Burke rushed through his home, looking in closets and bedrooms, hoping to find them hiding, but they were nowhere to be found.
“Grace?” He called one more time, hoping to get a response.
Burke rounded the corner, toward the kitchen. It was then that he saw the frying pan on the ground, with bloodstains splattered on his carpet. He anxiously searched his living room, and saw his lamp, which was shattered to pieces on the ground.
The back lanai door was wide open, with traces of blood smeared on the frame. It was almost as if someone fell into it trying to leave, and he prayed that the blood wasn’t Graces or her sister’s.
Instantly, he knew who was behind this and it killed him that he was to blame for not paying more attention. He should have known Zach would have come back for Grace.
Burke spun around, as he heard sounds coming from the front of his home. He ran toward the door, in hopes he’d find her safe, but all he found was Chad, who had been knocking.
Chad knocked a few times, wondering if anyone was home. He turned and nervously smiled into the camera, which was trailing him up to the door.
He quickly reached for his cell to call Anne, when he saw Burke flying into the room, like he was on the attack. He immediately knew something was wrong.
“Hey, is Anne still here?” He asked, as his heart lodged in his throat. What if she had changed her mind?
Burke’s eyes were frantic. Instantly, Chad knew that whatever was going on was bigger than his love life.
“They’re gone.” He ran his hands through his hair, in shock. “They …” Burke looked behind Chad, at cameraman, who was filming from the front yard. “Stay outside!” His eyes sent a deadly warning, which kept the camera and crew at bay.
Chad nodded and turned to Janie. “Stay here, okay?”
Janie nodded, eyes wide. “You’ve got a microphone on, so we’ll stay here and film from outside. We can pick up audio.” She watched Chad cautiously open the door, and quickly added, “Do you want me to call the cops?”
Chad swallowed hard, hoping they wouldn’t need the police but nodded, meeting Janie’s grave eyes. As he stepped inside, the smell of burnt food greeted him. Warning bells were ringing inside Chad’s head. Anne would never leave good food to burn. Something had to be wrong.
“What happened? Where are they?” His voice was barely over a whisper.
“I left to go to the store and came home to find all of this. Look.” Burke motioned for him to follow him to the back room.
“W-what happened?” He kneeled down by the broken lamp. “How long have you been gone?”
“Only thirty minutes, man.” Burke ran his hands through his hair and surveyed the room. It didn’t feel like any of this was real. This couldn’t be happening.
Chad stood, trying to wrap his mind around the scenario, but couldn’t. That’s when he saw traces of blood on the doorframe, which led to the lanai.
“Please tell me this isn’t Anne’s.”
“I don’t know.” Burke’s voice dropped.
Burke had seen a lot in his life. He’d toured in Afghanistan and Iraq, and knew he could handle most things he encountered. He’d thought losing buddies in combat was hard, but couldn’t imagine the thought of Grace out there at the hands of a madman. Losing Grace wasn’t something he was prepared to do.
Janie rounded the corner of the backyard, with her cameraman in tow, as both Chad and Burke were bounding out into the back yard.
Both bolted down to the beach, stopping only to look up each coast, trying to decipher where they might have run.
“Grace!” Burke wildly yelled, with all his might.
“Anne!” Chad cupped his hands, and yelled into the wind. “Are you out there? If so, answer me.”
Both waited but there was no reply.
“They couldn’t have gotten far.” Burke’s words tumbled out.
“You go that way…” Chad pointed toward the north. “And, I’ll go this way.”
Burke looked to the shoreline and shook his head, reminiscent of the first time he ran down the beach for her… when he saved her purse. He gritted his teeth now knowing he had a much bigger task, and hoped he could save her now.
Chad pulled out his cell, just as the camera crew caught up to them.
Chad turned to Janie, panicked, and desperately asked, “Did you call 9-1-1?”
“Yes. They’re on their way. It’s really dark out here. Do you think we can find them?” She squinted through the dark, down the beach.
Chad’s heart was in his throat. “I don’t know. Call Anne’s cell, and let me know if you hear anything.”
“Hurry.” Burke hollered over his shoulder, as he was already running in the opposite direction.
Janie instructed her cameramen to shoot in both directions, as both men ran off to find the girls. She said a silent prayer, hoping they found them safe and sound.
Once Zach willed himself to forget about his injury, he made better time, making it to the park faster than he thought. He shined his light on the picnic area, looking for any shelter the girls might seek.
As he crossed the ravine, he saw two sets of fresh foot prints leaving the water and rising up to meet the grass.
“I see you.” He giggled, now aware that he was hot on their trail.
From under the boat, both girls clamped their hands tightly together. They heard how close he was.
“Someone wants to play hide and seek,” he hollered, and followed the footprints up the grass. “Only now I have to find you.”
He looked toward the public bathrooms, which were only yards away. He doubted they’d hide there, but started toward them anyway.
Once inside, he shined his light in all the stalls. The only sound was a leaky faucet, which echoed throughout the open brick room. It smelled of mold and urine. No, there was no way she’d hide in here … not his little princess.
As he stepped back outside, clouds simultaneously rolled away, allowing bright moonlight to shine down, giving him more access for his hunt.
