by Erica Penrod
He wasn’t her responsibility, but a restless feeling persisted where he was concerned, and her discomfort had nothing to do with the way he looked. Viv wanted to keep an eye on Boone. She didn’t trust the reputation he brought with him, and now that her father was living with Amanda, she felt she had to be the one to protect her father’s interest.
She pulled in front of the house and looked around. Her father’s truck was parked near the haystack. Shifting into park, she looked around, thinking maybe she could convince her father to take his horse to the Royals’ ranch. Before the thought left her mind, she heard her father’s voice in her head.
This is my place and it’s good enough for me. I don’t need any of that fancy stuff.
Maybe Amanda could talk him into the move, since he was living there for now. She’d have to talk to her about the possibility.
To the west, billows of dust sporadically drifted in the sky. Boone must be working a horse in the small pen. Glancing at her phone, she had a couple hours before she needed to be at the diner, which gave her a couple hours to decide how she would tell Joye she was giving her two weeks’ notice. Climbing out of the truck, she debated going into the house or heading out to watch Boone. Watching Boone meant seeing her father again, and she wasn’t sure she was ready for that yet.
Headed towards the front door, Viv decided to drop off her wallet and keys, grab a drink, then head out and ride. She’d been breaking a young filly for a neighbor over the last couple months. The two-and-a-half-year-old was the color of sweet honey with the temperament of a spicy Mexican dish, but Viv loved the way the spirited animal felt beneath her and responded to her cues. Viv stopped on the front porch and pushed her sunglasses to the top of her head. Just then, the door opened and Amanda stepped out.
“Oh … hi,” Amanda said. “I was hoping to catch you here.”
“You were?” Viv asked, thinking they’d already spent their quality family time together earlier today.
“I wanted to invite you to dinner tomorrow night,” Amanda said. “I know you’ve got a lot of questions about your dad and me.”
“My dad might disagree with you on that,” Viv said as she tucked her keys in her pocket. “He made it pretty clear to me this morning your marriage is none of my business.”
Amanda shook her head and smiled. “I’ll talk to him. We’re a family now, and that’s something he’s not used to. He’s been the only one to take care of you, and as misguided as his methods are, he has your best interest at heart.”
Viv nodded, wondering if she could keep the sarcasm out of her tone. “Of course he does.” Nope.
“He thinks keeping you in the dark is good parenting. While shielding children from the darker things in life isn’t a bad idea, I don’t think he’s giving you enough credit.”
Viv said, “He treats me like I’m a perpetual thirteen-year-old.”
“I can understand that,” Amanda said. “It’s hard for fathers to accept that their little girls are all grown up.”
Clearly this woman had no idea who she was married to. Her implications that Viv’s father ever coddled or cared that he had a daughter was as delusional as their marriage appeared to be.
“I think you’re mistaken. I’ve been nothing but a burden and a disappointment to him—”
“That’s not true,” Amanda interjected. “If you knew where he was coming from, more about his past, you’d understand why he is the way he is.”
“You don’t know him like I do.”
“I know that,” Amanda said. “But I know when someone gets hurt like he did, it can change them.”
“What are you talking about?” Viv asked as she rubbed her head with her fingers, not even sure she wanted to know. “What happened? He’s never said anything.”
“He needs to be the one to tell you, but trust me. I knew him years ago. And then there was your mother.”
“My mother?” Viv asked. Her body trembled, while beads of perspiration dotted along her forehead. Dizziness threatened to topple her over. Mother was a word Viv didn’t have in her vocabulary. A mother was some person other children had to bandage their scraped knees and tuck them in at night. A mother was a forbidden topic. Dad had told Viv that her mother was gone and that was that. Gone meant so many things to a young girl, but Viv liked to believe her mother was an angel who wrapped her arms around her daughter as they rode on the back of a horse, the wind in their hair and their hearts intertwined.
“Amanda,” Viv’s father said from somewhere behind her. She recognized that tone and stared at Amanda with sympathetic eyes.
