adam jerked nervously, shifting from foot to foot as he tried to work it out in his head. “Then I’ll have to hurt them, because I said I would.”

  “No. No, I won’t run. Just don’t hurt them.”

  “Then come on.” He grabbed her to her feet and shoved her ahead of him toward the alley that ribboned between the yards.

  As Adam hustled her away, Mary heard the police shouting for them to come out. They’d surrounded her house but too late. It would take some time for them to realize that Adam had already spirited her away. Adam heard them too. He started to run and dragged Mary along by her arm when she couldn’t keep up.

  At the end of the alley, a black van glinted in the glow of the street lamp. As they got closer, she could tell the van’s original light color had been spray painted carelessly. This was why the police hadn’t found his white van. He’d disguised it.

  Adam pulled Mary to the driver’s side door and tucked her hand under his arm like a teddy bear while he scrounged in his pocket for his key. She realized that was how he thought of her. A child hangs on to a teddy bear out of a sense of need. They don’t understand why, they just had to have it for a sense of comfort.

  By all accounts, Adam must have felt the same way about his mother. And now she was gone. He needed her and she wasn’t there anymore. Thom was right. Adam was looking for a substitute. He was desperate for one. He would be inconsolable without one. Perhaps, if she could regain his trust, she could convince him to let her help fix the mess he’d made. After all, he was emotionally a child in a man’s body.

  Adam opened the door and pointed the carving knife at her belly.

  A very dangerous child. He might be emotionally immature but he wasn’t stupid. Painting the van had been clever. So was watching her house and disabling two police officers. If she was going to play on his emotions, she should be very careful not to underestimate his intelligence or his temper.

  “Get in.”

  In her head, Mary heard her own voice warning her students. “Don’t ever get into a car with a stranger.” When he poked the knife threateningly toward her, Mary jumped back and then climbed into the driver’s seat.

  “Scoot over.”

  She stood up as best she could with the low ceiling and transferred to the passenger side captain’s chair.

  The van smelled of sweat, motor oil and French fries. Several crumpled up fast food bags and empty paper cups littered the floor at her feet and she kicked them away to clear a spot for her feet. The cheap pine tree shaped air freshener hanging from the rear view mirror failed to compete with the other odors. The old plastic covered seat cushions beneath her squeaked in protest as she gripped them to prevent her from bolting out the passenger side door.

  A muffled sound came from the back, startling her. Mary turned around and gasped.

  Thom thrashed on his side right behind the driver’s seat, a wide strip of duct tape covering his mouth. Quickly, she took in the scene. Duct tape bound both Thom and Brad at the wrists and ankles. Adam hadn’t lied. He had captured them both. Brad, unconscious, sprawled on the floor in the back of the van. Blood pooled in a glistening crimson puddle beside his face.

  “Oh, God! He’s hurt.” Mary rose to help him but the knife Adam shoved inches in front of her face cut her off. The light from the street lamp gleamed on the sharp edge.

  Adam settled himself into the driver’s seat and slammed closed his door. “Sit down.”

  Mary obeyed, watching the knife until he lowered it from her face. She exhaled softly, worried that even that small sound might set him off again.

  With his right hand occupied with the knife, Adam awkwardly inserted his keys and shifted the van into gear with his left hand. He eased on to the street and drove right past a police car heading the other direction with its lights and sirens blazing. Adam didn’t even blink.

  Mary cut her eyes back to Thom. He wiggled into a seated position right behind the driver’s seat, so close she could reach out and stroke his face, if she wasn’t too afraid to risk it.

  His eyes burned with fury.

  “I’m sorry,” she mouthed silently. Her grand idea to force Adam into the open and catch him had failed miserably and they would all pay the price.

  Thom shook his head angrily. He struggled, straining against his bonds. Tears prickled at the back of Mary’s eyes. They’d suffer because of her, just like Nancy.

