Dangerous Secrets (14 page)

Izzy opened her eyes and bit back a groan. She tried to move, then realized her hands were tied behind her back. Her head throbbed and her movements seemed muted as she shifted on the floor.

Rolling onto her back, she tried to take in her surroundings. It looked like she was in…a child’s playroom? What the hell? The walls were bright pink. Some sort of monstrous Barbie castle sat in the corner. She tried to move again and saw that she was splayed on a Dora the Explorer rug. From where she lay, she could only see one door. Which meant there was only one way out of here.
Wherever here was.
“Damn it,” she muttered.

“Hello? Is someone there?” a female voice whispered.

Izzy’s head whipped around. She ignored the pain fracturing through her skull. A couple feet behind her a petite woman was blindfolded and tied to a chair. “I’m here. Where are we?” she whispered back.

“I don’t know, but he’ll be back soon.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know who he is, but he said you were going to watch me die,” she whispered again, her voice cracking.

Izzy’s throat seized up as the woman’s words sank in. Shapes and shadows swam in front of her but she forced herself into action. She’d been kidnapped before but she wasn’t a kid anymore and she wasn’t helpless this time. “Hold on.” With effort, she fought through the cobwebs in her brain and struggled to get up on her knees. Izzy half crawled, half scooted toward the girl, careful to keep her movements as silent as possible. Luckily she was on carpet. If the girl was right and someone was coming back, they needed to get free. Her ears were still ringing a little, but at least her equilibrium wasn’t too screwed up.

When she was right next to the girl she leaned close to her ear. “I’m going to pull off your blindfold with my teeth. Don’t freak out.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“Can you lean forward a little?” She was too weak to get on her feet just yet.

“I’ll try.” Despite having her hands fastened behind the chair, the girl did as Izzy asked.

Using her teeth, she tugged at the blindfold. When it fell around the girl’s neck, Izzy jerked back in surprise. It was the girl she’d helped the other night. “Andrea?”

Andrea’s eyes lit up in recognition. “Where are we?”

Izzy shook her head. “I don’t know, but we’re getting the hell out of here.”

“These ties are impossible to break. I’ve tried.” A few tears slipped down the girl’s face.

Izzy shifted so she could look behind her. Andrea’s wrists were bloody and raw. She bit her lip. The only way they had a fighting chance was if their hands were free. She tried pulling the restraints herself and grazed something in her back pocket.

The guy had taken her apron with her cell and keys, but he hadn’t gotten to her lighter. “I have an idea, but it’s going to hurt.”

Eyes wide, the girl nodded. “Okay.”

She dug into her back pocket and freed her lighter. Next she wiggled and shifted so that her restrained hands were in front of her. She was flexible, but if it wasn’t for the fact that her arms and legs were so long, she wasn’t sure if she could have maneuvered that way. When Andrea saw the lighter, her jaw clenched, but she nodded in understanding.

“Don’t make a sound,” Izzy whispered.

Izzy moved behind her and started to burn through the plastic flex cuffs. The damn things were nearly an inch thick. Andrea started to whimper so she stopped. The girl’s head whipped around. Tears streamed down her face, but her words were clear. “Don’t stop. Whatever he’s going to do to us is worse than this.”

Izzy nodded and flicked the flame back on. The rancid smell of the burning plastic smelled almost like an electrical fire. She prayed he wouldn’t smell it before they were free. After a few seconds it snapped open.

When Andrea’s hands were free, she gave her the lighter. With bleeding, burned wrists and hands, the other girl fumbled with it until she managed to hold it steady under Izzy’s hands.

Burning, searing pain ripped through her as the plastic melted onto her wrists. The cuffs were tight, giving very little wiggle room. The agony was so acute, it was as if her hands were actually on fire. She bit her lip hard. The acrid taste of blood filled her mouth, but somehow she restrained from crying out. Andrea was right. No matter how much it hurt, anything he planned to do would be a hundred times worse.

After what felt like an eternity, but was probably only twenty seconds, her hands snapped free. She batted away the involuntary tears running down her face. “He’s going to smell this soon.”

