Sarah’s phone buzzed and she glanced at the screen. “Gavin.”
“What?” Asher looked up.
She ignored him and read silently.
Hey, I’m following up on a lead at 11 Harrison Street. I’m almost finished. You want to meet me here and we’ll go grab something to eat?
Meet him there? Really? She almost typed yes, but then shook her head. He wouldn’t ask her to do that. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. Then she typed,
Who is this?
Um . . . Gavin? You forget me already?
You’re not Gavin.
A pause. Three little dots to indicate someone typing a response. The dots disappeared. Then reappeared.
All right, then come alone to that address or the general and Gavin both die. How’s that?
A picture popped up and she gasped.
Gavin lay on the floor, tied up like a Thanksgiving turkey. Her father was still bound to the chair. They both looked unconscious.
What do you want?
“You, Sarah. It’s always been you. Be here within fifteen minutes or one of them dies. If I see a cop, they both die. And don’t be stupid and leave your phone behind. You’d better have it on you when you get here.”
Who are you?
A stupid text, but she had to try.
No answer.
Of course not.
In all caps, she typed,
I DON’T HAVE A CAR!
There’s one waiting for you in the handicapped spot just outside the emergency room. A black sedan. Keys are in it. I’m going to call and you keep your phone on so I can listen. Answer on the first ring or they die.
“Everything okay?” Asher asked.
She glanced up. “Yes.” She started to say something, then glanced at the camera on the wall. Could she chance warning Asher with a visual cue somehow?
Her brain clicked. She had to think through the fear that wanted to consume her. Not so much for herself, but for Gavin. And, if she was honest, her father. Maybe she didn’t hate him as much as she said she did. Or as much as she wanted to. Her phone buzzed. She stood. Asher did too.
“I’m going to the restroom,” she said and tapped the screen before it could ring again.
“I’ll check it out for you.”
Exactly what she thought he’d say. “Fine. I’ll just take this call while you do that.” She lifted the device to her ear. “Hold on one second.”
“I’m waiting.”
“I know.”
In the hallway, he followed her to the women’s restroom and knocked on the door. “Anyone in here?” No answer. He pulled the door open, then looked back at her. “Step just inside and keep your back to the wall while I take a look.”
With a glance at her watch, Sarah slipped inside the restroom. Asher started at the end and pushed open the first stall. Then the second. When he reached the fifth one, Sarah backed through the door and out into the hallway. With a grimace of regret, she turned and raced for the stairwell.
Just as she pushed the exit door open, she heard Asher’s frantic shout. Gritting her teeth, she refused to turn back. Maybe she was being incredibly stupid, but the one thing that kept her going was the fact that they were tracking Gavin’s truck. Whoever had taken him had taken his truck. But the person on the other end of the line didn’t know about the tracker. At the bottom of the stairs, she ran for the emergency department, dodging patients and other hospital staff while ignoring the dirty looks and yells to slow down.
She hit the door and pushed out onto the sidewalk. To the left were three cars in handicapped spaces. To the right were four. But only one black sedan. She raced to it and threw herself into the driver’s seat.
Sure enough, the keys were in the ignition, the engine running. She glanced at the dash clock. Time was ticking too fast. She took a fraction of a moment to jab the speakerphone button, then set the device in the cup holder. She put the car in reverse, backed out, and sped for the parking lot exit. “I’m on the way,” she said.
“Good. We’re waiting for you.”
“Can I hang up now?”
A laugh. “No.”
“Are they all right?”
“They’re still breathing, if that’s what you mean by all right.”
“You’re the man from the hospital. I recognize your voice.”
A pause.
“Kilgore’s an idiot,” the voice said. “He said you were too drugged up to remember anything.”
“Like you said, he’s an idiot. But that didn’t stop you from trying to kill me.”