Deeper than the Night - By Amanda Ashley Page 0,99

she couldn't commit murder. And it was murder. No matter what the pro-choice people said to the contrary, once conceived, the fetus was a human being with a God-given right to life. She believed, with all her heart, that if it was wrong to kill a child once it was born, it was also wrong to kill it in the womb. She had seen pictures of babies who had been aborted tiny human beings who had been vacuumed out of their mother's wombs, arms and legs torn off. Who knew what horrible pains those unborn children had suffered? How could anyone ever say such a thing was right?

"Gail, I have to find Alex." Just saying his name gave her strength.

"But how? Where will we look?"

"We'll start in Moulton Bay."

An hour later, Gail had a bag packed and they were ready to go. Kara and Gail thanked Nancy and her husband for their hospitality, then bid Nana a tearful good-bye.

"You'll be careful?" Lena said. "Promise me you'll be careful."

"I will," Kara said. She hugged her grandmother close, relieved that she seemed fully recovered from her earlier illness. "Try not to worry, Nana. I'll call as soon as I can."

Lena Crawford nodded. She hugged Kara once more, kissed Gail on the cheek, then stood in the driveway, blinking back her tears, while Kara drove down the street.

Gail glanced out the back window and waved. "She'll be okay, won't she?"

Kara nodded. "Of course. Nancy will take good care of her."

"Where are we going to go first?"

"Alex's house."

"You think he's there?"

"No, but I've got to look. If he hasn't been there,

I'llknow. And if he has been, well, I'll know that, too."

Gail frowned. "How will you know?"

"I just will."

"If you say so." Gail turned on the radio. Locating KROQ, she sat back, her foot tapping in time to Meat Loaf's latest hit.

They spent the night in a motel. In the morning, they drove to a small restaurant for breakfast. Gail ordered pancakes, Kara settled for dry toast and coffee. After breakfast, they stopped at one of the mall shops so Kara could buy a change of clothes, underwear, and a nightgown. From there they went into a drug store where she bought a comb, a hairbrush, a toothbrush, and a lipstick, and a small overnight bag to carry everything in. As she paid the bill, it occurred to her that she'd been doing a lot of buying on the run since she met Alexander Claybourne.

They were on the road again by eleven-thirty.

"Where will we look if Alex isn't home?" Gail asked.

"In Silverdale."

"Silverdale? Why? What's there?"

"Barrett has a lab there."

"I never even heard of Silverdale. Do you know how to get there?"

"No, but I'll find it if I have to."

It was almost three o'clock when they reached Moulton Bay. Kara's heart was pounding as she drove down the street to Alexander's house and pulled into the driveway.

Kara's steps were slow as she walked around the back of the house and opened the back door. She knew immediately that Alex hadn't been there recently. The house was dark and cold, empty of all trace of life.

Her footsteps echoed off the walls as she walked down the hallway toward the den. She was hardly aware of Gail behind her as she stood in the doorway, her gaze drawn toward the painting over the fireplace. She stared at the man in the picture, at the long black hair ruffled by the wind, at the broad shoulders that seemed slightly bent, as if he carried the weight of the world on his back. She knew it wasn't Alex, knew she was being fanciful to even think so, and yet it could have been Alex.

"He's not here," Gail said. She pointed at the painting. "Kind of looks like Alex, doesn't it?"

Kara nodded, wondering if she'd ever see Alex again.

"This place gives me the creeps," Gail remarked. "Are you sure he isn't a vampire?"

"Quite sure. Stay here. Ill be right back."

"Where are you going?"

"Upstairs for a minute."

"I don't want to stay down here alone."

"I'll just be a minute."

Gail looked at her sister oddly, but didn't argue further.

Drawn by a power she couldn't explain, Kara climbed the steps to Alex's bedroom. She stood inside the door for a moment, her eyes closed. Was it her imagination, or could she feel his essence lingering in the room?

She opened the closet door and ran her hand over his clothing. Pressing her face against one of his coats, she took a deep breath, filling her nostrils