Identical Threat

by Tyler Anne Snell

There was no other option.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The AC unit made a tired, wheezing sound as the heat cut on.

  It reminded Riley of a prop plane that had been flying without any problems, only to lose its engine while at a cruising altitude. Then, by some miracle, the propeller would kick back into gear.

  The unit beneath the window would strain, sputter and then stop altogether. When Riley believed it had finally died—finally giving in to its inevitable mechanical death—it would cut on with some clanks and then slide into the wheeze. Where it would keep that pace for at least half an hour before doing the entire loud dance all over again.

  It was driving Riley insane.

  Along with rope that had been thoroughly wrapped around her and the chair she was sitting on. Maria might have been slight in frame and have supermodel good looks but Riley had spent the last several hours seeing the demon beneath the makeup and expensive clothes. Not to mention a surprising proficiency at tying knots. Ones that didn’t come undone no matter how much you moved.

  Maria let out a loud huff just as the AC chugged back to life again. Riley didn’t bother turning to look over her shoulder at the woman. She was used to her routine too by now. The blonde was sitting on one of the two beds with her heels kicked off and a cell phone in front of her face.

  And apparently not getting the call that she wanted.

  This time Maria’s sigh was punctuated by noise that fell somewhere between a grunt and a scream. It wasn’t loud enough to escape the hotel-room walls but it did make Riley’s muscles tense in anticipation.

  She’d had every intention in the world, when she switched with Jenna, to try to get Maria and the man in the suit as far away from the ranch as possible and, only then, to try to fight her way out. She’d heard Desmond, Maria and the man in the suit talking in the living room at his house.

  For whatever reason, Maria wasn’t allowed to kill any of them.

  But Riley wasn’t betting on that verbal agreement to hold. She had gotten into the car with them and immediately started to make a game plan for when they stopped again.

  Yet, the moment they’d pulled up to a roadside motel on the outskirts of Kilwin, the man in the suit had turned in his seat to face her. He had said something that made Riley’s stomach go cold.

  Good luck.

  Those two words had taken away Riley’s hope of escaping. When he left the car right after and then Maria swung around with her pistol aimed, that hope further deteriorated.

  I’ve made a career out of getting results, she had said. So here are the results I’m going to see and incur based on what you do now. The motel was a long two-story building that was shaped like a warped L. She motioned toward the office. A woman and a preteen were sitting at a white iron patio table next to the door. A book was open in front of the girl and the woman seemed to be enjoying a mug of something. That woman there is Abela. She’s the day manager and a single mother to Dina, sitting across from her. They know and like me so I could walk right up to them and shoot Abela in the face before either would think to be worried.

  Riley had gasped. Maria had held up her other hand to silence her.

  Or you could come quietly into my room where we’ll sit and wait for me to get a call.

  Riley had glanced from Abela and Dina to the busy road they’d just come off. Maria hadn’t missed it.

  Listen. Don’t underestimate me just because I’m not wearing a suit, she said with a snap of her fingers. If you say anything or if you run, I won’t try to shut you up and I won’t try to chase you. She’d pointed back at the mom and daughter. I will walk across the parking lot and shoot Abela in the face right in front of her daughter.

  You’re disgusting, Riley had seethed.

  Maria had smiled.

  I’m a woman of my word and I’ve given you two options and the results of picking either. Now, once I put this gun in my pocket, will you follow me calmly to my room or are you ready to be the reason a sweet girl is about to become an orphan?

  Riley had seen it then. The intention. The promise.

  She had believed Maria.

  So she’d abandoned her plans of escape.

  Let’s go.

  Now hours had gone by, and that call Maria had been waiting for still hadn’t come. As for conversation while they had waited? Riley would have had better luck with the old AC unit.

  Not having a talk with Maria wasn’t breaking Riley’s heart, though. The blonde hadn’t just proven to be malicious; she was also impatient. Riley didn’t want to exacerbate her nasty tendencies by digging into that impatience.

  Plus, Riley wanted to give Desmond as much time as possible to find her.

  Because Riley knew he would try his damnedest.

  “What is taking so long?”

  Maria kicked her feet against the bed like she was Hartley after being denied fruit gummy snacks. Riley looked over her shoulder, unable to hide her growing annoyance with the woman.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” Maria snapped, stilling herself.

  “Like what?” Riley couldn’t help but say. “Like I’m tied to a chair, being held captive and not happy about it? Are you saying I should smile instead?”

  Maria was fast. She was off the bed and standing in front of Riley wearing a pair of very expensive shoes.

  “Don’t look at me like you don’t know why you’re in this situation in the first place.” She bent over, hands on the arms of the chair. Riley refused to flinch. “If you hadn’t lied in the first place, this never would have happened. You did this. Not him.”

  Up until then Riley had been working under the assumption that Ryan was behind everything. It was the best theory that she had, but one that wasn’t proven on account of Maria’s lack of communication. Now there was no room left to interpret another mastermind.

  “Ryan.”

  “A man who deserved, and got, way better than you.” Maria was smirking. Riley hated the sight.

