Love Inspired Suspense July 2015 #2 (32 page)

“I don't think that's exactly necessary. Besides, it would ruin the fun of the maze.”

“Yeah.” Ellie drank the last of her hot chocolate.

Johnny held out his hand. “Let me toss that out for you. There was a garbage can near the entrance.” He smirked at Ellie's raised eyebrows. “Stay right here, I'll be back in a second. I promise I won't let you get lost.”

Ellie clutched her hands together and pressed them to her chest. “You'll be my hero.” Besides, she had something in her shoe and could take this time to dump it out.

A slow, genuine smile crept across his face, making Ellie's insides go soft. She was in so much trouble.

Ellie rested one hand on the maze wall, careful not to push too hard, and yanked off her sneaker, tipping out the small pebble and slipping her shoe back on.

She then pulled out her cell phone and checked it, mostly out of habit. She went to put it back into her pocket when it slipped out of her hand. “Oh, man,” she muttered, hoping she hadn't cracked the screen.

Just then a hay bale nudged her backside. She lost her balance and fell to her knees. Someone grabbed her arm and her first instinct was relief. “Johnny?”

The grip bit into her flesh and her relief turned to fear. She tried to yank her arm away, but the person held on tight, then wrapped another arm around her shoulder, pulling her to her feet.

The smell. Her fear. A horrible familiarity. All reminiscent of her attack while looking for Duke.

But Tony had been arrested.

Icy dread pumped through her veins.

A blood-curdling scream rent the night air. It took her a moment to realize the sound had ripped from her throat.

The man dragged her through the tumbled hay bales to an idling vehicle in the parking lot on the other side. She bucked and kicked, but he only held her tighter. As he opened the trunk, fear made her want to puke.

There, curled up in a ball, was her good friend, Ashley.

The word
Oh
barely formed on her lips when the man shoved her inside on top of Ashley.

In the brief second before the lid slammed shut, Roger Petersen's angry face came into view.

Roger?

The trunk lid slammed down, leaving her in blackness. Terror clawed at her heart as she blinked, blinked, blinked.

Absolute darkness.

THIRTEEN

J
ohnny backtracked a couple turns to the entrance where he had noticed a trash can. He tossed in the two paper cups and a splash of hot chocolate landed on his hand.

“Oh, here you go, Agent Rock.” An older woman hustled toward him with a couple napkins.

He smiled and took them from the woman. “Thank you.”

He wiped his sticky hands and stuffed the napkins into the trash can.

“I wanted to thank you for catching the drug dealer. I can't believe it was Bobby's son.” She hitched a shoulder and kept talking. “I bought my rye bread from that bakery for years.” She made a tsking sound. “I suppose you never really know about anyone.”

“No, ma'am.” Johnny glanced toward the maze entrance, figuring Ellie would be wondering where he was.

“I heard the young boy who overdosed is doing better.”

Johnny nodded.

“These kids think they're invincible.” She hiked up the strap of her purse on her shoulder. “I'm glad my boys are all grown. I can't imagine handling what these kids are dealing with today. Sure, drugs have always been around, but now they have these phones and the World Wide Web. The young people today can't seem to do anything without having their photo plastered all over.” She shook her head, disgusted. “I miss the simpler times.”

Johnny reached out and touched her arm. “Enjoy your evening, ma'am. I have someone waiting for me.”

The older lady waved her hand. “Oh, listen to me going on and on. Have a good night, Agent Rock.”

“Thank you. You, too.”

Johnny turned and strode back toward the maze. When he reached the entrance he heard a scream.

“Ellie!”

His heartbeat jackhammered in his chest. Breaking into a run, he made the few turns to where he had left Ellie. The wall of hay bales had collapsed. He stepped through the opening to the parking lot on the other side of the maze.

“Ellie!” he shouted again. “Ellie!”

Johnny scanned the quiet parking lot. Adrenaline surged through his veins. No sign of Ellie.

Calmly, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed her number. A short distance away he heard her familiar ring tone. His heart stopped. He marched toward the sound. On the ground littered with hay, the screen of a smartphone lit the darkened corner. He bent and picked it up. His name lit the screen.

Ellie's phone.

Johnny straightened and searched the area. Where was Ellie?

* * *

In the close confines of the hot trunk, something sharp dug into Ellie's side. She tried to scoot forward, but she didn't want to risk hurting Ashley. The quiet up and down of Ashley's chest assured Ellie that her friend was alive.
Thank God.

The stale smell of old upholstery and rubber assaulted her nose. Her stomach roiled and she feared she'd throw up.

Dear Lord, please protect me. Deliver Ashley and me to safety. Keep me calm. Allow me to think. Let Johnny find us in time.