Andrea looked down. “What about my feet? We don’t have time.”

“Hold on.” Without waiting for a response, Izzy grabbed the chair and maneuvered it so Andrea was lying on her back. Thankfully the girl didn’t weigh much.

He’d tied each leg to a chair leg, but without the floor as a barrier, she could slip out of it. “You’ll still have the flex cuffs attached to your ankles so make sure you don’t get caught on anything,” Izzy whispered.

Andrea nodded and stood on shaky legs. By her bruised face, Andrea had already endured some abuse. Her top was also ripped open, but Izzy wasn’t going to ask any questions. They could worry about that later.

“Look for anything we can use as a weapon,” she said.

They both started to look around the room when the sound of the handle rattling stopped them both in their tracks. Too late.

They didn’t have time to make a decision. Izzy grabbed the chair and rushed toward the entrance. If they could take him off guard, even for a split second, they might have a chance. If not, and he had a gun, they were as good as dead. Or worse.

The door opened and raw adrenaline surged through her. She tapped into something animalistic. With strength she didn’t know she had, she heaved the wooden chair above her head and slammed it into the man. His eyes widened as the chair connected with his upper body.

The man fell back onto the tiled floor of what looked like a kitchen. They were in a house! Which meant they could escape.

The man lay groaning on the floor so she picked up the broken chair and slammed it down on him again.

“Come on!” she screamed at Andrea.

Andrea was right behind her, breathing hard and limping. “We need to call the police.”

“No time. Come on.” Looking for a phone when they could be running wasn’t an option. She didn’t know where they were and she had no clue how long it would take the police to trace a call anyway.

They needed to get away from this guy. And fast. The kitchen was attached to a wide open living room. Floor length blinds were pulled shut so she ripped them open to reveal a sliding glass door.

She quickly unlocked it and they both raced outside. The sound of waves and a salty wind embraced them immediately.

“We’re by the beach?” Andrea said, incredulously.

About twenty yards and they’d be right on the beach. Izzy looked to the left and right. There weren’t any visible houses.

“You bitches!” Slurred shouts from inside spurred them both into action.

Without knowing where they were headed, Izzy grabbed Andrea’s arm. “Can you run?”

The girl nodded so she tugged on her hand. “Stay close.”

They darted across the patio and onto the grass. Heading to the beach would make them open targets and it was damn near impossible to run on sand. She hurried toward the side of the house. It had to lead to a street. And a street would lead to cars and people.

Those were her only thoughts. Escape and survive. Andrea was limping, but she kept up. “Do you know where we are?” Izzy asked as they raced toward the end of the long driveway.

“I think we’re on LeHigh Road.”

“Where’s that?”

“It leads back to town and it’s the only way in and out of here. It’s a small peninsula. There’s a house about every mile, but no guarantee anyone will be home.” Andrea panted and clutched her side as they reached the road.

“Which way?” Izzy asked.

Andrea pointed to the right.

Izzy stared down the dark road. “If we just run down the road, we’ll be sitting ducks.”

Andrea nodded and they both glanced behind them. “So what do we do? He’s going to come after us.”

There were signs for pending construction, but instead of homes, woods were parallel to the street they now stood on. “We’ll have to use the trees as cover.” Izzy looked down at Andrea’s bare feet. “Can you make it?”

“Hell yeah,” she grunted.

They darted across the street and into the cluster of trees. Izzy wasn’t familiar with the area, but if they used the trees as protection, they just might survive.

Adam pulled out his cell phone and dialed Detective Dennis. He answered immediately.

“Is that you behind me?” the detective asked.

“Yeah. How far away are we?”

“Less than sixty seconds. Watch my lights. I’m not pulling into the driveway. We’re going to park about thirty yards away, then sweep the house. You were in the Marines, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.”

Half a minute later, the detective slowed down and turned off his lights so Adam did the same. They parked on the side of the road on a patch of grass and got out of their vehicles almost simultaneously. From where they were, he had a partial view of the house through overgrown hedges. Other than that, scattered palm trees and scarce foliage sat between them and the beach.

Not good for trying to stay invisible. At least the sun was down. If the guy was looking out for them, the darkness was the only thing that might help them.

