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Sometime later, the sound of a voice murmured in her ear as if it was far far away. “Hang in there, honey. We’re on the way to the hospital.”
She tried to open her eyes to find her little girl, but her eyes felt frozen shut, her body was shaking uncontrollably and she felt numb all over. The sound of sirens wailed and bright lights spun into the blinding darkness… “Piper…”
“I’ve got her,” Silas said, although his voice sounded like gravel.
Knowing he was taking care of Piper, she let herself fall back into the abyss. She was going to die, she knew it.
But she didn’t care. As long as she’d saved Piper.
One Hundred Thirty-Seven
Cord called Lola as he raced toward the address Ellie had sent, hoping she found the little girls safe and alive.
“Sorry I have to cancel tonight,” he told her. “Ellie has a lead on the missing child. Benji and I are meeting her to search the property.”
Lola released a long-winded sigh. “All right. I understand you can’t say no to Ellie.”
“Not when a child’s life is in danger,” Cord said, struggling to control his irritation. He felt like he was riding a slippery slope with Lola. He cared about her and they’d grown close, but when Ellie needed him, he would be there for her.
“I’m on the task force Agent Fox is spearheading, Lola. And you want that little girl found, don’t you?”
“Of course I do,” Lola said. “You know I dropped food at the Truman’s earlier.”
“That was really caring of you, Lola,” he said and meant it. Thankfully, she was finally starting to heal from her ordeal with that damn sick serial killer.
“I just want us to spend Christmas together. But you’re right, the Truman girl comes first. I know her parents are worried sick.”
“Thanks for understanding,” Cord said. “And we’ll see each other tomorrow.”
He reached the fork in the road to turn to the Gooding property. “I have to go now. It’s almost whiteout conditions and I can barely see out here.”
“Be careful,” she said.
But his reception was breaking up and he could barely hear over the sound of the wipers and defroster. Ahead, the white blended into the night, reminding him of when he’d been lost in the wilderness himself as a kid. When nobody had cared or come looking for him.
Thank God these kids had Ellie.
One Hundred Thirty-Eight
A car horn blasted the air, jolting Gayle back to the wintry scene in front of her. The storm was gaining momentum, the car skidding as she rounded a corner and fought to maintain control. A deer suddenly bolted across the road, and she swerved toward the shoulder to avoid hitting it.
Calm down. You’ll pick up Sarah and find a nice place to have Christmas. She glanced at the girls in the back, hating that she’d scared them.
“Just wait till you see Sarah,” she told the girls. “She’s going to make our family whole again.”
“I’m hungry,” Kaylee whined.
“And I gotta go to the bathroom,” Ava said in a quivery voice.
She ground her teeth. There was no way she could stop at a store or even a drive-thru right now. Someone might see the girls or one of them—Ava most likely—might start screaming and draw attention to them.
“I don’t feel good,” Ava cried.
Piper was never whiny like that. She was sweet and obedient, and she did what she was told. She was such a happy little girl, always smiling and singing, her voice like an angel.
“We’ll pick up some food after we get Sarah and see Piper,” she said. Once they met her, they’d understand everything.
Then they’d be grateful she’d brought them all together. One happy family.
