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He’d ignored several texts from Bernard, which was bound to raise concern back at the station, but he’d been helpless to resist the depth of trust and emotion in Carly’s brown eyes. He’d seen love there, and he couldn’t lie to himself any longer.
He loved her and little Noah.
Her phone dinged again, and she paled. “Another text.” She showed it to him.
I see you brought the police. Game’s over. Goodbye to your sister and the baby.
Tears sprang to her eyes, and she stared around the area. “He’s somewhere close. Watching us. I should have done what he said.”
Lucas studied every person he could see: a young couple throwing discs, an older couple walking hand in hand toward the beach, a young mother with a toddler moseying toward the sand. No one stood out as a likely suspect, yet the kidnapper was out there.
He took her hand and moved her toward the truck door. “We need to get out of here. It could be an ambush.”
Tears rolled down her cheeks as he opened the door and she slid in. He took another glance around and spotted a black cap that disappeared into the brush. “Stay put and lock the door.”
He shut the door and raced in the direction of the movement he’d seen. Branches slapped his face as he plunged through the shrubs and bushes. He caught another glimpse of a male figure, dressed in a long-sleeved camouflage tee anddark jeans, running off through the trees. Lucas picked up his speed and tried to catch up, but the guy was fast.
He reached a clearing and didn’t see where the guy had gone. Listening for any sounds didn’t give him any direction. Had he lost him? The ground didn’t yield any clues either, and Lucas paused to see if the man would make another move. He couldn’t have gotten away so quickly.
The seconds stretched into several minutes, and he barely moved as he waited. An engine to his right caught his attention. It sounded like a small motorbike. He ran toward the sound, and a bike burst from the bushes and raced away from him. Breathing hard, he stopped and ran back toward the truck to let Carly know he’d lost the man. If he was fast, maybe he could still catch him. It would be slow going along the rough track out of here.
But when he reached the spot where he’d parked the truck, it was gone. He ran toward the road and saw it vanishing around a curve. He sprinted after it, but he soon realized he’d never catch her on foot. He reversed course and stopped to think. He knew this park well. Could he take a shortcut and cut her off? What was Carly doing?
***
Carly had a boulder in her throat as she saw Lucas trying to catch up to the truck, but she’d had no choice. The kidnapper had sent her a picture of Isabelle and Caroline sitting on a dock at Harbor Island. All she had to do was bring the egg and make an exchange right then and there. This was her only chance to retrieve them safe and sound.
She concentrated on her instructions. Harbor Island was just north of Hunting Island State Park. All she had to do was look for the right house and park. She was to leave the egg in the truck and walk back to get her sister and Caroline. The kidnapper would retrieve the egg, and she’d return with Isabelle and the baby.
It sounded almost too easy, but she had to cling to the hope of this working out or she’d go crazy. Her phone rang, and Lucas’s picture filled the screen. Her impulse was not to answer, but the least she could do was let him know she was all right. She didn’t have to tell him where she was going.
She swiped on the call. “I’ll be back to get you in just a bit, Lucas. I’m sorry, but I have to do this. I have one last chance to get them.”
“Carly, the kidnappers are lying to you.” His voice was hoarse with emotion. “You can’t trust them without any kind of assurance.”
“Isabelle and the baby are just down the road. Not far. I have a picture. I can exchange the egg and get them to safety. I’ll have them with me when I come back to get you.”
“Honey, don’t do this. You’re operating on fear and desperation. That never leads to clear thinking. At least tell me where you’re going. I can call for backup and we can make sure they don’t escape the island with Isabelle and Caroline.”
His plea caught at her heart. Was she not thinking this through? Maybe backup wasn’t such a bad idea. “Harbor Island.”
“I’ll have the road blocked in each direction. It should be easy to catch them. You don’t have to go. We’ve got them trapped in there. Don’t go without help, Carly. Please.”
She wavered in her conviction she was doing the rightthing. It had seemed an easy decision at the time. “I don’t know, Lucas. What if they have a foolproof escape plan? They could hole up there and escape later after the police leave.”
“A guy on a small motorbike got away from me. Do you see him anywhere?” Lucas sounded out of breath as if he was continuing to chase the truck.
“I haven’t so far.” She strained to peer ahead along the lane, but there was nothing but an old white pickup immediately ahead.
The highway was just ahead, and she slowed to turn north out of the park. Having Lucas on speakerphone was almost like having his presence with her. “You still there?”
“I’m here.” He sounded even more winded.
She turned onto the highway and accelerated out of the park. A mile out of the park, she passed the white pickup she’d seen, but it held an older man and woman. Once she got around them, she tried to keep an eye on movement to the left and right of the road. “I still don’t see the motorbike.”
“Keep looking.” His voice sounded strained.
He had to be trying to walk out of the park, and she felt terrible that she’d stranded him. “I’m sorry, Lucas.”
