Anonymous(32)

I shake my head. “I just want you to hold me. There’s no telling when I’ll be back.”



* * *



It’s the dead of night and I’m leaving my house. There are cop cars in front and behind us, with Jake in the driveway, watching us leave. I’m exhausted to the point I can’t even think straight. I know I’m not going to see him for a while, but I don’t think it’s fully hit me yet. I keep my eyes on Jake until I can no longer see him. The farther away we get, the more my heart hurts.

“This will all be over soon, Ells,” Owen says, his voice sounding so far away.

I’m in the backseat of his truck, hidden from sight, in case Bryan’s around . . . watching. With all the cops around, we’re hoping not.

“Where are you taking me?” I lean my pillow against the door, but I know I’m not going to be able to sleep. The whole backseat is filled with mine and Owen’s stuff.

He glances back at me. “Right now, we’re headed to Richmond, Virginia. We’ll stay for a night and move on, just in case Snyder realizes you’re gone.”

“God, I hope they catch him. I’m not staying on the run for the rest of my life.”

“I know, Ells. Why don’t you lie back and get some sleep? We have a six-hour drive ahead of us.”

Lying down on my pillow, I slide the untraceable phone Owen gave me out of my pocket. I can’t have mine because Bryan could easily track it. I want to call Jake and hear his voice, but I know he’s still busy with the police. All I know for certain is that sleep is definitely not in the cards this evening.





Fifteen





Jake





Watching Ellie leave is the worst fucking thing I’ve ever had to go through. I don’t want her going without me, but there’s no choice. I clean up all the glass and board up our window. It’ll have to do until I can get a replacement. The one thing I’m not looking forward to is calling Ellie’s parents and telling them.

Time moves so damn slow when all you want is answers. The police have been out in our yard for hours, searching for clues. Ellie’s been gone for five of them. I have yet to hear from her. Sitting on my back porch, I watch the deputies comb the woods. They all start to vacate, and that’s when I notice Detective Bradshaw with a cell phone inside of a plastic bag.

I rush outside into the snow and hurry down to them. “What’d you find?” I ask impatiently.

Terry holds up the plastic bag. “A knife. We’ll run prints on it. We found it about a mile into the woods, right by Route 16. His steps were already covered in with fresh snow. There were other sets too, probably some hunter’s. We’re looking into them all.”

Lots of the neighborhood locals hunt in those woods. There’s no telling how many sets of footprints are out there. Terry and his other deputies head for their cars. “What am I supposed to do in the meantime?” I call out.

Terry stops by his police car and sighs. “Hang tight, for now. I’ll have my men in the area around the clock, just in case Snyder makes another visit. Stay alert.”

Alert? More like ready to kill. Bryan already tried to kill me once. He’s not going to get that chance again. “I will.”

Terry gets into his car, and his phone rings. He answers it and his eyes dart to mine. Waving me over, he finishes up with the call and hangs up. “Guess who my guys just found?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Hop in and you can come with me.” I open the door to his car and slide in. Terry peels out of my driveway and speeds down the road.

“Where is he?”

“One of my deputies found him on the side of the road, unconscious. He’s about four miles down Route 16.”

“Was he shot? Owen fired a few rounds last night.”

He shrugs. “I don’t know anything at this point. The ambulance might already have him picked up by the time we get there.”

A part of me is disappointed. I want Bryan to come at me again, so I can face him on my own. I don’t give a fuck if he’s laid up in a hospital bed when I see him. One way or another, he’s going to face me.

There are three cop cars on the side of the road, blocking anything and everything from view. The ambulance is there too, loading Bryan into the back. They shut the doors and drive off before I can even see him.

Detective Bradshaw gets out and I follow him over to his deputies, including Officer Charles McGee. “What all did you find?”

Charles points over to a snow pile. “He was found there in dirty clothes, covered in shit and piss. His pulse was weak, and he didn’t seem to have any injuries, but he was unresponsive. He’s being taken to the hospital.”

Terry glances over at me. “That’s our next stop. Do you want me to take you back home?”

I shake my head. “I want to know what the hell’s going on. I’m going with you.” As we head toward the hospital, so many things run through my mind. “Are you going to convict him?” I ask.

Releasing a heavy sigh, Terry shrugs. “It depends on what we find. We can’t convict him without evidence. We can, however, hold him on suspicion, but that’s only for ninety-six hours, and then we have to let him go. Right now, we can’t exactly charge him with stalking, unless we find proof on his phone. The other numbers aren’t traceable.”