Cope felt dizzy. He bent over to put his head between his knees. He took a deep breath, but didn’t feel any better. Cope knew he wouldn’t feel better again until Jude was home safe. A few seconds later, Ronan helped him back to the SUV. They sat silently waiting for the patrol units Cisco promised. Cope was about to thank Ronan for his help, when he spied the detective swiping a hand over his right cheek.
Christ, if Ronan was crying this must really be serious. Cope reached out to his spirit guides, begging them to do all they could to find Jude. It was all Cope had left to do.
Jude obviously hadn’t come home because he couldn’t. That thought gave Cope a brief pause. “I thought Jude was staying out of the house because he was still upset over our fight. Who would do this, Ronan? Why Jude?”
“I don’t know,” Ronan said, his voice full of resolve. “I promise you we’re going to find out.”
Cope knew Ronan would do everything in his power to keep that promise. He just hoped that when the dust settled, Jude was back in his arms.
10
Jude
Jude had eaten his meager meal slowly, not knowing when, orif, the next one would come. He’d taken only a few sips of water, wanting to conserve it for later. If he were home, Cope would have made him two sandwiches, given him a whole bag of chips, a couple of carrot sticks, because, hello, you need a vegetable, and maybe an apple or one of those single serving fruit cups he and the kids loved, with unlimited bottles of water or cans of ginger ale. Dinner would have been followed up later by snacks in front of the television, popcorn or corn chips, maybe even his famous nachos if Cope was in the mood for something spicy.
But, Cope wasn’t here and this cage wasnothinglike home. Not knowing what time it was and with no view to the outside world, Jude assumed it was around seven, maybe eight in the evening. The predicted snowstorm would be underway already and the kids would have been fresh out of their baths, ready for story time. Jude knew after they finished reading, Wolfie would shut off his light and open the curtains, so he could watch the snow fall.
Jude had never been a big fan of the snow. He only saw it as a pain in the ass, making the roads and his front steps slippery, slowing down traffic and later forcing him to remove it. It wasn’t until Wolf came along that he learned to appreciate and even love the fluffy white stuff.
The first time Wolf was old enough to enjoy the snow, he and Cope had bundled their son up in his snowsuit and boots. They brought him out onto the deck and he had stared up at the sky with a look of absolute wonder on his face. Wolf kept his face turned up for so long, that flakes of snow had begun to accumulate on his reddening cheeks. Jude remembered kneeling next to him and doing the same thing. Wolf laughed when the snow tickled him. Jude and Cope had laughed along with him. Cope shot videos that day of them together. Would they be all Wolf had to remember Jude by?
Jude wasn’t going to let that happen. He would do whatever he could to get out of this situation. He took a deep breath and reached out to Yelling Crow, his Navajo ancestor. They usually checked in with each other once a month or so, usually when Jude needed help or advice. There was never a set of circumstances where Jude needed Crow more than this one. “Bertha, if you can hear me, please send Crow. I need help. I need my family. Please,pleasehelp me.”
Jude felt his left shoulder warm and didn’t know if it was actually Bertha setting her hand on him or if it was a trick of his imagination. The spotlight that had been angled at his face when he’d woken up in the cage lit that same shoulder, so it was possible he was feeling a bit of warmth from the light. Jude chose to believe it was Bertha, which meant he wasn’t here alone.
What Jude needed to do in the meantime was to assess his situation. He’d been abducted by person or persons unknown. He didn’t know why or what the kidnapper wanted from him. He was stuck in a cage that was padlocked.
Moving closer to the bars, Jude reached out for the lock. He yanked it a few times, but the hook didn’t budge. The only option left to him was to attempt to break or pick the lock. Without his knife or the lock pick tools in the Thunderbird’s glove box, there weren’t a lot of escape options open to him.
However, picking the lock wouldn’t do him any good if the bolt was thrown on the outer door. What Jude needed was a plan. One of his greatest strengths was his uncanny ability to piss people off. Others, Cope included, thought this was a weakness, but Jude disagreed. He planned to use this particular strength to use to his advantage the next time the kidnapper came into the room. There was no doubt his abductor would be back to taunt him. Jude needed to return the favor in a way that would make the kidnapper angry enough to forget to bolt the outer door when he left. All Jude would need to do was find a way to pick the lock. The kidnapper might have taken Jude’s knife, but they’d left him with a tool that was equally valuable, the handle of the bucket.