He panned the area with his flashlight, as if it were the first time, not knowing how long the moon would be in his favor. His eyes landed on a few banyon trees, which had large roots that could provide more than adequate shelter. He ran to them, and hollered inside the overgrown trunks.
“Grace! Where are you?”
He guided his flashlight inside the interwoven network of large roots, making sure he wasn’t missing her. He wasn’t … there was no one to find.
With every empty second that passed, he grew more anxious. Even though his gut screamed that she was nearby, she wasn’t anywhere to be found. And, with two huddled together, he thought they’d be easier to catch. After all, what would two frightened women do? They’d stick together.
Zach backtracked toward the ravine, hoping to find more footprints. As he took a step down onto the steep sand dune, a gust of wind whirled around him, causing him to lose his footing. He tripped over some branches and rolled down the hill, bumping up against an old overturned boat.
To Grace, it sounded like he slammed against their boat on purpose, as if announcing that he’d found them. As the resounding thud crashed around them, she let out a soft whimper. Anne quickly lifted her hand over Grace’s mouth, and stroked the side of her head, with the other.
Anne wanted to tell her that everything would be okay, but any words right now would give them away. She didn’t know what was going on outside the boat, but she did know that this could be it for them, and was prepared to go down fighting.
She firmly dug her toes into the sand and crouched, ready to attach Zach, if he were to lift any portion of the boat off of them. She searched for Grace’s eyes, but it was too dark to see even a hint of what she was feeling. So she did the best thing she could … she held her hand and lifted it up to her lips for a kiss.
Grace held onto Anne with one hand, while digging for her phone with the other. Although scared out of her mind, she needed to reach Burke. From her hunched
position, she angled sideways, hoping to give her enough room to dig through her pocket.
Anne felt her sister’s movements, and squeezed her hand more tightly to get her attention. If she weren’t careful she’d give them away if they weren’t discovered already.
She felt Grace slip her hand away, only to see a dim light pop on, which illuminated her face. She could tell Grace had been crying, but also saw the determination in her sister’s eyes.
Good, she thought. She’s a fighter. We’re going to get through this together.
Grace’s hands were shaky, but she managed to pull up Burke’s contact and send a quick text.
Hiding under boat, at picnic area. He’s here. Help.
Grace hit send and silently said a prayer that God would save them, while keeping Burke safe in the process.
With the soft glow from her phone, she looked to Anne, who mouthed the words, I love you. Grace nodded and gave her a look that said how she felt, before closing her phone. No matter what happened, she knew she could not lose her sister again.
Zach’s tumble not only disoriented him, it re-injured his head wound, as he landed with a crash on the side of the boat.
He sat there for a few minutes, in pain, struggling to get up. As he moaned from the throbbing that was again pulsing through his head, he could have sworn he heard something. He cocked his ear to wind, but heard nothing that was out of the ordinary that would give him any clue to what it was.
He pushed himself up onto the boat, and touched the back of his head, which had become a matted mess. The lump was sticky and rough, as blood and sand intertwined through his hair.
“Ugh!” He wiped his blood stained hand on the boat. And that’s when he heard it … one pulsating vibration … coming from beneath him. It was then that he knew they were under the raft, and began tapping his fingers on the surface, in sync with the rhythmic pulse.
Anne’s eyes went wide when she felt it. Her hand flew to her pocket, knowing her phone was lodged between her hip and the wooden lip of the boat. Although her phone was on silent … it was still set to vibrate and it reverberated through the wood around them.
Grace reached out and grabbed Anne’s arm.
Please, please, please God. Help us, Anne prayed, as she pulled her cell from her pocket. She saw Janie’s name on her caller ID and held her breath. Turn it off … maybe he didn’t hear it.
That’s when they both knew they’d been discovered, as the sound of Zach’s fingers started drumming in cadence over them.
Grace’s heart dropped. She shrunk down as low as possible, hoping that if she closed her eyes tightly enough – he wouldn’t really discover them.
Zach’s focus returned, as he stood to face their hiding place, envisioning both girls inside. Even off balance, he celebrated with a short-lived happy dance.
“What do we have here?” He laughed, and kicked the side of the boat. “Why didn’t I think of this before?”
Burke’s lungs screamed, as he ran down the dark shoreline, stopping every few feet to call their names. He heard nothing in return. He spun around, searching the heavens above, with only a few stars to guide the way, praying for guidance.
It was then that he felt the vibration in his back pocket. He grabbed for his phone, ecstatic to see a text from Grace, but within seconds his heart fell once more, knowing she was in immediate danger.
“The boat … she’s under the boat,” he panted, and looked behind him back toward his house, realizing he was going in the wrong direction. He quickly scanned his phone, to contact Chad, realizing that he didn’t have his number.
Swearing under breath, he took off once more only this time he knew where to find them. He just hoped it wasn’t too late.
Chad was cursing himself for not wearing the right shoes. He’d planned for a dinner date, not a run on the beach. After running past a few houses, he knew he’d make better time going barefoot.
As he leaned down to discard his loafers, he heard someone hot on his heels. He looked up to see Burke blow by him at top speed, yelling, “She sent me a text. I know where they are!”
