Chapter 19
The evening had been terrible. There wasn’t one positive thing Silver could say about it, which was totally out of character for her.
Not even sitting in the hot springs was cheering her up.
Instead, it made her think about Dustin all the more and brought back memories of the times when she’d been there as a child and teenager with her cousins and Dustin.
They’d often sneaked in after dark—like she had tonight—after the pool hours were over and the other guests were busy dancing and dining.
At least Dustin had arranged for her to do this. Maybe there was one good thing about the night. Even if he had thoroughly and soundly rejected her offer of love and a future, he’d carried through on his word that she could come to the hot springs.
She lowered herself in the warm spring water, leaned back, and tried to relax her muscles as the water bubbled up around her, steam rising in slow wafts in the cooling June night.
She’d packed a cute swimsuit to use at the hot springs, except that she’d hoped to use it with Dustin, hoped to see appreciation light up his eyes, hoped to see the heat darken the brown.
But she hadn’t spotted Dustin, even though she knew he was somewhere nearby on guard.
Isaac was close at hand too, sitting with his feet on a patio table and his chair tipped back.
He was keeping a close eye on his tablet and monitoring the cameras around Healing Springs Ranch, because apparently he’d spotted a car driving back and forth on the main road outside the ranch a short while ago.
He hadn’t gotten the license plate number, and he admitted it could have just been a tourist who’d gotten lost. However, Dustin and Isaac were taking extra precautions.
Pressing a hand to her aching heart, Silver tried to let her muscles relax in the soothing water that cascaded over her like silk.
Could the healing hot springs heal her broken heart?
She wished they could, but she wasn’t sure if anything could make her feel better. Because the truth was, she’d allowed herself to fall in love with Dustin all over again, hoping this time would be different, that they were different.
But what had Dustin said? That he couldn’t stay strong while he was around her and that he turned into a simpering excuse of a man, someone who was very weak.
She didn’t see him as weak or simpering or an excuse of a man. So why did he? Everyone made mistakes. And if he happened to exhibit weakness once in a while, that was okay.
Whatever the case was, he’d made it clear he didn’t care about her enough to work through their obstacles any more now than he had in high school. She obviously cared more about him than he did about her, and maybe that had always been the case.
Heat stung her eyes, but she squeezed back the tears and dipped her head under the water, letting the warmth surround her.
Why oh why did she have to love a man who wasn’t willing to love her back?
Why did she always have to be so optimistic and see the best in others to her own detriment?
Maybe she needed to learn to be more discerning.
At the very least, she had to put Dustin out of her life, and next time they crossed paths, she couldn’t let him back in.
She’d learned her lesson a little too late.
She pushed to the surface and peered up at the darkness studded with stars. She usually loved the Colorado night sky for how expansive it was and how clear the constellations were. But tonight, the haze of tears clouded her vision.
As much as she’d wanted to visit the hot springs, she realized now that she’d only wanted to do it with Dustin. Without him here, it was an empty experience, and she really just longed to crawl into the bed at the cabin and cry into her pillow.
Swallowing her sorrow, she stood and crossed to the pool’s side.
As she climbed out, Isaac dropped his feet to the ground and sat his chair forward. “Done already?”
“Yes, I’m sorry. I’m just not in the mood for this tonight.” She reached for her towel on the nearest chair and wrapped it around herself.
Isaac tossed a glare toward a distant part of the pool. Was that where Dustin was standing guard?
She forced herself not to look. She didn’t want to spot him, and she didn’t want him to think she was interested anymore. Because she wasn’t. She was done with him, with them, and with any thoughts of a future together.
She slipped on her sandals, then started toward the bathhouse along the stone pathway that wound through the various levels of pools. The shrubs lining the way were in full bloom, glowing in the solar-powered lights that were placed strategically to showcase the beauty of the manicured grounds.
She didn’t stop tonight to admire the loveliness around her, though. She hurried along until she reached the bathhouse and the adjoining snack bar that bordered another pool.
As she started toward the women’s room, she heard Dustin call out from down the path. “She can change back at the cabin.”
Behind her, Isaac released an exasperated sigh. “I’ll go in and get your things.”
She shook her head, feeling a sudden burst of frustration at Dustin for hovering around her and still interfering in her life. “No.” She reached for the door. “I was fine getting ready in there, and I’ll be fine now too.”
Isaac nodded. “Okay. But can you hurry?”
“Yes. I’ll try.” She swung open the door, and the automated light popped on, revealing a luxurious changing room with a bathroom, showers, saunas, and a lounge with sofas and even a large-screen television.
As the door closed behind her, she heard Dustin call out again. “What are you doing?”
“Dude, she’ll be fine for a few minutes by herself.”
She crossed the room to the chair where she’d tossed her clothing earlier. She only managed to pick up her shirt before the door of the changing room swung open and Dustin filled the doorway. His face was serious, and his brow furrowed as he glanced around the room.