The handle was made of metal, shaped into an arch, which had an L-shaped bend at both ends, that locked into the plastic bucket. He knew he couldn’t use the thick metal to pick the lock, but he might be able to use it as a lever to snap the hasp.
Just as Jude was about to put his plan into motion, he was hit with a wave of pure exhaustion. In fact, if he’d been standing, Jude had a feeling he would have ended up on the floor. It had been a long two days between the policeman’s ball, fighting with Cope and being kidnapped. Jude should have been bone weary,but until this point, his anxiety and burgeoning panic had kept him awake and alert. He had a very bad feeling that his sandwich had been drugged. The bag of chips had been sealed and the water bottle was unopened, the only thing left to tamper with was the PB&J.
Jude could barely keep his eyes open. He’d hoped to spend the night working on his escape plan, but at the moment, he was unwillingly slipping off to sleep. His thoughts turned to Cope and the kids. This would be the second night in a row Jude hadn’t been home to tuck his babies in. The second night he’d spend away from his husband. Did the kids miss him? Did Cope?
He loved Cope with his entire heart and soul, something he never imagined would happen to him. When they’d started dating, Jude had been content to keep things casual between them. Cope had readily agreed, but there was something about Cope Jude couldn’t walk away from. His world was darker when they were apart. He actually missed Cope and would make up excuses to text him or make plans for them to see each other. He had never chased a man before. Hot guys always chased Jude.
One night, after they’d been dating for a few weeks, Cope had come down with an awful cold. He’d called Jude to cancel their date for the evening. Jude’s usualmodis operandiwould have been to go out and find someone else to fuck, but he didn’t want to do that. Instead, he’d gone out to a local drugstore and got Cope everything he’d need, medicine, tissues, cough drops and his favorite sweet and sour wonton soup from Jade Dragon. Cope had been surprised to find Jude on his doorstep. Later that night, after the soup was gone and Cope had fallen asleep, Jude had sat watching him. He felt physical pain every time Cope coughed or moaned in his sleep. He’d realized very quicklythat Cope wasn’t some random hookup. He wasn’t a friend with benefits. Cope was the love of his life.
That realization had been incredible, surprising, and scary as fuck. The only thing scarier than loving Cope, was losing him. As he drifted off to sleep, Jude hoped his fear wouldn’t become a reality.
11
Cope
After Jude’s car had been found, Ronan and Fitz brought Cope back home to pack some bags. They’d decided Lizbet and Wolf would spend the night with Tennyson, just in case. Cope didn’t want to think too hard about possible “just in case” scenarios. He was scared enough without his imagination adding to his terror.
The house felt cold and empty without Jude and the kids. Cope had been home alone before and usually relished time to himself without the kids to interrupt him or Jude kissing the back of his neck. Being in the house alone now, with Jude only God knew where, he felt like he was living in some kind of strangesuspended animation. Like one of those dreams where the faster you run, the further away your destination gets.
The kids sleeping bags were still set out in front of the television. Cope could see Lizbet’s favorite unicorn stuffy lying in a tangle with her blanket. He bent down to retrieve both items. His daughter would need them when it was time to go to bed. Walking into the kitchen, Cope saw the remains of breakfast. Used pans sat unwashed in the sink. Jude’s half eaten plate sat at his spot at the table with the now congealed maple syrup gluing his fork and knife together.
If Cope were just an observer, it would look like the family who lived in this house had popped out to run an errand. Maybe they’d gone on a trip to the grocery store or to spend the afternoon at grandma’s house. There was nothing blatant or obvious that shouted this was a family in turmoil, but that’s exactly what Cope was facing.
Climbing the stairs, Cope quickly packed an overnight back for each of the kids and one for himself. He stayed the longest in his and Jude’s bedroom. The bed was still unmade with all the covers pulled over to Cope’s side. Jude’s dirty underwear lay on the bathroom floor along with the jeans and tee he’d worn before they’d gotten dressed for the policeman’s ball.
If Cope had a nickel for every time over the last seven years he’d told Jude to put his dirty clothes in the hamper, he’d be the richest man in the world. Ordinarily, Cope would be annoyed or even angry at Jude’s sloppy behavior, but today, seeing Jude’s discarded clothes made him smile. He’d never complain again if Jude could just come back to him safe and sound. Grabbing his husband’s tee, Cope stuck it in his bag and headed out the door.
