AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mama, I want you and Chloe to stay inside today,” I said. “Pop too.”
“Yes, of course. If we see something suspicious, I’ll call one of you.”
We finished breakfast and helped Sammie clean up before we all dispersed. Elliot came down with Chloe, and she and Caspian, albeit reluctantly, excused themselves.
“The restaurant has to serve food despite all of this,” Caspian said.
Elliot gave Sammie a hug on her way out. “Please, be so careful.”
“I will,” Sammie said.
Mama took Chloe off shortly thereafter, leaving Soren and me alone with Sammie. “You ready for this?” Soren asked.
“I just want to get it over with.” Sammie’s voice shook, as did her hands. “Seeing him again is not something I ever thought would happen. Of all the scenarios, that wasn’t one of them.”
Soon, the three of us were on our way to the motel. No one spoke much in the car ride into town. We’d almost arrived when I got a call from Cutter.
“I took it upon myself to track him,” Cutter said. “He landed just now at the Bozeman airport.”
“How do you know?” I asked.
“This is what I do,” Cutter said. “What can I say? I’m awesome.”
“I have to say I agree, Mr. Cutter.”
* * *
We arrived at the motel a little after nine. The sheriff and his two deputies had already arrived, setting up the cameras and working with Maxine to iron out any details. Fortunately, Maxine was only too happy to cooperate. In fact, she looked as if she welcomed the excitement. In her fifties, Maxine reminded me of an uncooked dumpling, plump and pasty. Today, though, her cheeks were flushed, and her deep-set eyes sparkled.
“I can’t wait to look him in the eyes,” Maxine said.
“Be careful not to tip him off,” Winthrop said.
“I’ll do my best,” Maxine said.
We thanked her and left Maxine at the front desk while Sammie and I followed the sheriff into the motel room so he could go over the details and instructions with us.
“There are four cameras, each focused from a different angle.” Winthrop had concealed one in the air conditioning vent and another in a smoke detector. In addition, he’d hidden one in a table lamp and another in a fake plant on the small table by the window. “There’s also one in the bathroom taped to a curtain rod, in case he gets you in there.”
“Do I need to worry about being in any certain location for the cameras?” Sammie asked.
“No. We’ve set them up to get a full picture no matter where you are,” Winthrop said. “That said, be cautious. The goal here is to get him to make a move on you, but if at any point it’s too much, I want you out of there. If you feel like things are getting out of control or you fear for your life, all you have to do is say his name—John. That’ll tip us off, and we’ll come storming in.”
Sammie rubbed her hands together as if she were cold. “Other than that, I can’t say his name. Hopefully I can remember that in the moment.”
“You’ll be fine,” Winthrop said.
“I hope so,” she said, glancing at me.
I wrapped an arm around her shoulder for a quick squeeze. She leaned her head against me, and my heart grew to the size of a cantaloupe.
Winthrop had asked Sammie to bring a suitcase of clothes and a few other items to put in the room, to give the impression that she’d been living there. While the sheriff fit her with the wire, I helped place her personal belongings around the space, including a few of Chloe’s toys. I really hoped her mother and her toys would get back to their little girl in one piece.
“What if he has a gun?” I asked. This whole idea was seeming a lot less sound that it had last night.
“He will have a gun,” Sammie said. “That’s how he thinks he’s going to get me to agree to come with him. The moment I refuse, he’ll get nasty. All we need is for him to hit me once, right, Sheriff? Will that be enough to arrest him?”
“That’s correct,” Winthrop said. “The more you can get him to say and the more physical abuse you can take, the better.”