How had she ever thought he might like her for who she was and not for just being his assignment? The hurt welled up inside again, tightening her chest. “Go away, Dustin.” She didn’t need him, didn’t want him there.
He didn’t budge.
She dropped the towel she’d wrapped around her body, and then she started to slip off one of the string shoulder straps of her bikini. “Unless you’re planning to stay and watch.”
He muttered something under his breath as he hastily backed up outside and closed the door.
Normally she would have smiled, would have enjoyed the interaction. But tonight, a sob clawed at her throat, and once again, all she wanted to do was get into bed and have a good long cry.
She secluded herself in one of the changing cubicles, put on her shorts and top. As she finished pulling on her shirt, the automated light in the room flipped off.
She froze as the darkness closed in around her.
A tremor rippled through her as she faced the dark room and a light switch that was on the opposite side.
She was tempted to close her eyes and remain paralyzed, but she drew in a breath, opened the stall door, and reached for her back pocket where she kept her phone.
Before she could draw it out and turn on the flashlight app, a large hand cupped her mouth and nose, pinching her tightly. In the next instant, a sharp blade pricked her neck, giving her no time to scream or fight back.
“Cooperate and you won’t get hurt.” A man’s whisper came from beside her.
At another prick into her skin, she held herself rigid.
“Come with me quietly,” the man whispered as he grasped both of her hands behind her back with his free hand, then began to steer her through the changing room. She guessed he was taking her to the door that led into the main area of the bathhouse with the gift shop.
As they stepped out of the changing room into a hallway, he steered her toward a rear exit, one that Isaac had scoped out earlier. The guy hurried her along, and with each step, the knife brushed her skin, chafing her so that she had no doubt he would hurt her if she made one wrong move.
When they reached the back door, it was propped open a crack. He bumped it with his hip, glanced out to make sure the way was clear, then shoved her ahead and guided her past a dumpster and into a wooded area. With her feet bare, the mulch and windfall dug into her, but she tried not to stumble.
As he rushed her deeper into the darkness of the woods, her heart began to thud hard.
If she didn’t do something, he would soon have her alone and away from Isaac and Dustin.
The two wouldn’t suspect she was gone for a few more minutes.
With how angry she’d been with Dustin, maybe he wouldn’t knock on the door or peek inside for another five or even ten minutes.
By then, it might be too late for them to help her.
She had to fend for herself. But how could she do anything with the knife pressed against her throat?
If she tried to scream or make any noise, his big hand would muffle her anyway.
If she struggled against him and somehow managed to free herself, how fast would she be able to run without shoes before he caught her again?
For now, all she could do was go along with him and pray she’d have an opportunity to escape. Or that Isaac and Dustin would discover she was gone sooner rather than later.
As if hearing her thoughts, her captor picked up their pace. They were gradually moving downhill, and she tried to picture where they were in relation to the hot springs, but it was too dark, and her thoughts were spiraling quickly.
After several long minutes of jogging, he drew her to a halt.
Even though she could hardly see and was breathing hard now behind his hand, they stepped out of the woods in front of what appeared to be a wire fence.
In the starlight, she could see that a small section of it had been cut, and now her captor kicked aside the wire that was on the ground. “Watch where you step.”
For some reason, the warning penetrated the panic inside. If he’d really planned to harm her, he wouldn’t be concerned about whether she stepped on barbed wire, would he? Instead, he would have sliced her with the knife by now. But other than the chafing, she wasn’t bleeding.
She made her way through the opening, her captor maintaining his grip on her mouth and the knife at her neck.
He guided her a dozen more paces down a ditch and then up to the other side.
Once there, he forced her to crouch while he wrapped duct tape around her wrists, then used it to cover her mouth.
When he finished, he pulled out his phone, texted someone, and waited quietly in the dark beside her.
She used the opportunity to try to see who the man was.
He was wearing the same Cubs baseball cap as the man who had appeared at the Aspen condo.
It cast a shadow over part of his face, but she could see that he had scraggly hair that reached his shoulders as well as a scruffy beard and mustache.
Although she couldn’t be certain of his age, he seemed to be in his thirties or maybe forties.
They waited less than a minute before an SUV approached quietly without its lights on. He stood, flashed his phone screen, and the SUV stopped. Already her captor was pushing her toward the vehicle.
Was the person driving the SUV someone Silver knew? Someone who worked on the Double H ranch?
As her captor swung open the back door, he grabbed a burlap sack off the seat. Before she could get a good look at the driver, her captor pulled the bag over her head, tugged the drawstring closed, and pushed her down on the backseat.
“Stay on the seat,” he said, then closed the door.
She wanted to sit up, rip the sack off, and claw her way free.
But the darkness surrounded her so thoroughly that she was frozen in place.
The fear returned with the force of a mudslide.
It drove into her and left her shaking. Her breathing, already limited by the tape and the bag, grew shallow, and her mind began to spin with the dizziness of another panic attack.