Saved by the Blizzard: A romantic winter thriller (Tellure Hollow Book 2) (22 page)

I stood for a moment, letting the quiet seep into my bones. The unusually warm air felt strange against my skin. A few months ago I would’ve shivered at the temperature, but after living through such a frigid winter, the relative warmth felt good. Just as I was about to call Bryan back, a text came through. I blinked several times, making sure I read it correctly. The words were scrambled, as if written quickly and without care.

Hlp me. Icks took me. She’d

It was from Kayla. With trembling hands, I read and re-read it. At least she was alive.
If that’s really her
, a voice in my mind responded. I tried to make sense of the garbled text.
She’d what? Did it cut off or...

“Autocorrect,” I whispered. “It’s supposed to say shed.” The shed by the pond...

I stood perfectly still, transfixed by the message on my phone. Fresh, hot panic rose in my chest as all the possibilities jumbled together in my mind. I was motionless but rocked to the very core.
This proves she’s alive. No, it proves her phone is alive...Rick might be the one texting in which case...

“I shouldn’t go,” I said out loud. I spun on the spot. The dark forest looked menacing, containing shadows in which any number of horrors could hide. For the first time, I considered the possibility I was being watched. I remembered the bloody scene inside and wondered if the same fate awaited Kayla.
It doesn’t hurt to just go look...

Following my footsteps back up the stairs, I crept around the back of the house along the deck. I glanced inside the living room as I passed, the outline of Noah’s form causing a shudder to ripple through my body. Crouching as I reached the edge facing the mountain, I peeked through the slots in the railing. The single light that illuminated the slope revealed a pair of footprints heading straight to the pond. From this angle, I couldn’t see much, but it did look like a faint light was glowing from the small utility shed.

I cursed under my breath and backed away, afraid that anyone looking up at the house might see the movement and know I was there. I still clutched the phone in my hand.
Should I call Bryan? The police? They’re all on their way, it’s not like they’re going to drive any faster
. My body began to tremble from the cold and shock. Nothing in my life had prepared me to deal with anything like this.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when the phone went off in my hand. I answered it quickly, feeling like the sound was unbelievably loud in the silence, not even looking to see who it was.

“Hello?” I whispered.

“Lizzie, thank God. You gotta help me,” Kay said frantically. “I’m down at the pond. Please come and—Rick, no. Don’t!” I heard a loud clatter in the background before the line went dead. As I stood fighting myself, the silent night was torn apart by a ragged scream. I’d never understood the phrase ‘blood-curdling’ until that moment. It felt like someone had dumped ice water into my heart. It ended as suddenly as it started, the life sucked from the world around me. “Kay,” I sobbed.

I was heading down the back stairs before I even realized I was moving. Like every bad horror movie, I knew I was doing exactly the wrong thing but I didn’t care. There was no way in hell I was going to listen to my best friend get killed from a hundred yards away. Sprinting down the slope, I felt horribly exposed under the singular orange light. I couldn’t reach the shadows fast enough.

Pulling up just short of the little shed, I stopped to catch my breath. No noise was coming from the small building but I could definitely see light pouring out from between the cracks. Creeping ever closer to the shed, the crunching snow sounding so loud under foot, I tried to peek in the small window at the back. A jacket had been draped over the glass, obscuring everything inside. Stepping along the wall, I pressed my eye to a larger crack and caught a glimpse of Kayla’s feet splayed out on the floor, bound at the ankles. My heart was jammed so far up my throat I couldn’t breathe. For as long as I dared, I waited to hear any movement inside.

I don’t know how long I stood there staring through that crack, my eyes glued to those stupid heeled shoes.
Move
, I urged them.
Please move
. And like magic, her foot twitched. Just a fraction.
Oh, thank Christ
. Slowly, carefully, my ears alert to the smallest sound, I stepped around the side of the shed and checked the open area of the pond for movement. Nothing. The door of the shed was slightly ajar and I noticed fresh tracks in the snow leading away.

Every nerve in my body was on fire. I was twitchy, nervous, sure that at any second Rick would jump out and grab me before I’d gotten a chance to reach her. With my hand on the door, I slowly pushed it open, praying the old hinges wouldn’t creak. I steeled myself for a scene similar to her bedroom but found only a cluttered shed. Snow shovels, paint cans, deck chairs. It was filled to the ceiling with junk. My breath came out in a ragged exhalation, the white cloud dissipating before me. There was no way Rick would be able to hide among the clutter.

Kayla was at the far end of the shed, bound and gagged on the floor. Her chin rested against her chest, hair obscuring her face. I rushed to her ankles, whispering her name harshly as my frozen fingers fumbled with the restraints. Her ankles were only bound with a couple bungee cords, so I made fast work of it.

“Kay, wake up! Kay, please!” I glanced over my shoulder every second but tried to move quickly. She groaned a little in response, her head rolling as she tried to look up. With her ankles unbound, I moved to her mouth and pulled the gag free. Cradling her head in my hands, I brushed the hair from her face. Her unfocused eyes flickered open, but fell shut soon after, like she was battling with consciousness. “Oh Kay, please wake up. We have to get out of here.”

I tugged at her arms but realized they were bound behind her back. The bitter panic rose in my throat. It was taking entirely too long and I knew Rick would be back any second. He couldn’t have gone far. Maybe he’d seen my movements back at the house and had gone to investigate?
Ugh, I’d turned the lights on
! I thought in horror. I pulled her towards me and felt down her arm to her wrists where I found them secured with duct tape. I cursed and righted her against the wall again.
There’s no way I’m going to get her free in time. I need to get her up and walking.