Using hand signals, Jack motioned for him to follow. They crouched and headed toward the hedges. Once they were on the edge of the property, Jack handed him a Glock. “Be careful with it,” he whispered.

Adam slid the action back, chambering a round. Jack nodded his approval, then motioned that he would be sweeping around the front of the house and Adam was to take the back.

Using the hedges as cover, Adam raced along the edge until he came to a small opening. Squeezing through, he hid in the bushes until he’d visually scouted the area. When he was sure he was alone, he made a quick dash for the side of the house.

Gun in hand, he hugged the wall until he came to the edge of the house. After a quick glance around the backyard, he crept around the corner until he reached the patio.

Lights were on downstairs and the sliding glass door was open. Long blinds fluttered in the wind, but it was the only sound coming from inside. Blood rushed in his ears. Were they too late?

He shoved the thought away and inched along the wall until he was at the door. After a silent prayer, he swiveled and entered a living room. Empty.

It connected to a kitchen where remnants of a broken chair were scattered across the tile. Careful not to disturb anything, he maneuvered around the furniture in the living room and stepped over the pieces in the kitchen before pushing the half-open door completely open.

He’d expected a garage, but it looked like a game room for kids. A lamp with a pink shade gave off an eerie glow, casting shadows around the room. He was about to leave when he spied something on the floor. Keeping his gun in a protective stance, he grabbed what looked like two sets of burned up flex cuffs.

Hope immediately coursed through him. Maybe Izzy had escaped. He didn’t understand why there were two sets though.

A shuffling sound behind him caused him to turn. Jack stood in the entrance. “The rest of the house is clean. Someone’s been here, but it’s empty now.”

Adam handed him what he’d found. “I think she escaped.”

“Hot damn,” Jack muttered under his breath as he pulled out his radio. “I’m calling to check on the backup.”

“I’m going after her. If she escaped, I’m guessing she ran for the woods, not the beach,” Adam said.

He started for the door, but Jack stopped him. “Wait a second, cowboy. I’m going to drive back down half a mile and enter the woods from there. You’ve got about fifteen minutes until my guys arrive. I’ll tell them you’re out there, but it’s dark so be careful not to get your ass shot.”

Adam nodded and raced out the back door with Jack right behind him. There was no way in hell he could completely predict what she’d do, but Izzy was a smart woman so he had to take a chance she’d headed for the woods.

Branches and leaves slapped Izzy and Andrea in the face and legs the deeper they raced into the woods. Her pants were ripped, but Izzy was thankful they were taking the brunt of the abuse. After five minutes of straight running, Izzy slowed and held up a finger to her mouth and pointed to a large oak tree.

The half moon and stars were their only source of light now. Creepy shadows illuminated all around them. Andrea winced as they leaned against the tree.

“How are your feet?” Izzy whispered.

The girl shook her head and wiped away stray tears. Empathy filled Izzy for the other girl. She bent down and quickly untied her shoes. “You’re a lot shorter than me, but I think my shoes might fit.”

Andrea didn’t even argue. She rubbed the soles of her feet before slipping on both tennis shoes. “Do you hear anything?”

Izzy shook her head and glanced around. It was impossible to tell where they were headed. Unless they had more light, they might as well be going in circles. “Do you think we should keep running or walk?”

Andrea bit her lip. “He might be tracking us by now. Maybe walking?”

Izzy agreed. “Okay. Take one of these.” She bent down and picked up two fairly solid sticks. If he came at them, there was no way she was letting him take them back. She’d rather die immediately than be subjected to a slow, torturous death.

Just as they started to emerge from their resting spot, rustling sounded. They both glanced at each other and froze. Andrea’s eyes widened, so Izzy held a finger to her lips and pointed down. They both squatted low. Izzy knew they’d probably left a trail wider than the Mississippi River behind them.

With the wind and various woodsy sounds it was hard to figure out where the noise was coming from. A loud grunt sounded, then a crash, then a shout. Like maybe someone fell. Izzy held her breath.
Maybe it was the police.

“Stupid bitches!”