Chapter 25
With Eve nowhere in sight, Reid sprinted the two blocks to her house. He had no other idea where Tyson could have taken her. The man had broken into her home a couple of times. Maybe he’d taken her back there to finish what he’d started.
Houses and trees passed by in a blur. Panic stretched his nerves tight and threatened to break through his skin. He kept alert for any signs of Eve or Tyson Brown’s truck.
The ringing in his pocket slowed his stride as he plucked out his phone and prayed to see Eve’s name.
Madden.
“Did you find her?” he asked as he answered.
“Not yet. Where are you?”
Eve’s house came into view, along with his truck in her driveway.
No other vehicle was parked beside his, and disappointment slapped him harder than the wind barreling across his cheek.
“Almost to Eve’s place. I thought maybe he brought her there.
I don’t see his truck, but that doesn’t mean anything. ”
“No one’s seen her. I spoke with the sheriff’s department. They’re figuring things out, but I don’t want to waste time. I’ll meet you at Eve’s and tell Dax and Ben to do the same. Can you get inside?”
He jogged down the driveway and tried the handle. “It’s locked.”
“I’ll have Lily call Becca. She might know where a spare key is. Hold tight. I’m on my way.”
Normally, knowing Madden was close by to help solve a problem eased some of Reid’s anxiety, but not this time. His friend’s presence wouldn’t do anything to help Eve.
Fisting his hand, he pounded on the front door. “Eve! Are you in there?”
Nothing.
He yanked at the door again, but it refused to budge. He could run to the back door or try the windows, but he’d made sure the place was locked up tight. Besides, the sinking feeling in his gut told him she wasn’t inside anyway.
With his phone still in hand, he dialed Eve again. This time the line went straight to voicemail. Shit.
Needing to do something, he peered into the windows for any sign of movement.
Any sign of Eve.
When he arrived at the broken bedroom window, he squared his shoulders and prepared to shimmy his way through the tight space. The window was already busted, and if there was any chance she was inside, he had to get in and fast.
“Reid!”
The sound of Madden’s voice stalled his momentum, and he redirected himself to the front of the house.
Madden hunched over a flowerpot and straightened with a key in his hand.
“Becca told Lily where the key was. She’s a mess.
She wants to help, so Lily stayed back to speak with her and Tara to see if they could think of anything useful.
I thought it’d be best if Becca didn’t come here, just in case we found something. ”
Reid leaped up the front steps. “Fine. Just get inside the damn house.”
Madden unlocked and pushed open the door.
Reid worked his jaw back and forth, waiting for Madden to step inside before flying in behind him. The overpowering scent of dead flowers lingered, greeting him like an unwelcome guest. “Eve!”
He ran through the house, searching every room, even though he knew before he’d entered he wouldn’t find her.
Defeat knocked him off balance in her bedroom.
He sank onto the side of her mattress and hung his head in his hands, the rose petals that had been left behind dried and sprinkled behind him.
Madden’s low, long whistle lifted his head. “I didn’t realize this place hadn’t been cleaned yet. This is extremely disturbing.” He flicked his wrist toward the bed.
Reid squeezed his eyes shut, unable to look at the offerings Tyson had left for Eve. “We didn’t have time. I forgot it was all here. I should have called someone to take care of everything while we were gone. Before she could come home.” Emotion stole his words and cracked his voice.
A heavy hand gripped his shoulders. “Look at me, man.”
Reluctantly, Reid opened his eyes.
“You can’t give up. We’ll find her. She has to be somewhere. All we have to do is figure out where.”
He huffed out a snort. “Yeah. No problem.” Jumping to his feet, he paced the length of the room and shoved a hand through his hair.
Irritation and worry crushed his lungs, making it hard to breathe.
“I’ll just step outside and call out her name.
I’m sure she’ll answer. I mean, she’s somewhere, right? ”
Rolling his eyes, he stopped in front of the picture hanging on her wall. The explosion of colorful flowers with the mountains in the distance stared back at him. He’d swear he could actually see the movement of the petals, the wind flowing over the canvas.
His breath caught in his throat. “Wait a second.”
He ran down the hall to the living room, where wildflowers had been vomited around the space.
The colors had dulled, the life draining from the blooms that had once held so much vibrancy.
He knelt on the floor and studied the shapes of the petals then moved to the couch, studying another type, then another.
“What is it?” Madden asked. “What’s going on?”
He ran back to the bedroom, back to the picture.
“Dude, are you going to tell me what’s going on in your head?”
“Here—” He pointed at the painting. “The day after Tyson attacked Eve, she took Suzy here with Lily. It’s her favorite spot in the entire world.
He had to know. I mean, that morning she had one of those damn wooden carvings dropped in the driveway and another in her car.
He’d followed her home. Chances are high he followed her there, too.
Hell, even the flowers picked and left here match the ones in the pictures. ”
“Okay,” Madden said, drawing out the word. “You’re right. We know he followed her, stalked her, kept tabs on the best time to try and grab her. But what does that have to do with where she is now?”
Reid ran the tip of his finger over the raised paint. “He brought the flowers to her in an attempt to give her something she loved. That didn’t work. Maybe now he’s taking her to the flowers. Taking her to spot that means the world to her.”
Tightening his jaw, Madden tipped his chin. “It’s the best lead we’ve got. We’ll head there while Dax and Ben keep searching the area. Let’s go.”
Reid made a mad dash for the door and prayed his instincts were right and would lead him straight to Eve.
Pain ricocheted up Eve’s body as she ran through the dense patch of trees.