“Kay, we need to get out of here,” I said holding her chin up. “Please, try to wake up.
Please
...”

She groaned again and twisted a little from my grip. With another glance at the door, I knew I’d have to dig deep and find some way to carry her out of there. I put my feet on either side of her slender body, looped my arms under her armpits, and hoisted her up as I shimmied back. It was surprisingly easy to get her to her feet but she had no strength in her legs. Once past center, she slumped against me almost lifelessly.

“Jesus Christ,” I said with grunt as I tried to right her. Just as I was trying to come up with a way to carry her out in my arms or on my back, a deep voice rang out from behind.

“Well, there you are.”

My heart stopped. With Kayla’s weight against me and no warning, there was nothing I could do to defend myself. Rick was on me in seconds, his arm slipping swiftly around my neck and tightening. Just as he pulled me back, Kayla’s eyes flickered open and focused fully on mine.

“Took you fucking long enough,” she said clearly. “My ass is freezing.” She kicked at the bungee cords with the toe of her boot.

“It’s not my fault she took forever to get down here,” he said defensively. I felt his hot breath on my cheek as he spoke to me. “Hello, Princess Beth. Heard you had an exciting day with loverboy and I’m sure you found our surprises up at the cabin. You two will have plenty to talk about but—oh wait...he won’t get here in time,” he snickered.

“Kay,” was all I managed to get out. I watched as she shimmied out of her jacket, plucking the duct tape from the sleeves of her coat. She could’ve gotten away at any time. The thought and the decreased lack of blood flow to my brain was making me dizzy.

“Come on,” she said as she put the jacket back on. “Make this quick so we can get out of here.” She pulled her hair from the collar casually, as I’d seen her do countless times before.
She’s not going to help me. She’s...she helped him get me.

I thrashed in his arms but it was useless. I’d never overpower him, but I did manage to wriggle one hand between his arm and my neck, giving me a little more breathing space. Stomping on his feet was pointless with the steel-toed boots he wore. I quickly gave up, realizing I’d have to wait for the perfect moment to get away. I wasn’t going to be able to pry myself free with strength.

Rick chuckled and pulled me closer, forearm pressing against my jugular. I fought hard against the darkness that was closing in around my vision. “I won’t promise to be quick...or gentle,” he said pressing his hardness against my ass. “I’ve been waiting so long for this. Little cock tease.”

I panicked. I had to get him to stop. “I called Bryan,” I choked out. Kayla stopped and regarded me for a moment. I’d never seen her so cold and uncaring. She looked at me as if I were a stranger...no, worse than that. As if she knew exactly who I was but couldn’t care less what happened to me.

“I figured,” she said cocking her head to the side. “Actually, I was counting on it. He’ll be so distracted by the scene up there, he won’t even think about looking for you until it’s too late.” She reached out and brushed a strand of hair from my eyes. I tried to wrench my head free from her touch, but Rick only closed his arm tighter until I saw stars. “Predictable.”

The shed was so narrow and messy, she had to push past us to get to the door. Rick shoved me to the back where Kayla had just been laying and jabbed a finger in my chest. “Don’t you think about doing anything. I’ll fuck you awake or knocked out, makes no difference to me. I’d prefer awake so I can watch your face as I tear you open.” Keeping a hand on my shoulder to feel my movements, he turned back to Kayla.

“Sin, you’re keeping watch, right?”

She gave him a brief nod, patting the rifle she’d slung over her shoulder. She looked past him to me and smirked. “Don’t worry. If
The Blizzard
shows up, I’m ready for him.”

Rick seemed satisfied by that. He turned back, the look on his face chilling me to the bone. He looked me up and down with a cannibalistic hunger. Gripping the zipper of my jacket, he tore it open, his broad hand immediately going to my breast with a groan. “Where’d you get the gun, anyway?” he asked, his voice thick with lust.

I stood rooted to the spot, immobile, my neck still throbbing from his grip. There was nothing I could do, nowhere to go, two people between me and freedom. That disassociated feeling washed over me, prickling my skin and making my teeth tingle. I closed my eyes and tried to will myself to wake up. This had to be a bad dream.
Wake up!

Kayla laughed. “That’s the best part. This is the same gun he used to break Noah’s face, remember? Not only will he come unarmed, but when the police find everything, they’ll have no choice but to pin it on that redneck store owner. Fake-ass suicide, pretty blonde girl all cut up in the tub, and then Liz...”

Rick stepped closer and yanked the shoulders of my jacket down with a violent tug. I yelped in surprise but kept my eyes clamped shut.
This can’t be happening.
His cold fingers slipped under my sweater and thin cotton shirt, sending a feverish shiver throughout my body. His breath was hot against my neck, the stubble of his beard scratching my cheek. I wanted to scream, to push him away, to do something, but I stood frozen.

“They’ll think the local psycho finally snapped, an act of vengeance against the people who came in and ruined his precious town,” Kayla continued. She leaned against the door frame and snickered. “It won’t even take much detective work to find little droplets of Stella’s blood in his apartment. And, get this! I even stole one of his disgusting flannel shirts and left it somewhere up there. Not the most elegant plan, but I don’t expect these yokels will be able to look past the obvious. And if they do, we’ll be long gone.”

Rick grunted in frustration, the tight sweater not giving him the sort of access he wanted. “Off,” he said pulling at the hem roughly.

“No,” I quietly protested, my eyes still shut. He put his palm on my forehead and shoved me backwards, knocking me against the wall. I slumped against it, dizzy and nauseated from the blow. Before I had a chance to recover, he grabbed me by the collar and pulled me upright.