“Hey, babe,” Amanda said, and as she passed, she touched Viv’s shoulder before she fell into her husband’s arms.
Viv watched in disbelief as her father lifted Amanda’s face to kiss her softly on the lips.
“Viv,” her father said, with Amanda still in his arms. “Boone needs a hand.”
Any moment she would wake up. Nothing about today could possibly be reality, or maybe she’d had a psychotic breakdown, and she was trapped in her mind. Anything was possible at this point.
Too stunned to speak, she simply nodded and turned around with her wallet in her hand and her keys in her pocket.
Shuffling through the dirt, frustration mounted in her mind. Why did everything have to be so complicated with her father? Why couldn’t he just tell her why he married Amanda and why his past and her mother was a buried secret? Spit it out and get on with it. Isn’t that what he’d always said to her?
Viv turned in to the barn before she went out to meet Boone. There was a mini fridge in the tack room to keep the horse’s meds and a few bottles of water. On the shelf above the fridge, there was a small empty spot where she stashed her wallet and keys. She bent over and took the last bottle from the fridge. As she stood up, a woman was standing in front of her.
The bottle of water fell to the ground. “Geez, you scared me,” Viv said. Her heart thumped in her chest. “Can I help you?” she asked like she’d just lapped the barn. Viv gazed around, wondering where the woman came from.
“I hope so,” the woman said. Her voice was deep and raspy. Long dark waves fell across the shoulders of her gold shirt. Stacked bracelets hung from both wrists, and they clanged together with each movement of her arm. Coal-colored eyes were shadowed by thick, heavy lashes. Her full lips appeared to be painted on by an artist, perfectly proportioned to her pixie nose and naturally contoured cheekbones.
“Are you Vivien McIntyre?” the woman asked. Her voice was deep and reminded Viv of someone with a raw throat.
“Yes,” she said as the warning sirens alarmed through her body.
“Good,” the woman said as she nodded her head towards someone behind Viv.
In less than a heartbeat, Viv looked over her shoulder and saw a man, more giant than human. She tried to scream, but a sharp pinch bit her in the arm, and then there was nothing.
Chapter 9
“What do you mean, she’s gone?” Boone asked, still trying to figure out what exactly happened.
Eli lifted his hat and wiped his brow before he pulled the brim down. Deep crevices wrinkled the corners of his grey eyes. His thick brows furrowed as he stewed over his daughter’s whereabouts. Boone couldn’t help but wish Viv could see him like this. No one could argue that this man loved his daughter, not even his daughter.
“You’re sure you never saw her?” Eli asked Boone again.
“I’m positive,” he said. He hadn’t laid eyes on her, hadn’t felt the nerves quake through his body because she was near.
“I don’t understand,” Eli said as he walked in circles.
Amanda jogged up with her phone pressed to her ear. “Yes. Thank you, Joye,” she said. She pulled the phone down and pushed the end button. “She hasn’t seen her either. Joye was expecting Viv at five, but she didn’t show up.”
“Of course she didn’t!” Eli cried. “Her truck’s still in the driveway.”
Amanda wrapped her arm around his waist. “
I know, but maybe a friend picked her up.”
Eli shook his head and bit the corner of his lip. “No. She would’ve said something. Left a note. Anything. I know my daughter, and something’s not right.”
“How long has it been?” Boone asked, trying to suppress the panic in his voice as he pulled the phone from his pocket.
“I don’t know. It was about two thirty or three when I last saw her.”
“It’s only been a few hours. I think it’s still too early to involve the police,” Amanda said.
“Like hell it is,” Eli said. “Get Hal on the phone and let him know what’s going on.”
“Who’s Hal?” Boone asked.
“The Chief of Police,” Amanda answered.
“If I tell him Viv’s missing, he’ll start looking.”
Just then, a black sports car came speeding up the driveway, leaving a wake of turned-up earth in its tracks.