The words of her prayer were as disjointed as her thoughts.

God would understand.

Ellie closed her eyes and mentally sent out a message to Johnny. But what could she tell him?
I'm in the trunk of a car headed to who knows where?

Ellie tried to shove aside her feelings of despair. She had to do something. She felt around the trunk for a trunk release but couldn't find one. She feared this car was too old to be outfitted with one.

With a shaky hand, she reached out and touched what felt like Ashley's arm. She gently shook her friend. “Ashley,” she said in a hushed whisper. She didn't want to give Roger an excuse to pull over and hurt her. Hurt them.

Ellie dragged her hand up her friend's arm and found her face, her mouth, the duct tape over it. She picked at a corner. “Ashley?”

No answer.

Her pulse whooshed in her ears, the steady beat amplified by the confined space. A bead of sweat trickled down her face and around to her jawline.

“Ashley, I'm going to pull the tape off your mouth. I'm going to do it fast so it doesn't hurt.” She had no idea if her friend could hear her. Could process her words.

Her friend groaned softly. A surge of relief swept over Ellie. Ashley was coming around.

“Try to stay quiet, honey. I'll get this tape off your mouth.”

The next muffled cry that came from her friend was strangled.

“I'll try not to hurt you.”

Ellie braced herself mentally and pulled the tape from her friend's mouth in one swift, hair-removing yank. Ashley whimpered.

“What's going on?” Ellie whispered to her friend. “Do you have any idea?”

Ashley coughed and Ellie held her breath, her heartbeat ticking away the seconds as the car sped down the road.

“You have to give it back,” Ashley said, her voice raw, hoarse.

“What are you talking about?”

“The package. The package! You have to give it back.” Ashley's frantic tone sent Ellie's already frazzled nerves into hyperdrive.

“The package of drugs?” Every inch of Ellie's skin tingled with the buzz of adrenaline.

“You have to give it back or Roger's going to kill us.”

“Kill us?”

“Me, Tony...now you.”

Ellie's mind swirled; random thoughts pelted her brain. “I don't have the package.”

“What did you do with it?”

“I never had it.” Ellie tried to keep the anger and frustration out of her tone. It would serve no purpose now. An ache shot up her shoulder and arm when the car hit a bump. “How will Roger hurt Tony? Tony's in jail.”

“No. Tony got out on bail this afternoon.”

None of this made sense.

The car came to a stop and a new wave of panic rolled over her. The car door creaked open. Footsteps. The sound of a key fob chirped in the black night.

And the trunk popped open. A rush of cool air swept into the confined space. Beyond the dark shadow of Roger hovering over the open trunk, Ellie saw a million stars in the sky.

Please help me, Lord.

Roger reached into the trunk and yanked Ellie out by the arm. His fingers dug into her flesh, sending an aching pain shooting through her limb. She blinked a few times against the streetlights. The alley behind her shop came into focus.

Roger slammed the trunk lid closed on her friend and Ellie yelped, “Don't leave Ashley in there.”

Roger jerked her toward the back door of Gifts and More. “I think you have bigger things to worry about than Ashley.”

“I—”

“Get me the package now, or I'll kill your friend.”

Ellie swallowed hard. “You can't get away with this. You didn't ten years ago. You won't now.” A boldness she didn't understand filled her. Was she being smart or stupid?

Roger grunted and shook her so hard that she was forced to look back at his vehicle. “Go on, look.”

Hot anger and fear flooded her face. Roger ushered her over to the car and she peered through the window. Tony lay curled up on the backseat, his hands and ankles bound, his mouth covered with duct tape. His wide eyes and jerky movements radiated terror.

“If all this goes bad, your boyfriend will think Tony Vino snapped. He'll be the only suspect.”

“Tony won't keep quiet.” She had enough sense not to argue the point that Johnny was hardly her boyfriend.

Under the moonlight, she could see the corner of Roger's mouth pull into a smirk. “He won't have a choice.”

The implications of his words stabbed Ellie in the heart. Pinpricks of realization rolled over her. Roger would have to kill
all
of them to get away with this if he planned to pin it on Tony, making it look as though Tony had committed murder-suicide.

Ellie fisted and unfisted her hands. Her mind raced.
What should I do? What should I do?
Should she tell Roger she didn't have the package? Would that mean instant death for all of them? Should she pretend she did and buy them all time? Time for Johnny to find them.

She lifted a finger in a hold-on-a-minute gesture.

Yes, she decided, playing along was her only hope.

“Okay,” Ellie said, trying to keep her voice even. “Let me get it.”

Roger pushed her toward the back door of her shop. “Good girl.”

Ellie stopped at the door and dug into her pocket for the keys.