  “Adam,” Mary cooed softly. “You can let them go now.”

  “Not here.”

  “You said you wouldn’t hurt them if I came.”

  “I said not here!”

  Mary cringed. “Okay, then,” she spoke softly, “as long as it is soon.”

  Thom mumbled something angry. If he could, he would tell her to run but if she ran away Adam would hurt him and Brad even worse and probably even kill them. He said he would. She knew he meant it.

  Obviously aggravated, Thom searched around him. Mary watched him as his eyes roamed around and stopped on her. She looked down to where his gaze fixed.

  Her sweater dangled open, because she had not buttoned it. The pocket on the side closest to Thom drooped low with a weight.

  Mary nearly gasped. She’d forgotten that she had heeded Thom’s advice and armed herself. The small paring knife in her sweater pocket wouldn’t do her much good against Adam and his huge carving knife. Mary glanced at Thom’s hands. He gestured a cutting motion against his bonds. Mary nodded.

  Watching Adam closely, Mary slipped her hand into her pocket. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest. If he caught her… She shuddered at the thought of the carving knife he still pointed toward her.

  “What are you doing?” Adam demanded.

  “What?” Mary clenched the smooth wooden handle of the small knife in her fist but kept it inside her pocket. “I’m not doing anything.”

  “Why’d you get quiet all of a sudden?”

  “Oh,” Mary exhaled shakily, allowing her tense body to sink into a more relaxed posture. “I thought you wanted me to be quiet.”

  “You’re mad at me,” he accused.

  Thom twisted his back toward Mary. He formed a cup with his hands. Slowly, Mary pulled out the paring knife and dropped it into his awaiting grasp. It bounced out and dropped to the floor with a clatter.

  “What was that?”

  Mary spoke quickly. “Why would I be mad at you? You are just lonely, right? It’s not bad to want to have a friend so you don’t feel lonely anymore.”

  Adam glared at her. “You’re lying again. I know that you are mad at me.”

  “Adam—”

  “That’s why you told on me, isn’t it? Because you were mad.”

  Behind him, Thom scrambled to catch the knife before the movement of the van scooted it out of reach.

  “What are you doing back there?” Adam demanded.

  “He’s just rol
ling around,” Mary said. “Never mind about him. Just watch the road. You don’t want to have a car accident, do you?”

  “You’re up to something!” Adam snapped. “I know. I’m not stupid. Everyone thinks I’m sooooo stupid.”

  Adam jerked the wheel and the van bumped up over a curb, jostling everyone. Before Mary could stop him, he forced his way past her into the back of the van. “What are you doing back here?” Adam demanded. He grabbed Thom and forced him on his stomach. Quickly he checked Thom’s hands and pockets but found nothing. “I know you have something. Where is it, huh?” Adam punched Thom in the leg.

  “Leave him alone!” Mary cried. “He doesn’t have anything.”

  Adam ignored her. “Tell me where it is.” He punched Thom in the back, forcing a whoosh of air from his lungs.

  “Stop it!”

  He was going to kill Thom! The doctor warned them that once Adam’s violent temper flared he wouldn’t quit.

  Mary searched around and spotted the knife Adam had left on his seat. She grabbed it. With both hands, she brought down the knife with all her might.

  The knife slammed down on Adam’s shoulder blade and glanced to the side. She’d cut him but not badly.

  Adam jerked back, obviously shocked. “You cut me!”

  Chapter Eight

  Thom rolled on to his back. He yelled at Mary to run but the commotion swallowed his gag-muffled words. Struggling against the restraints, his muscles raged with his frustration.

  Adam struck out at Mary, catching her wrist and knocking the knife out of her hand. Mary fell backward against the door. As Adam lunged for her again, she fumbled with the door handle.

  Thom kicked out, catching Adam behind the knees and making him drop backward. Adam managed to snag Mary’s sweater in the fall but she slipped out of it when the door opened and she tumbled out of the van.