“What’s he doing here?’” Boone asked.
“I called him to see if he knew where Viv was,” Amanda said. “They were together earlier today, so I thought I’d check.”
Boone ignored the twisted blade of jealousy tearing up his gut. There wasn’t time for the green-eyed monster, not when Viv could be in more trouble than her father knew.
Lucas slammed the door and raced over to them. “Did you hear from her?”
“No, not yet,” Amanda said.
“I don’t understand,” Lucas said. “Wasn’t she supposed to be with you?” he asked Boone. The accusation in his voice didn’t go unnoticed.
“I didn’t see her,” he said through gritted teeth. “I wish I had, but I didn’t.”
“What do we do now?” Lucas asked.
“Get Hal on the phone,” Eli said.
“I’m going to search the grounds again,” Boone said. “Maybe she dropped her phone or left a note somewhere we haven’t found.” His words were futile, but he had to say something positive; otherwise he wanted to punch Lucas in the face just to let out a little frustration.
“I’ll go with you,” Lucas said.
Whatever. Boone started walking. He heard Lucas jog up beside him. “You go that way,” he said to Lucas, and pointed to the opposite direction.
Lucas took off and Boone searched along the outside of the arena for any clue. None of the horses were missing from their stalls. He walked into the barn to check the tack room to see if anything was missing. A wallet and keys sat on the shelf. He looked behind him, wondering if they were new or old. Getting closer, he saw the Chevy insignia on the keys and snatched them both off the shelf.
Boone opened the leather clutch and saw the driver’s license with Viv’s picture, and a small piece of hope floated through his heart. She’d been there. At least that was something.
He turned to leave and noticed the tracks in the dirt floor. He knelt to get a better look. Fear sliced him. There were three distinct sets of prints besides his own. One was Viv’s; he recognized the boot print. There was another set of smaller prints, but maybe they were Amanda’s. Then he studied the third set, a much larger pair. He swallowed the lump in his throat as Viv’s face flashed in his mind. Those weren’t average-sized prints. Those were made by a freak of nature. Boone’s knees weakened as he stood up, and he put a hand on the wall to steady himself. The problem was … he knew the mutant they belonged to.
* * *
Voices beckoned Viv to swim to the surface of consciousness, but the current pulling her under was too strong to fight. Soon the voices got louder and her mind began to grab hold. Memories leaked in, her brain urging her to remember, to protect herself. Her eyelids fluttered, raging against the light.
Where am I? An engine quietly moaned in the background. A car? A plane? A train? She had no idea, but wondered if she should pretend to be under the influence of whatever drug they’d used to sedate her. They might’ve stolen a horse tranquilizer, judging by the way she wrestled beneath the drug’s strong hold. But her head was clearing, and her mind quickly played the last few minutes she could remember before she blacked out.
The woman and the giant. Were they here with her now? She listened intently and confirmed her suspicions when she heard the gravelly voice of the woman from the barn.
With her eyes closed, she tried to gather pieces of her circumstances, hints about her location, or grab on to anything that might help her figure out what was happening and why. What would someone want with her? Nothing made sense.
“Wake up, darling.”
Viv felt someone nudging her in the shoulder, and she decided she’d rather face her captor face to face than continue to guess in the dark.
Opening her eyes, she focused until the woman’s face was just as beautiful as she remembered. But this time, Viv noticed the calculated perfection to the woman’s appearance. Her good looks were a weapon to wield, a spell to cast.
“Where …” Viv tried to speak as she sat up, but her throat was dry. “Where am …” She cleared her throat, and the woman twisted off the lid to a bottle and offered her water.
Viv felt like Snow White about to bite into the poisonous apple, but she took the drink and gulped down the clear liquid before her head could think about the ramifications.
“Where am I?” she asked. With her thirst quenched, she sensed the headache about to emerge from the darkness. Rubbing her forehead with her hands, she realized she wasn’t physically bound.