Think. Think. Think.

She spun around and her stomach pitched when she noticed Roger's intense expression. “I only have the key for the front door,” she said, her voice shaky.

Roger clenched his jaw and muttered something.

He grabbed her by the arm and gestured toward the car with his chin. “They ain't going anywhere,” he said, referring to his hostages. He shoved Ellie down the narrow alley between the buildings. She had to jog to keep pace and not trip over her feet. A continuous prayer ran through her head.

Dear Lord, help me...

“You better not be lying to me.” Roger snarled.

When they reached Main Street, it was oddly deserted. Just her luck, everyone was at the church carnival.

Roger pulled a gun from his waistband and leaned in close, his stale breath hot on her cheek. “If we run into anyone, you tell them you're opening the shop to show me something.”

Ellie nodded, unable to force any words from her too tight throat.

“I don't think I need to remind you, your friend's life is in your hands.”

Idiot was going to kill all of them anyway. Did he really think she was that stupid?

Focusing solely on what she had to do, Ellie put the key into the lock of the front door with shaky fingers.

Dear Lord, help me...

She pushed open the door and slammed the alarm pad inside.

Roger cursed and reached for her, but his fingers brushed her waist.

Ellie grabbed the top of the glass shelves with both hands and toppled them in front of the door, then spun on her heels, making her way to the storage room.

A shot rang out, whizzing by her ear. She dove for the ground, her fingers touching the side of the door frame to the storage room.

Just a few more feet.

Another shot sounded and drywall exploded over her head.

Protect me, Lord.

Ellie army-crawled into the storage room. Once inside, she pivoted and slammed the door shut.

A tear ran down her cheek. Her eyes drifted to the back door leading to the alley. Could she make it to the car to save her friend before Roger got back to the alley?

Scrambling to her feet, she fumbled in the darkness to find the handle of the door. Her shaking fingers found the knob for the dead bolt, but a horrible sense of foreboding paralyzed her.

Dear Lord, what should I do?

* * *

The whimpers of a woman sounded from somewhere close.

All of Johnny's senses were on high alert. He ran toward the woman's cries around to the side of the maze. Kaylee looked up at him from a crouched position, her wet cheeks glistening under the lampposts.

Johnny scanned the church parking lot again. Nothing but a few cars and lampposts and a man in the distance emptying the garbage totes with a wary eye on the commotion.

“Kaylee, what's wrong?” Johnny took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

“He took Ellie!”

Icy dread pumped through his veins. “Who took her? What did you see?”

Kaylee slapped at the tears running down her cheeks. “A man rammed his car into the corner of the maze and grabbed Ellie. Stuffed her in the trunk. I was so afraid. I thought he might grab me.” She clawed at his arm. “You have to help her.”

“What man?”

“I don't know.”

“Which way did they go?” He swallowed hard, relying on his training.

Kaylee lifted a shaky hand and pointed toward the side street. The car had turned right.

“What kind of car?”

“Not a big one. A regular car. Not a truck or anything.”

“Do you have a phone, Kaylee?”

She looked up at him, blinking her confusion. He wasn't sure if it was due to the situation or the stupidity of his question. Of course she had a phone. Proving his point, she reached into the pocket of her hoodie and pulled out a sparkly pink phone.

“Call 9-1-1. Tell them exactly what you told me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Find Ellie.”

She stared at him and Johnny worried the poor girl was in shock. But time was ticking for Ellie. “Do you understand? Call 9-1-1.”

“Yes.” Kaylee lifted her phone and pressed the screen.

Johnny ran toward his car, climbed in, his breath coming out in ragged gasps. He jammed the key into the ignition and sped out of the parking lot. He had let Ellie down, just as he'd let down his mother. He hadn't been there when they both really needed him.

It was too late for his mother, but there was still hope for Ellie. An emptiness hollowed out his chest, reminding him why he never allowed anyone in. It hurt too much when they left.

Unbidden, a prayer floated to mind.

Help me find her in time. Let me save Ellie.

At the first intersection, Johnny glanced down the cross street, then it hit him. Ellie's shop. The first place he had to check was Ellie's shop. All this trouble had begun when someone believed she'd stolen a package of drugs that had been shipped to her shop's address.

Johnny turned down the street, then onto Main Street. He slowed in front of Gifts and More and his heart dropped when he noticed the front door ajar. He slammed the gearshift into Park and jumped out.

Grabbing his gun from its holster, he trained it on the dark shadows in the shop. His shoes crunched on the broken glass inside the door as he stepped over overturned shelves.

His intense focus shifted everything into slow motion.

There had been a struggle here.

In the back of the shop he saw a shadow. He tightened his grip on his gun. Too tall and broad to be Ellie.