  “A man who beats his wife deserves to rot in jail,” she bit out.

  The slap against her cheek happened so fast that Riley didn’t have time to react. Pain radiated across the side of her face. Maria’s composure had cracked again, the malicious side of her personality pushing through with growing aggression.

  “That man did everything for you, and how did you repay him? Lie at every turn,” she said. “We both know he didn’t lay a hand on you.”

  “I was hospitalized,” Riley exclaimed, keeping in line with the lie that she was her sister. “I have pictures and witnesses!”

  “Having a sister lie to corroborate your story doesn’t equal any evidence. It just means she’s a filthy liar like you are.”

  Riley could feel the heat of anger burning through her. Ryan was still tainting every part of their lives.

  “It wasn’t a lie, but I’m assuming, you’ll find that out at some point.” Riley lowered her voice. “He was nice in the beginning with me too.”

  The second slap Riley did see coming. She was able to brace before Maria’s hand connected with the already-stinging cheek. Still, Riley continued. She was finally getting somewhere with the woman.

  “I’m going to go out on a limb here and take that as a confirmation that you’re with Ryan now. But, if you’re so happy and sure of him being a good man, then why am I here? Why have you been after me?”

  Maria took a step back, standing to her full height, and pulled her arms over her chest. She’d ditched her laughable trench coat on the bed and was sporting an expensive blouse-and-pencil-skirt set. Not that Riley ever wanted to attack or kidnap someone but she had to believe if she did, she would wear something a little less corporate while doing it.

  “Because even though your lies didn’t fool everyone, they did get to Sam. But once that’s cleared up we can finally get on with our lives again.”

 
Riley’s eyebrow shot up despite trying to remain impassive. Sam Alcaster? Hartley’s grandfather? From what Riley knew from Jenna, Sam had genuinely seemed to be a good, caring man. He’d even called the house to talk to Hartley on the phone from time to time, even when Hartley was too young to make any sense.

  Then again, Ryan had seemed to be a genuinely nice man too at one point.

  “What do you mean, once it’s cleared up?” Riley asked. “Whatever you do to me won’t take away from the fact that the authorities know who you are by now. They know you took me. The only chance you have at getting on with the rest of your life will be if you let me go and turn yourself in.”

  Maria was unfazed.

  In fact, she smiled.

  “You couldn’t even begin to guess at my future.”

  The bed started to vibrate. Both women looked at Maria’s phone dancing on the comforter.

  Riley couldn’t see the caller ID but when Maria scooped it up, she smiled wide.

  Ryan.

  “Hey, babe.” She answered the phone with hearts in her eyes and sex in her voice. There was no question in Riley’s mind that Ryan had absolutely hooked Maria.

  And that it would spell the end for the woman.

  Maybe sooner rather than later too. Maria’s face fell two seconds into the conversation. She turned and headed to the bathroom.

  “It’s not my... But I had to... But I...”

  Riley strained to hear more but Maria shut the bathroom door.

  The urge to try to escape pulsed through her veins like blood. If Maria didn’t have the pistol on her, she would have tried. All Riley could think about now, though, was the mother-daughter pair living their lives a few rooms down from them.

  Again, Riley believed Maria would absolutely take out her anger at Riley escaping on them.

  She wasn’t willing to risk that.

  For a phone call Maria had waited hours to receive, it was surprisingly brief. Only a minute or two went by before she huffed out of the bathroom with an expression that said she was close to throwing another tantrum.

  “Not what you wanted to hear?” Riley asked, readying to apply pressure to the idea that Ryan was not a good man again. “I told you. Ryan has a short fuse. He—”

  “He’s waiting for us,” Maria interrupted. Riley had misread that look of anger the woman had been wearing. She simply seemed annoyed now at the prospect of doing more work.

  Riley’s stomach tightened, nerves waking up again.

  In the quiet of the hotel room, when Maria was minding her own business, it was easier to pretend everything was normal. Or, at least, everything wasn’t life-and-death.

  Maria pulled her pistol out.

  “I’m going to untie you and then the same rules apply,” she said. “Cute kid and single mom get their lives destroyed or you walk calmly to the car and get in. And before you start wondering what stops you from causing all hell when we’re on the road, I just want you to know that I’m going to have backup again.” A grin split her contoured face. “And this individual is highly motivated.”

  Maria stopped talking after that. She didn’t untie Riley and Riley didn’t feel like talking anymore either. Minutes that felt like hours went by until the sound of a car door shutting made both women turn their heads toward the curtain over the window.

  Only one of them ran to it and peered out.

  “Finally,” Maria breathed.

  She leaned against the wall next to the door until someone knocked.

  Riley’s heartbeat thundered in her chest.

  If this wasn’t Ryan, who was it?

  The man in the suit again?

  How was he highly motivated?

  “It’s about time something happened,” Maria greeted after she let the man in. “I’ll let you get her untied while I do a refresh on my makeup. Heaven knows this hotel air isn’t doing it any favors.”

  Maria took her purse and disappeared into the bathroom, not bothering to even look at the woman she’d tied up.

