He will follow me, but how far ahead am I?
I follow the GPS and pull off the highway. My drive through town makes my heart race. I’m in a flashy, expensive car. No one in this town owns anything like this. It will raise eyebrows, but hopefully, it won’t hinder me.
People stop and look, but I keep driving. They’ll think I’m just passing through town. They’ll never know I turned off this main road. Two more miles and I will arrive at the house I lived in for three years with a man who’s holding someone hostage.
When I reach the street and turn in, I make the decision to pull over and leave the car. I don’t want to park in front of the house, announcing myself so easily. I’d rather cut through on foot and approach the house from behind. If Pete’s watching out the front window, he won’t see me. I want to assess the situation before I go in.
My hands are shaking badly as I pull the strap of my purse over my head so it will hang by my right side. I don’t have any other way to carry the knife. As it is, the blade will probably cut a hole in my purse. Who cares? That’s the least of my concerns.
I realize I’m still crying. My nose is running, and my face is streaked with tears. I look in the rearview mirror and gasp. I’d prefer to arrive looking brave. Pete will have a field day with my sniffling and puffy eyes. He’ll laugh at me. The thought makes me shudder.
Fuck him.
Fuck him to hell.
I get out of the car and shut it, leaving the keys in the ignition. When Blade arrives, he’ll be able to retrieve his car easily. At least I didn’t wreck it.
I take a deep breath and look around. No one is outside. Most of the people on this street are probably at work. It’s the middle of a workday.
Luckily I’m wearing jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. I was dressed to meet with my students this afternoon. I could have been wearing a short baby-doll dress and nothing else. I’m not sure I would have had the good sense to change.
I wince at the thought of my students whose teacher will not show up today. It’s not like me to simply ghost them with no warning. I wonder how they will find out what happened to me? Will Daddy go into my email and tell them? If I die today, informing my students will be the last thing on his mind.
I hurry down the street until deciding to go between two properties to get behind the yards. Most of these homes are on pretty good-sized pieces of land, but the land behind them is full of trees, not owned by any of them. There aren’t many fences. I don’t think anyone is home. I don’t see signs of life from any of the cabins or mobile homes.
Is this how Blade and his team feel when they stake out a house? Hunched down, sneaking as quietly as possible?
My heart races as I reach the back of Pete’s property. I stay out of sight, but I can’t see anything from here. I’m not in a good location to see in any of the windows. It’s quiet, but what did I expect? A woman with duct tape over her mouth certainly wouldn’t be audibly screaming.
Hunching down farther, I slowly move toward the side of the house.
Suddenly, I’m grabbed from behind. A hand covers my mouth as I’m lifted off the ground.
I panic, thinking Pete somehow saw me and snuck up on me.
A second later, lips are on my ear. “June, it’s me.”
I twist my head to see that the man holding me is Blade. Daddy. How the hell is he here already? My panic grows. He’s ruining everything. That poor girl will die without me there to make the trade for her life.
Still holding me in the air, he backs up slowly until we’re in the tree line where no one can see us. It’s not until we’re a distance away that he removes his hand from my mouth and turns me in his arms.
He hugs me so tightly, he knocks the breath out of me, his hands running up and down my body as if I might already be injured. “Fuck, Little one, you scared me to death.”
I’m crying again, harder now.
Daddy covers my mouth gently. “Shhh. I don’t want anyone to hear you. Take a breath.”
I try, but all I manage to do is hyperventilate. Finally, my brain kicks in and I shove at him, squirming in his embrace as if there’s a snowball’s chance in hell I could get out of his grip. “You have to let me go. He’s going to kill her.”
Daddy cups the back of my head. “Look at me, honey,” he demands.
I refuse, shaking my head and staring downward. Apparently, I’m capable of being defiant when it’s called for.
“June…” He sighs when I continue to struggle. “He’s not going to kill her, Little one. I promise. We’re watching him. We have been watching him the entire time. Granted, you made us have to drive very fucking fast to catch up to you, but thank fuck I got here before you managed to foolishly get yourself killed.”
I can’t hold back the tears. I’m gasping for breath with every word. “He…said… Daddy, he said he would…kill her. Time is running out. Let me go. Let me trade myself for her.”
He pulls me tighter against him and kisses my temple. “My brave girl. Do you have any idea how much I love you?”
