Chapter 25
The Widow
It’s dark by the time we pull into the driveway. Scott turns off the engine, gets out, and looks back at Maddie and me.
“Wait by the door,” he says. “I’m going to check it out.” He sprints to the front door, slipping inside and leaving it open behind him.
Before I can stop it, another horrific vision rips through my mind. Natalie’s screaming, her face twisted in fear, followed by another terrible image. These have been replaying in my head on and off since the kidnapping.
Nathan and the police are out there looking for her, and I cling to the small kernel of hope flickering in my chest.
Please find our little girl, Nathan.
Maddie hooks an arm under mine. “Come on,” she says gently. “I’ve got you.”
I can’t even keep myself upright on my own.
Momma, please, help me, please… Momma!
I lose my footing and drop to the ground beside the front porch. Then I bend and vomit over the roots of the hibiscus bush.
Maddie crouches beside me, holding my hair back. She doesn’t offer empty reassurances. Her eyes are as swollen as mine. She’s sharing the pain with me.
I can barely breathe through the congestion packed in my nose and throat, and my head is pounding. There are no more tears left, but I’m still crying. Silent sobs that hurt like punches.
Maddie wipes my mouth with a napkin and slips both arms around my waist, helping me toward the front door.
“We’ll get you cleaned up inside.” She pauses on the porch, keeping me close to her side while we wait for Scott’s voice to tell us it’s okay.
There are no stars in the sky tonight, but I can see the moon. A waning crescent moon. What is happening to my little girl? The picture of her in terror returns mercilessly, strangling my mind.
“You're going to be sick again,” Maddie says with her face pinched with worry. She glances at the door. “Sorry, Scott,” she mumbles, and pulls the screen door open.
The moment we step through, there’s a volley of loud shouts and furniture being tossed around, followed by a loud crash and male grunts. It’s coming from the living room.
“Scott?” Maddie’s voice lifts, edged with fear.
She lowers me to the floor and pulls her phone from her pocket as she rushes to the end of the entryway.
“Let me tell you. I know it! I know!” a man shouts. His voice is scratchy and muffled, like he’s yelling through clenched teeth.
More scuffling.
A heavy thump.
I force myself up and see him sprawled across the living room floor—it’s Walter.
The man Natalie told Nathan about, and the one who was watching me the night I babysat the dogs. Scott’s holding him down with one hand at the chest, the other wrapped around his wrists.
Finding a burst of energy I didn’t have before, I lurch toward him.
I drop to my knees beside him and grab his collar, yanking his face toward me. “Where is she?” I scream. “Where is Natalie?”
He blinks up at me, his face frozen with fear and wide, unfocused eyes. He’s confused.
Noticing Maddie with her phone, he stretches out his arms.
“Wait! Please. The little one’s in her room. I’ll tell you all of it. All of it,” Walter rasps.
I don’t wait for anything else and spin and bolt down the hall, stumbling on the rug a few times as I push into Natalie’s room.
“Natalie!”
She’s sitting up in bed, startled by the noise.
“She’s safe,” I call out to Maddie and Scott and cross the room in two strides.
My legs tremble like a snapped rubber band. Relief crashes over me so hard I almost faint.
Throwing my arms around her, I squeeze her to my chest and kiss the top of her head over and over.
Our little girl is safe.
“Momma, what’s that noise outside?” she whispers into my shoulder. “It scared me.”
She’s in her blue pajamas, and her hair is damp. It looks like she’s had a shower before bed. Other than being frightened, she looks okay.
“It’s nothing, sweetie, you’re safe now.” I pull her closer. “Can you tell me what happened?”
“Mr. Walter grabbed me away from the Big, Mean Man and took me in his car.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“No,” she says as she shakes her head. “He said the Big, Mean Man was trying to get me. Mr. Walter saved me.”
A cold lump falls into my stomach.
“I’m sorry for scaring you, Momma.”
I hug her tighter. “You’ve got no reason to be sorry, sweetie. None.”
“I threw the bone too far, and then we went farther than you told me to. Denver didn’t want to do it, but I thought it would be fun to go closer to the street. There was a horse carriage.” Her brow furrows. “Momma, I saw him. The Big, Mean Man.”
I force myself to stay calm.
“He was big like you and Daddy, and he had sunglasses and a hat. He didn’t talk. He was just there. Denver bit him. That’s when Mr. Walter ran out of the trees and got me.” She sniffles. “Denver chased the Big, Mean Man, but he got away in a car.”
I can hear raised voices coming from the hall.
“What color was his car?”
“Silver.”
“You’re safe now.” I brush her hair back and kiss her cheek. “Let’s get you tucked in. Momma’s going to talk to Mr. Walter.”
“I love you, Momma.”
Why is my heart still racing? “I love you too, sweetie.”
Back in the living room, Walter sits on the couch while Scott stands in front of him, arms crossed, watching.
Dizzy, I take a moment to lean against the hallway wall.
Maddie comes to me. “I peeked in while you were talking to her.” She blows out a long breath and sniffs. “I tried to reach Nathan, but it went to voicemail.”
“What’s wrong with him?” I ask, remembering Walter’s skittishness and his lost eyes.
“I think he’s delusional,” she whispers. “He seems to be telling the truth about trying to help Natalie, but nothing he’s saying is coherent.”
“Natalie said another man tried to grab her first. She said Walter was waiting in the trees and came to her rescue.”
“The guy in the Rover has to be the one Natalie’s talking about. There’s no good excuse for what he did. He’s dangerous. And Nathan’s out there looking for him.”
“God, Maddie, I thought I’d lost her.”
She lifts my face. “Should we call the police?”
“Not yet. I want to talk to him first. Then we’ll try Nathan again.”
Back in the living room, I take a closer look at Walter.
He’s dressed in nice clothes, but it looks like he’s been wearing them for a few days. His trim beard has grown out, and I’m not sure if he’s brushed his teeth. I place my hand on his shoulder.
“Hello, Walter.”
His eyes are kind and a little more focused than before.
“I want to keep her safe. He will hurt her.”
I inhale sharply.
“Nathan is alive again?” he asks. He fidgets, tapping his knees with his hands.
I pull a throw off the couch and put it around him.
“Yes, Nathan has amnesia, but he’s back home.”
“Amnesia?” Standing, he wobbles around the room, jerking his arms up and down. “Oh no! Go. He’s coming!” he shouts, wild-eyed.
“Who’s coming? Nathan?”
He shakes his head rapidly from side to side while twisting his hands.
I grip his shoulders. “Walter. What’s his name? Who is the Big, Mean Man?”
He shoves me away and I have to catch myself from falling. Scott moves toward him. When I lift a hand to stop Scott, both Scott’s and Maddie’s phones ring out at the same time. We all look at each other. Maddie answers hers while Scott steps into the corner to answer his.
“Hannah? Hannah?” Maddie’s worried voice sharpens. “Hannah, are you okay?”
I watch as all I hear on the other end are incoherent sobs—until Scott swears and storms out the front door. Oh no.
“No…” Maddie’s voice breaks as she chokes down sobs of her own. The adrenaline that had finally mostly left my system surges back with a vengeance. Tears are pouring down her cheeks.
I’m too afraid to ask her what’s going on.
“Stay there. I’m coming right now. Love you,” she says in a raw, throaty voice. I wait for her to tell me what’s going on, but I don’t want to know.
“It’s Jamie.”