  Which was good, because Riley was having a hard time keeping her composure.

  Evan Davies looked as guilty as sin as he crouched down in front of her. He didn’t even flinch at the sight of her tied up.

  “What are you doing here?” Riley bit out.

  He eyed the first knot he’d been ordered to untie, refusing to meet her stare.

  “I’m supposed to take you to meet Ryan.”

  If Riley’s legs had been free she would have kicked him with every ounce of power she had.

  “I can’t believe this,” she seethed. “I can’t believe you’d—”

  Davies moved in closer and dropped his voice into a whisper. Finally he met her gaze.

  “We think Ryan wants to kill Jenna so he can get custody of Hartley and then his inheritance.” Riley felt her eyes widen. He kept on. “Ryan has played everything smart enough that nothing will stick to him when this is all over.” Davies glanced at the bathroom door. “Which is why Desmond wants to set a trap.” At the mention of her cowboy’s name, Riley couldn’t help but feel relief. It must have shown. Davies’s face softened. “If you don’t want to we can get you out now, no problem, but if you do want to then you need to play along.”

  “I’m only in here because Maria has been threatening to kill the owner if I don’t cooperate,” Riley hurried. “I don’t care about me—I just don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

  “Don’t worry—we’ll have Maria covered. She won’t hurt anyone if we do this.”

  Don’t worry was a piece of advice that was hard to take when tied up in a motel room and given by a man who Riley absolutely did not trust anymore.

  And maybe Davies realized that too.

  “You don’t believe in me—I get that,” he said quickly. “But I do think you believe in him.”

  “You could be lying,” she pointed out.

  “Which is why I’m supposed to tell you that after this he said you two could enjoy PB&Js and watch Wheel of Fortune.”

  The sound of the toilet flushing followed by the sink turning on were the only noises that filled the room for a few moments.

  Then Riley made a decision.

  She didn’t trust the man in front of her but she did trust Desmond.

  “Okay,” she said. “Let’s get the bastard.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Riley hadn’t been privy to Desmond’s plan but now, less than an hour later, she knew without a doubt that every part of it had gone sideways. The rain had thoroughly soaked their clothes. Which was good, considering it had also washed away most of the blood. Still, the pain was there. It blanketed their bodies and made navigating through the trees even more difficult.

  Riley clutched her side; Jenna ran with a heavy limp.

  Both were panting from effort; neither was slowing down.

  They couldn’t. Not when he was still free.

  “Ca-Caleb said it’s around—around here?” Jenna huffed out.

  They had made it to a stream. The trees overhead had thinned letting the rainstorm that had started at the absolutely worst time hit them with ease. Riley shielded her eyes and looked as far down the stream to the left as she could.

  “Yeah. Two hundred yards or—or so.”

  Jenna grunted. She reached out for Riley’s hand and they splashed through the water and onto the bank opposite. Then they were running along the tree line.

  Riley’s body hurt but it was her heart that had taken the biggest blow. The only reason she was as focused as she was on finding the vacation cabin had to do with the woman who was holding her hand.

  If Ryan caught Jenna, he would kill her.

  That had been made abundantly clear at the barn.

  The gunfire and yelling still rang through her head.

  Riley didn’t know if she’d ever sleep again if that
was the nightmare that might appear.

  “There,” Jenna yelled out. She tugged Riley so hard along with her that the pain in her side from falling temporarily redirected to her arm.

  That’s when Riley saw the rental, deeper within the trees.

  It’s a vacation rental. No one is there now, Caleb had hurriedly told them behind their cover. Break in, hide and try your phones. Cell service there is spotty, though, so if there’s no landline then regroup and head out when you think it’s safe. Now go!

  The cabin was probably a sanctuary to those who rented it. Set between a mountain and the county road that led to town, and covered by trees, it was a large yet secluded escape. Which would have been nice had they been vacationing. As they ran up the stairs to the wraparound porch, the serenity was eerie.

  Jenna went up to the back door. Riley took her hand and pulled her to, and then past, the front door. She went to one of the windows on the opposite side of the stream and out of view from the drive.

  “If we’re going to break in, let’s do it somewhere kind of hidden.”

  Riley grabbed a bear figurine hanging out on the porch railing and readied to throw it through the glass.

  Jenna grabbed her arm to stop her. Wordlessly she pressed her palms against the window and pushed up. The window didn’t budge. It was locked. Riley raised her eyebrow at her sister. Jenna motioned to the window and stepped back.

  “As you were.”

  The bear statue shattered the glass on the first throw. Jenna picked up one of the small wooden patio tables along the porch and used its legs to clear the rest of the bottom portion’s glass away.

  “Be careful,” she warned as Riley ducked and went through.

  Glass crunched under her shoes.

  While she would never think of Maria in any good terms, she was thankful the woman had forced her to change before they’d walked into the motel room, even if it was into one of Maria’s work outfits. Apparently walking around in slippers and Jenna’s pajamas had been too suspicious even by her standards.

  Now Riley was in a drenched blouse, pair of slacks and flats that were too small and bit at her toes.