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“This way.” He’d studied the schematics for the courthouse last night. There was a shortcut through another set of offices. Ryker tugged Hannah through a side door into an empty hallway. One hand held hers, the softness of her palm noticeable even with the trouble facing them. His other hand was on his holstered weapon. Ryker wasn’t sure if a bomb had actually been planted in the courthouse or if the phone call was a diversion. Either way, one thing was obvious. Hannah was in danger. She was the target. Ryker needed to get her—and Charlotte—out of here as fast as possible.
Had the attacker gone after the baby? It was possible. The thought sent Ryker’s heart rate into higher gear and quickened his steps. There was no denying the fastest way to hurt Hannah would be to threaten her niece. The intruder last night had ignored Charlotte, thank God, but it would be arrogant to assume he would continue to do so. Ryker mentally berated himself for not leaving a bailiff stationed outside Hannah’s office.
He would never forgive himself if something happened to Charlotte.
The fire alarm continued to blare as they hurried for the rear of the building through a network of interconnecting hallways. Ryker took the stairs to the upper floor two at a time. Finally, they were deposited in the right area. Cubicles for support staff and paralegals gathered in the center of the large space. The door to Hannah’s office came into view. It was open. She raced for it, running faster in high heels than Ryker could’ve imagined possible.
“Pam!” Hannah’s voice carried. She went into the office and turned in a circle. “She’s gone.”
“They must’ve already evacuated.” Ryker realized the diaper bag was also missing. “We’ll find them. Come on.”
He grabbed Hannah’s hand again and tugged her out of the office. Movement in his periphery caught his attention. Ryker whirled around just as Pam’s head popped out from an adjacent cubicle. She held Charlotte in her arms. Relief washed over him, but was quickly replaced by concern as he registered the look of panic on the older woman’s face. She caught sight of them and bit back a sob.
Hannah raced forward. “What happened? Are you hurt?” She plucked the baby from Pam’s arms. Charlotte was crying, her face red. The baby appeared unharmed but was bothered by the blare of the alarm. Hannah pressed her little head against her chest and cupped a hand over Charlotte’s other tiny ear.
“Mrs. Pam.” Ryker placed a hand under the paralegal’s elbow. He noticed one of her shoes was across the aisle. Her previously styled hair was a mess and her pantyhose were ripped at the knees. “Are you injured?”
“It’s my foot. Someone pushed me as we were leaving the office and I fell.” She swiped at the tears on her face. “I forgot my cell in Hannah’s office and couldn’t figure out how to get back while carrying the baby. Thank goodness you came back for us.” She lifted a hand to her hair. “I also whacked my head on something when I fell.”
Ryker quickly assessed Pam’s injury. Her ankle was swollen and tender to the touch. Possibly broken. More concerning was the large lump forming on the back of her skull near her nape. Her pupils were dilated. Concussion.
Why hadn’t anyone helped her? Panic, created by the alarms and the bomb threat, had created a mob mentality. He hesitated, uncertainty swirling inside him. Carrying Pam would prevent him from being able to draw his weapon, but considering there was a bomb threat, paramedics wouldn’t be able to enter until everything was secure. And what happened if the threat wasn’t an empty one? There legitimately could be a bomb in the building.
They needed to get out of there. All of them.
“I’m going to carry you, Mrs. Pam.” Ryker bent over and lifted the older woman into his arms. “Hannah, you and Charlotte follow behind me. Stay close, understand?”
He met her gaze for a moment. Every worry and concern flickering through his mind was reflected in her brilliant blue eyes. Then her jaw tightened with determination. Hannah nodded. “Let’s go.”
Ryker tightened his hold on Pam. Mindful of the older woman’s injury, he carefully weaved his way through the cubicles to the staircase. His gaze never stopped moving, searching for potential trouble. Some internal instinct warned him that the danger was far from over. The sound of his cowboy boots and Hannah’s heels reverberated off the concrete walls of the staircase. When they reached the lower floor, he led the way toward the closest exit. A swarm of people stampeded out of the courthouse. They’d packed one exit when others were clearly marked.
Ryker shouted to be heard over the din. “This way, people! There’s more than one way out!”
Pam’s skin was clammy. She was pale and her breathing was shallow. Ryker feared the older woman was going into shock. “Take deep breaths. I know you’re frightened, but everything is going to be okay.”
She needed a paramedic. He glanced behind him to check on Hannah. She was clutching Charlotte close, keeping a hand over the baby’s ear to protect it from the screaming fire alarm. The little one had stopped crying. Her eyes were wide with fear though. Hannah’s too, although she was doing an excellent job of funneling that emotion into keeping pace with Ryker.
A bang sounded down the hall and screams filled the space. Several people diverted toward the exit Ryker was also heading for. He tried to keep Pam’s foot from being crushed in the bedlam. The double doors swung open wide as people pushed their way out. Sunshine hit Ryker in the face, momentarily blinding him. He hurried across the street toward first responders. A set of paramedics saw him coming and rushed to help Pam. They loaded her onto a gurney.
Ryker turned to check on Hannah. His heart skittered as his gaze flew over the immediate surroundings. Panic set in. He grabbed a man who’d been with them near the exit. “Did you see a woman and a baby?”
“No.”
Several more people responded the same way. Ryker raced back toward the building. Searching. His gaze skipped over every face, but none of them belonged to the red-headed beauty.
Hannah and Charlotte were gone.
EIGHT
How was this happening?
Hannah winced as the barrel of a gun jabbed her kidney. A strong hand gripped her arm, hard enough to leave a bruise, as her kidnapper steered her away from the crowd. Fear and adrenaline narrowed her vision to the empty hallway ahead. Charlotte was nestled against her. With one ear pressed against Hannah’s chest and the other protected by her hand, the wailing fire alarm was muffled. The poor little lamb had fallen asleep, tuckered out after her screaming spell earlier.
One moment they’d been following behind Ryker and Pam. The next, she had a gun shoved in her back. The attacker's whispered words replayed in her mind.
Scream and I’ll shoot you. Then anyone who tries to help you.
He meant it. Hannah couldn’t risk Charlotte’s life. Or anyone else’s, for that matter. Nor could she fight off an attacker while carrying a baby. So she’d obeyed. Where he was leading her, she didn’t know. Hannah tried to glance over her shoulder at the attacker. “Please, don’t do this.”
