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“Are you Tina?” she asked.
The young woman smiled. “That’s me.” Her smile faded as she ripped the Velcro straps off Kiana’s wrists. “We need to hurry before they know you’re missing.” Her thin fingers worked the straps across Kiana’s chest, yanking the Velcro apart.
Once Kiana’s hands and chest were free, she sat up. A wave of dizziness made her sway. She buried her face in her hands and focused on not passing out. When the dizziness abated, she pulled the straps off her thighs and ankles, then swung her legs over the side of the gurney.
Tina had moved to Meredith and freed her hands and the strap across her chest.
Meredith sat up and flung her arms around Tina. “I can’t believe I have not one, but two sisters.”
Tina hugged Meredith, tears welling in her eyes. “As soon as I saw your name on the ancestry site, I knew something big was happening.” Her narrow shoulders shook. “I always wanted siblings.” She looked from Meredith to Kiana. “Now, I have two.”
“Soon to be none if your father has his way,” Kiana said as she slipped off the gurney onto the floor. Her knees buckled. If she hadn’t been holding onto the gurney, she would have fallen in a heap onto the smooth tile floor.
“My father loves me a bit too much,” Tina said. “He’s too intense. Too controlling.”
“He’s more than intense,” Kiana said. “Do you realize your father wants to harvest our organs for you?”
Tina’s face paled. “I heard,” she said. “I listened outside the door. I’m so sorry he’s done this to you. I would never have agreed to this. This was the first I’d heard that my mother had given me her last kidney. I wouldn’t have let her do that if I’d known. They told me she had another, that my first kidney was from a donor.” Tears slipped down her cheeks. “She died because of me. You two almost died because of me. I’d rather throw myself off a cliff than have other people die because of me.”
Meredith hugged her again. “Nobody needs to die. Let’s get out of here, and we’ll figure out everything.” She released Tina and worked on the straps. Once her ankles were free, she slipped off the gurney and enveloped Tina in a long, hard hug. “I’ve wanted to do that since our first conversation online. You’re amazing.”
Tina hugged her back. “I’ve lived on my father’s compound forever. I never knew how great it would feel to be hugged by someone besides him.” She grinned at Meredith, who stood a good six inches taller than Tina. “I loved messaging you online. I’ve never had a real friend.”
“Oh, sweetie,” Meredith said. “You have us, now.”
Tina hugged Meredith once more and then stepped back, shaking her head. “Much as I want to spend more time getting to know my sisters, I need to get you out of here. I won’t let my father use you to save me. There has to be another way.”
“You should come with us,” Kiana said. “We could help you get the medical care you need.”
She shook her head. “I’ve seen so many specialists, been poked and prodded and have taken enough medicines to sink a ship. I can’t do it anymore. And I can’t let others sacrifice their lives for me.” She squared her narrow shoulders. “Come on. You need to go before my father comes back.” She hurried for the door.
Kiana crossed to Meredith, hugged her friend—no, her sister—and hurried to follow Tina.
Their younger sibling paused at the door, opening it a crack to peer out into a hallway. “We have to hurry,” she whispered. “My father has men guarding the grounds. But I know where there’s a gap in the fence you can slip through. I’m not really sure what’s on the other side or how you’ll get down the mountain, but I know you’ll figure it out. Stay close and quiet.”
Kiana urged Meredith ahead of her, bringing up the rear. If Tina’s plan worked and they managed to escape, they’d have to return and pull the rug out from under Mercer. He couldn’t continue to supply illicit drugs to gangs on the islands. People died from drug overdoses every day. Plus, the doctors he’d flown in from all around the world weren’t licensed to practice in the States. Roland Mercer was breaking laws with no impunity.
All for the love of his daughter.
How far would Kiana go to save her daughter? Would she break laws to keep a child of hers alive? Would she kill someone to save her child?
She prayed she’d never be placed in that position.
Mercer had protected his daughter to the point of obsession. He’d never let them escape. As wealthy as he was, he was bound to have cameras throughout his home and compound to warn him of intruders, or in this case, of his captives’ escape.
Kiana easily kept up with Meredith and Tina.
Their youngest sister didn’t move all that fast. With each step, she went a little slower, her frail body barely able to walk very far, much less run. By the time they’d zigzagged through the many corridors to a door leading out into a garden, Tina had to stop to catch her breath.
“Sweetie, are you going to make it?” Meredith slipped an arm around the smaller woman, helped her to a bench and urged her to sit.
“I’m...fine...” Tina said between heaving breaths. “I just...don’t...have much...stamina.”
While Meredith fussed over Tina, Kiana turned to face the house, expecting men to come rushing out at any moment.
The compound was huge and luxurious. Mercer wouldn’t have spared the expense of a security system and someone to monitor it. They’d probably already spotted the escapees and had men on their way to stop them.
“We have to keep moving,” Kiana said.
