had me hauled off the property, and we’re on the way to the station. Trey wasn’t there, though. They’ve stashed him somewhere, Fredrick. They want him to have time to contemplate things.”
“Well, shit. Okay. They weren’t gone long enough to take him far, so I’ll shift my search to see if I can figure out where they’ve been all day.”
“Okay, you do that, and let Ryan and Rand know where I am. One lives on each side of me, and it’s getting late enough hopefully one of them is home. If not, call the office and tell Judy to patch you through to Ryan, that you have a message for him from me.”
“You sound awfully calm about this,” Fredrick said.
I let out a resigned sigh. “Nothing I can do about it. My focus is just on finding Trey. I’m pissed because they took him somewhere, but I’m not panicking, because if I can’t find him, more than likely, the stalker can’t either.”
Chapter 31
Trey
By the time my parents and Reverend Adams left, I was exhausted. I’d imagined a lot of reactions from my parents, but I can honestly say kidnapping wasn’t anywhere on my list. And okay, maybe kidnapping was a bit dramatic, but it wasn’t like I wanted to be in a cabin on the river in the middle of nowhere. I wanted to be home with Roman. Roman, who was probably worried sick. I needed to get a hold of him somehow and let him know I was okay.
I glanced out the window at the river, checking to see if there was a boat anywhere in sight, but no such luck. I didn’t have a car, I didn’t have any money, I didn’t have my phone, and they had left Gavin, the newest guy on the security team, to stay with me. You know, the term kidnapping was feeling less and less dramatic by the moment.
This river house was older, so I wondered if there was a landline. I could call Roman to come and get me. Except I didn’t know his number, and that was a lesson learned right there. Don’t depend on your phone to know important numbers—memorize them. I did know Becca’s, though, and she could get a message to him for me. I hoped she would anyway. If there was no landline, maybe I could talk Gavin into letting me call.
I felt better since I had a plan of some sort. I left the room and went in search of a phone. I didn’t find one in the living room or the hallway, but there was one hanging on the wall in the kitchen. I kept one eye out for Gavin and lifted the receiver to my ear. Bingo! I had a dial tone. I didn’t want Gavin walking in on my call, so I needed a plan. I hung the phone back up and went in search of my guard. I didn’t know him at all, but he seemed nice enough. He was also new enough that he would probably be eager to prove himself to my father, so I couldn’t chance him knowing I’d called for help.
I found him sitting outside on the porch, watching the area like he was worried someone was going to jump out of the trees and rush the house. At least he was taking keeping me safe seriously.
“Gavin,” I said, opening the door. He turned his head to look at me. He smiled at me, so I figured he wasn’t too upset about being stuck out here in nowhere land. Honestly, I was betting he had no idea what was even going on. There was no telling what my parents had told him.
“Hey, Malcolm, did you need anything?”
“No, I’m going to fix something to eat. I’m not sure what because I don’t know what’s in here, but I thought I would see if you wanted something.”
“I can come fix it if you want,” he said hesitantly. I figured this was probably his first kidnapping, and he wasn’t sure what his role was. Poor Gavin.
“No, you keep watch out here, and I’ll do it. They did tell you about my stalker, didn’t they?”
“They said someone was harassing you, and that I should keep an eye out.”
“The guy wants to burn me alive because I’m gay, Gavin. I think that is a bit more than harassing me.”
“I’d say so,” he said. He reflexively checked his holster for his gun. I’d seen Roman do that a hundred times over the time