“Who are you and what do you want with me?” she asked as she looked around. She was on a couch and they were on a plane.
A plane!
“Where are you taking me?” Viv asked. A foreboding feeling sank in her stomach. How long had they been flying?
The woman laughed. “You’re certainly an impatient person.”
“Impatient?” Viv asked. “I’ve every right to be. You took—”
The woman held up her hand; blood-red nails topped her fingertips. “One question at a time.”
“She doesn’t need to know anything,” a male voice said with malice for an accent.
Viv turned slowly and saw a man who had to be somewhere in his late forties, sitting in a chair next to the window, a book in his hand. He glanced up, nodded his head, and then continued to read. His thick hair was a mundane brown woven with threads of grey, but there was nothing monotonous about his face. Coffee-colored skin set off black brows that framed deep-set, piercing blue eyes. His masculine, Roman nose balanced out the beautiful features of his full lips and chiseled cheekbones. His shadowed, square jawline looked drawn by the Devil himself.
And if the Devil had a mistress, she was the woman sitting beside Viv.
“Don’t worry, darling.” She patted Viv’s cheek. “We’re not really interested in you.”
“Then what do you want?”
“You’re a friend of a friend,” the woman said. “A means to an end.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Viv said.
“Of course you do,” the woman said. She reached out and stroked a piece of Viv’s hair. “You are a pretty little thing. I’ll give him that much.”
“Give who?” Viv asked. “Who are you talking about?”
“Alexandra,” the man said. “Quit toying with the prey.”
“Of course,” she said. A diabolical smile played across her face. “Daniel,” she called.
Viv looked over at the man in the chair, but he didn’t respond. Just then a door opened and the giant appeared. Viv jumped to the end of the couch, but it was too late. The sharp bite pricked her skin, and then the darkness claimed her once again.
Chapter 10
Boone?
Viv struggled with her sleep-drugged senses. Boone’s voice played like a favorite song in the back of her mind. She kept her eyes closed and focused on finding that voice again.
“She means nothing to me.”
What?
Viv’s eyes popped open. The sun was as bright as a flashlight in her eyes and she had to blink a few times to adjust her vision. Her han
ds were bound behind her back and she was lying on a dirt road.
Boone stood several yards away from her, leaning against the hood of his truck. His arms were crossed and his cowboy hat shaded his eyes. He didn’t look at her.
Alexandra stood beside Viv. “Surely you don’t expect me to believe that.”
“I only met her a couple days ago. Believe what you want,” Boone said. “She. Means. Nothing. To. Me.”
“Don’t worry, love, I’m not jealous,” Alexandra said. “She can have you.”
Viv looked up as Alexandra stared down at her.
“Besides,” Alexandra said to Boone. “I’ve grown bored of you.”
“Alex, let her go,” Boone said, like he was talking to a friend. “She doesn’t have anything to do with this, and I’ve told you I don’t care about her.”
“That may be true,” Alexandra said as she looked down at Viv. “But Amanda does.”
Viv watched as Boone’s face hardened. His eyes went stone cold, and he started walking towards Alexandra.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Alexandra said. “I’d hate to have Daniel get out of the car.”
Boone stopped in his tracks.
“Besides, this is just a warning for you and your sister. Stay out of my way, or next time I might not be so generous to Miss McIntyre. Next time you might find her in a pine box.”
Daniel got out, walked around, and opened the door as Alexandra slid into the car.
The car sped off while Boone glared after it. Once the Mercedes was far enough away and he couldn’t see the taillights through the dust, Boone raced to Viv, scooping her into his arms, where she hung like a rag doll.
“Are you okay?” he asked as he walked to his truck. His strong arms wrapped around her and felt like a safety net at the bottom of a high-wire fall.
“I’m okay,” she said, then rested her head on his chest and listened to the lullaby of his heartbeat. She exhaled and felt the calm claim victory over some of the panic. He somehow managed to open the passenger door with her in his arms and set her down gently.
