Page 106 of The Ice Sisters

“Are you okay?” Mazie murmured.

No, hell, no she wasn’t. “I will be,” she said, determination kicking her butt into gear. “And you will be, too, as soon as I get us out of here.”

She glanced around the space, her body shivering with cold and shock. The pungent odor of farm animals filled the space although she didn’t see any. But she realized they were in an old chicken house.

“Is my mama okay?” Mazie asked in a pained whisper.

Ellie’s heart squeezed and she hugged the little girl to her. “She’s in the hospital, honey, and the doctors are taking good care of her.”

Mazie breathed out in relief. Ellie scanned the room again for a tool or something to help open that door but saw nothing. She kissed both girls on the forehead, then crawled toward the door. She ran her hand up and down the wall, searching for a lock or keyhole… some way out. But she didn’t feel a door handle.

She pushed and banged at the door, and the wood rattled but he’d obviously locked it.

Dammit, she could not give up.

If Huller returned, she had to be prepared to fight.

A noise sounded outside. A car engine. The van he’d brought her here in?

Where was he going now?

ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-NINE

COAL MOUNTAIN HOSPITAL

He had to finish this and fast. If the cops found that fed and realized the detective had been abducted, they’d be all over the mountain.

But he couldn’t end it without Barbara’s presence. She was the reason he’d done everything. The reason he’d spent his childhood with that monster.

She had to be here for the finale.

Knowing that damn guard was probably standing watch, he’d driven away without her. But he was resilient. He had a plan. He phoned the hospital and told the receptionist who answered he was Barbara’s brother and needed to speak to her so the woman patched him through to her room directly.

A smile twitched at his lips at the tremor in her voice when she answered. “How far would you go to save the girls?”

A tense heartbeat passed, then she said, “I’ll do whatever you want.”

Exhilarated laughter bubbled in his throat. “Then go outside and wait for me at the side of the ER door. I’ll be there in ten minutes. If you’re not there, the girls die.”

ONE HUNDRED THIRTY

Barbara was shaking all over as she found her clothes in the small closet and dressed. She peeked through the edge of the doorway to make sure no one was in the hallway but there stood the deputy. She was tempted to tell him about the call, to have him talk to Detective Reeves and the federal agent but decided against it. She couldn’t take that risk. If Huller saw them, he’d kill Mazie and Ivy.

But how was she going to sneak past the deputy?

She paced the room then had an idea. She threw the hospital gown back on over her clothes, then cracked the door open slightly. “Deputy, I need the nurse. I’ve been pressing the call button for a while and no one’s come.”

“I’ll get one,” he said, glancing down the hall.

“Thank you.” She waited until he disappeared around the corner then eased out the door and down the hall in the opposite direction. She took the back staircase instead of the elevator, gripping the handrail as a dizzy spell swept over her.

Gripping the handrail with clammy hands, she paused and inhaled several deep breaths as she descended the staircase. When she reached the bottom landing, she dashed into thehospital hallway then followed signs to the ER. Keeping her eyes averted, she quickly made her way to the door and outside.

The chill from the wind engulfed her and nerves tightened her stomach. An ambulance screeched up and medics jumped out and opened the rear door. She hurried past them and rounded the curve to the side of the building.

The white van careened up and stopped in front of her. The window slid down.

“Get in,” the man barked.

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