Chapter 1
Chapter One
Charlotte
Twenty years later….
When my husband Ryan died four years ago from prostate cancer, I went from being the CFO to the CEO of the company he started fifteen years ago.
Our only child, Thomas, was a Staff Sergeant in the Marine Corps and wouldn’t take over the business until he retired from the Corps.
So that left just me to run the business, which was a military contract company that had men all over the Middle East.
When I took over my husband's company, it wasn’t easy. I was never involved in the day-to-day running of the company. I didn’t make any decisions other than financial ones. I relied mostly on the Vice President, Jim Bellows, for knowledge and guidance.
Everything has been running like clockwork, and normally, just like when Ryan ran it since the first year after Ryan passed.
It was that first year that was the hardest. I was grieving and trying to learn everything about the company.
I was terrified because I had so many lives I was and still am responsible for that are working inside of war zones.
The stress of that fact is always there, but I am better at dealing with it now and feeling more at ease with the decisions I make.
Today was a typical Tuesday. There was nothing happening in the office that wasn’t normal run-of-the-mill stuff. I decided to head out a few minutes early and leave everything in the capable hands of Jim.
On the way home, I stopped at the grocery store and picked up a few things that I needed, like milk, eggs, bread, fruit, yogurt, chicken breasts, and a few fresh veggies.
I didn’t cook often, but occasionally I wanted a home-cooked meal.
Tonight, however, I was cooking for myself, my brother Charles, and his wife Sue.
I decided to make some grilled asparagus, brown rice, and baked chicken breasts topped with Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, and spinach.
I walked out to my car and drove home. I pulled up in the driveway, popped the trunk, and went to get the bags out to head inside. Charles and Sue will be here in two hours, and I am now in a rush to make dinner.
I felt a hand cover my mouth. I tried to scream, but nothing came out. Then everything went black….
I don’t know how long I had been out, but when I came to, I was in a room that had to be about a ten-by-ten bedroom with a bed and a bathroom.
I was lying on the bed. I jumped up and ran to the window, but when I got there, it had metal bars covering it, and my view was of nothing but water.
I couldn’t see any landmarks. I have no idea where I am or who took me.
I go to the door and start banging on it.
“Let me out of here! How the hell are you, and what do you want? If it is money, just let me out of here, and I will get you whatever you want,” I yelled, but no one answered, and no one came to the door.
I tried really hard not to panic, but it was getting more difficult the longer I was in there. I had to focus. I would not die in this place. Charles and Sue will know I am missing if they don’t already. He will call the police, and they will come looking for me.