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I curse under my breath, tears pricking my eyes. “Fuck, fuck, FUCK! This can’t be happening.”
Nobody from Wolfhound Security was supposed to pick them up. They were only meant to monitor the school while the girls were there. It now makes sense why I couldn’t see the agents’ car anywhere when I arrived. But Luke would’ve called to tell me if he authorized them to take my girls out of school so none of this is sitting well. I’m about to call him when an unknown number comes through first.
I stare at the screen for the first three rings before I answer. “Hello?”
“Hey, honey.” Daniel’s voice makes the hairs on the back of my neck spike up.
“How did you get this number?” I manage.
“Oh, Avery. You continue to underestimate me,” he replies, almost laughing. “Listen, we need to talk. Miley and Annie miss you.”
The hard truth hits me like a brick in the teeth. “It was you.You took them out of school.”
“It wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be,” he says. His calmness only adds to my anxiety and the horror of what has happened. “You’d be amazed what you are capable of if you want something bad enough. And I really want my family back, Avery. I want my life back.”
“Daniel, I swear to God, if you hurt them—”
“Don’t take that fucking tone with me,” he says dangerously. “I’m the one with the power here, something you seem to have forgotten. We’re gonna do things nice and easy. You’re gonna do what I tell you, otherwise you’ll never see Annie or Miley again.”
“What do you want?”
I keep looking around, hoping I might spot him somewhere nearby. Maybe he’s watching me from a parked car or from one of the buildings across the street, but the sound of a distant train engine makes me realize he’s somewhere out on the edge of town. My brain is firing at full speed, but I can’t come up with anything smart or safe, given the monster I’m dealing with. The wounded little girl within me quivers with fear and despair, her screams echoing in the back of my head. I’m alone and helpless again.
“Well, you’ve seen enough thriller movies to know the drill. No cops, no feds, not a single call to any of those dicks you’ve been shacking up with,” Daniel says. “I apologized to the girls for the misunderstanding we had the night you kidnapped my children and abandoned me. Miley has told me a lot about the time they’ve been spending with your friends. You fucking whore.”
“You have no right to—”
“You want what’s best for your daughters, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then you’ll follow my instructions to the letter. I’ll send you an address. You need to be there in thirty minutes. If you’re late, I’m gone. We’re gone. If I so much as sniff outside company, we’re gone. Don’t be your stupid usual self, Avery. I just wanna talk.”
“Fine.”
“Once you receive the address you are to dispose of your cell phone in that orange bin outside the dry cleaners, understand?” he says.
I glance across the street and see the bin in question. Disgust unfurls in my throat. “You had this all planned out, didn’t you?”
“I’ve had my eyes on you for a while, babe. Did you really think you could simply get away from me? That you could keep my daughters from me? Enough with this nonsense. Do as you’re told, and maybe we can be a happy family again.”
The line goes dead.
I’m about to start crying when the text message comes through with a street name and number. I check it on a map app, make a mental note of the location, then take the phone apart and rush across the street to dump it in the orange bin. I leave the battery out atop a mound of snow, hoping it might help if anybody comes looking for me. It’s the most I can do under the circumstances, and it’s a long shot, at best.
Armed with a shaky resolve, I head back to my car and pull out a knife I keep in the trunk, hiding it in my jacket pocket. It’s not something I wish to ever have to use, but I need to be able to defend myself and my girls. I’ve no doubt Daniel will try to hurt me once we’re face to face. His fits of rage are horrible, and I don’t want Annie or Miley to be within his reach ever again. It needs to end today. One way or another, it will end today.
This is my only shot at true freedom.
I must take it.
The address is on the southwestern edge of North Platte. I’m looking at a string of abandoned four-story buildings overlooking a train yard. The sky above is grey and ugly, which is a perfectly fitting metaphor for how I feel inside. There is barely a soul around—a couple of homeless guys trudging up the street and the occasional car driving past with no intention of stopping or even slowing down. Nobody wants to be out here, which means I’m not likely to receive any sort of assistance from a stranger.
I find the street number quickly, noting that the parking spaces along the battered and frozen sidewalk are currently unoccupied. If Daniel is here, he must’ve parked somewhere behind the building. I look up and notice the worn façade with black iron frames on the broken and spray-painted windows. This place has been deserted for a long time, and I doubt anyone from City Hall has bothered to come around to inspect it. It should be condemned.
I take a deep breath and go in.
The hallway is dark and dirty and it smells heavy and musty. I see rat droppings everywhere, along with discarded newspapers, torn envelopes, and several used IV needles. This must be a preferred spot for those who find solace and comfort in the company of hard drugs and liquor. I step over a few cracked beer bottles and make my way up the creaky stairs, wondering what this place must’ve been like when people actually lived here.