Chad eagerly hopped on one leg, tossing off one shoe and then the other. He was never more grateful that he’d picked running back up, while in Texas, knowing that he needed it more now than ever before.
As he ran desperately in the dark, his mother’s wise words seared his heart.
Life is short and you only have today to get it right.
He thought he had the rest of his life to get to know Anne, but now he knew he needed to make the most of every minute with her. And he promised himself, as he begged God to save her that he would if he got the chance.
Please help me save her. Please God.
In his mind, he saw all the time they’d never share … the wedding they’d never have … the children they’d never raise … the golden years they’d never cherish.
Guilt seared through his spirit, as Chad knew he’d been negligent in building his relationship with God in the good times, and now here he was desperately needing His divine intervention.
No, it wasn’t going down like this. He wasn’t giving up. Chad shook off his fears and burned through the sand to catch up with Burke. He refused to believe that God would let anything happen to Anne or her sister.
He ran faster than he’d ever imagined after Burke, to close the gap, and prayed.
Please, please help me find her. I can’t lose her now. Help me.
Chad just hoped God was listening.
Janie knew they’d never be able to keep up with either man as they ran down the shore, so she called for additional crews to scour the beach at every park and neighborhood, hoping to find them in time to tape a reunion for the show. If they timed it right, they’d be able to film and edit it together seamlessly. She jumped in her jeep with her two cameramen, and she made a split decision.
“Quick, drive between the houses, and start down the beach.” She strapped in. It was going to be a bumpy ride.
“Which way,” her driver asked.
Janie looked in both directions, as they bounced down the short hill onto the beach. She nodded decisively, and said, “Follow our leading man. He went that way.”
The jeep bounded down the shoreline filming every second of the way. She knew whichever camera crew found them, their footage would aid in the chase, as if they were following Chad all along.
As Zach was outside taunting them, Anne knew that any words said now could be their last, and she didn’t want the last things her sister heard to be from a mad man.
Since she didn’t have to worry about giving their location, her main objective was to reassure his baby sister.
“I love you,” she whispered, and tightened her grip on her Grace’s hands. She heard her sister sniffle through the dark.
“I’m sorry I got you into this,” Grace cried.
“No,” she said, reassuringly. “Sweetheart, you didn’t do this. This isn’t your fault.”
“I love you. Please know how sorry I am for all the time we missed.”
“We’re here - together. I’m not going down without a fight. I will protect you.”
They both jumped, fearful of the large crash above them. Zach had slammed his hands down on the wood in efforts to scare them, and it worked.
He chuckled when he heard their screams.
“Come on, Grace. You know it’s time. You think you can run from me … just like your mom ran from my dad?!”
Zach turned his gun down toward the boat, and continued his tirade.
“Do you think I had it easy growing up … knowing that I was second best because he didn’t marry an Aundine and have little Aundine heirs running around? No! And that’s your mom’s fault and yours!”
He aimed his gun toward the middle, wondering which of them he’d hit first. Just as he pulled trigger, he was hit from behind. As he landed in the sand, he watched as his shot barely missed the boat.
Burke saw Zach lowering his arm, and knew he had to do s
omething fast. He lunged forward and leapt through the air. As they collided and rolled to the ground, he knocked the gun from his grip.
Chad arrived split seconds behind Burke and heard both girls scream at the top of their lungs, in response to gunfire. It looked like Burke had the gunman under control, so he lifted the boat up, only to be tackled by Anne.
Anne knew it was fight or die. She was prepared to do anything to protect her sister. As the boat lifted from above, she told Grace to stay put, and crouched – ready to take down Zach.
Once the boat was high enough for her to escape, she growled, attacking and knocking him to the ground … only to see that it wasn’t Zach … it was Chad.
“Hey, it’s me!” Chad was thrown on his back. He grabbed Anne’s wrist to keep her from pummeling him.
Anne lay on top Chad, fighting back her emotions. She had prepared herself to fight to the finish, only to find the face of the man she loved staring down at her. She was so grateful to be safe in his arms that she buried her head into his chest, unable to speak.
“Come on babe. Let’s get you two to safety.” He stroked her hair.
From the corner of his eye, Burke could see that Chad had helped both girls from the boat. Now, his only focus was getting Zach pinned down until the authorities could arrive.
For such a thin guy, Zach was a scrapper. Even with Burke’s weight advantage, he was having trouble getting him pinned and subdued.
As Grace exited the boat, she saw Burke rolling through the sand with Zach.
“Help him,” she cried to Chad.
“I think he’s got it handled.” Chad chuckled, seeing that Zach had finally stopped struggling. Burke’s strength was enough to take almost anyone down.
“Please.” Grace pushed.
“Okay, but stay here.” He looked to both girls, needing their reassurance.
He waited for them to nod, before jumping in to help Burke. There was nothing he’d like more than to give this guy a whooping of his own.
Zach stopped struggling, hoping that it would signal his surrender.
The clouds had receded just enough that in the dim moonlight that he could see where his gun had landed. If he could just get loose for just one second, he roll toward it and gain the upper hand.
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