Her palms stung and her knees ached. But she couldn’t dwell on the discomfort, or the tiny pebbles embedded in her skin.
She had to focus on putting one foot in front of the other and creating as much distance between her and Tyson as possible.
Muttered curses sounded behind her, mixing with Tyson’s heavy footsteps. “You’ll never outrun me,” he screamed, causing a flock of birds to scatter into the sky.
She swallowed her fear as adrenaline pumped through her system with each step.
The urge to check and see how far Tyson was behind her was hard to ignore, but she kept her focus forward.
Her mind as sharp as the branches reaching out to snag on her clothes and slap her cheeks.
Tears threatened to fill her vision, but she blinked them back. She didn’t have time to fall apart.
Her lungs burned as she picked up her pace. The muscles in her thighs screamed. She shoved her way through overgrown brush and past towering pine trees, thankful the abundant leaves provided some coverage.
“You can’t hide from me,” Tyson taunted, his voice far too close for comfort.
As she ran, she snagged her phone from her pocket. If she could call Reid, let him know where she was, she could hide long enough for help to come. She swiped at the screen, but it remained black. The muted sunlight streaming through the trees showcased the cracks splintering the phone.
Crap.
She must have broken the phone when she’d jumped from the truck.
The tears she held back started to fall, and she shoved her phone back in her pocket. Her hair stuck to the moisture on her cheeks. She wiped the strands away from her eyes and her foot struck an upturned root, sending her flying to the rough ground.
She winced, the impact knocking her breath from her body.
The scratches on her palms and knees throbbed.
A part of her wanted to curl into a ball and give in to the fear and tears.
But she couldn’t give up. She had to keep moving.
Eventually she’d run into someone. She had to.
She couldn’t believe she was about to meet her end in a place that had always meant so much to her.
Crawling to her hands and knees, she leaned on a moss-covered tree and hauled herself onto her feet. She filled her lungs with air, the effort enhancing every ache pulsing against her skin. She struggled to calm her pounding heart and regain her ever-slipping mindset.
She could keep running, hoping to stumble upon someone, but most of the locals were at the parade.
She had to think straight and figure out the best path to get out of this situation.
Closing her eyes, she visualized the layout of the park.
Tyson had driven past the parking lot. If she could turn toward the opening of the trail, she could follow the road back toward town.
Plan made, she steeled her nerves and peeked around the tree. She kept as still as possible, tuning her ears into every snapping twig or rustling leaf. No footsteps sent her heart to her throat, no curses or threats reached her ears.
Staying low, she shot out from behind the tree. The road shouldn’t be too far. If she could keep moving, keep pushing herself, she’d make it.
A hard yank on her hair sent her reeling backward. Her feet flew out from under her, and her bottom slammed against the ground, pain vibrating up her spine. Long fingers snaked through her strands, tightening at the top of her head.
Warm breath skimmed her face. “I told you not to do anything stupid. You said you’d let me love you. You lied, just like the rest of them.”
She stared up into Tyson’s cold green eyes, and terror punched her in the gut. She pedaled her feet in an attempt to scamper away, but he pulled harder on her hair. “Please. Let me go. You don’t have to do this.”
He bared his teeth before slamming her head against the ground.
Agony exploded at the back of her head. A sob sat trapped in her throat. She opened her mouth to scream, and a heavy hand clamped down on her face, muting any sound.
Lowering to the ground, he placed one knee on either side of her. “Stop it! Stop being so difficult. I tried to do something special. To show you how much I cared. And how do you repay me? By jumping out of the damn truck and running away. How do you think that makes me feel?”
Spit flew from his mouth and landed on her chin. She winced and thrashed her body from side to side, trying to buck him off.
“You don’t listen. You never listen.” He moved his hands to circle her neck. Each word made him tighten his grip, making it harder and harder to breathe.
Tears fell from the corners of her eyes, and dark spots dotted her vision.
She clawed at his hands. She needed air, needed to get him off of her.
“You’re hurting me. Stop. Please.” The words were barely above a whisper, almost impossible to squeak out of her mouth as he continued to press on her windpipe.
This wasn’t how she wanted to die. Trapped under a monster, alone in the forest with only a brief taste of what her life could have been. Memories of Reid ticked by one by one. As scared as she’d been the last couple of days, she’d also never been so happy. Never experienced so much joy and love.
Oh God. She loved Reid. She’d been in love with his smile and charm and wit for months. But now she knew it was more than that. She was in love with a man who brought all her dreams to life, and now she’d never get to experience those dreams with him. Never build that life.
She’d never even get a chance to tell him.
“You’re just like the rest of them,” Tyson screamed, his hands pressing harder against her windpipe. “You were supposed to be different.”
Energy leaked from her body. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t fight.
Not wanting Tyson’s face to be the last thing she ever saw, she closed her eyes and pulled forth an image of Reid.
His shaggy hair and kind brown eyes. The grin that melted her insides and the booming laugh that always made her smile.
I’m so sorry we couldn’t do life together.
The grip around her neck loosened, allowing her to pull in a large gasp of air. She swallowed, the motion like needles along her raw throat. She opened her eyes, and the slimy smile on Tyson’s face made her wish he’d finished what he’d started.
He rested his palms along the delicate dip of her collarbone.
“I won’t make the same mistake I made before.
No need to end things here, with neither of us getting the satisfaction we really want.
Nah, I’ll take you to that special spot and show you exactly the kind of man I am.
The man you’ve been waiting for your whole damn life. ”