Page 14 of Captive at Rescue Ridge

She shook her head.

“My mother was supposed to leave a note taped to the table in the corner of our favorite coffee shop in Austin.” The two of them had a lot of favorite spots. Growing up in a gypsy-like lifestyle had a few perks. Being homeschooled by her mother hadn’t been one of them, which was the reason Annalee had insisted she go to regular school when they’d moved to Saddle Junction. She’d had no delusions of becoming the homecoming queen and couldn’t have cared less, but she’d wanted to know what a normal high school experience looked like.

After spending time with Archer, she’d realized their broken parts fit together perfectly, and it had scared the hell out of her.

Even now.

“I’m guessing there was no note,” he said.

“That’s right.” She issued a sharp sigh. “I left a backpack in the woods with a very important object in it. It’s the reason I’m on the run. My mother asked me to hold onto it. In fact, her life depends on me keeping it safe.”

“What the hell could be that important?”

6

“The backpack is key. Can we leave it at that for now?” Annalee asked, causing all kinds of questions to assault Archer.

Before he could respond, she continued, “We need to find it before whoever the hell is after me beats us to it.” The fear in her eyes and the panic in her voice meant she believed Becca would die if Annalee didn’t keep the backpack safe.

She made a good point, though. The backpack might be the only thing that saved Owen. It was their bargaining chip.

“Any idea where you left it?” Archer asked, scanning the area to get his bearings.

“No,” she said with a frustrated sigh. “I’m lost out here, and it isn’t like we can go to the car so I can retrace my steps. Or, at least, attempt to.”

“There’s no cell coverage to navigate our way around, either.” Archer double-checked his phone, just in case he’d hit a magic spot. He gave a small headshake after confirming there were no bars.

The Annalee he’d known and fallen for wouldn’t give up easily. She’d been a fighter then, and he saw the same fight in her eyes now. In the years in between, she’d changed. Everything had. There was comfort in knowing at least a few of the traits that had made her stand out as special to him hadn’t changed.

“But that won’t stop us from trying,” she said, the fight returning to her voice full force. She’d grown up and into an even more beautiful person on a physical level. Her beauty had drawn plenty of attention before. She would stop traffic now if she crossed the street. Hell, she’d cause accidents. This seemed like a good time to remind himself not to get too caught up in remembering all the qualities he’d fallen in love with.

Shifting gears, he cleared his throat. “We have options.”

“Which are?”

“We can circle back to your vehicle and wait to see if the shooter shows up.” He didn’t love the option because it could put Annalee in the line of fire again.

“Do you think they will?” She blinked. “Go back again?”

“I can’t be certain about anything, considering how little I know about the bastard.” There were other options. “We could go back to my truck and survey the damage. See if it’s drivable or if the shooter hung around there.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

Everything was a risk. “I have to find my brother before it’s too late.”

Annalee opened her mouth before clamping it shut again and nodding.

As he analyzed options, he realized just how much they needed that backpack. If the bastard shooter got to it first, there’d be no reason to keep Owen alive. “Without the evidence, we have no leverage.”

“The shooter doesn’t seem to care one way or the other, considering he just fired at us,” she said. “We could’ve been killed.”

“He shot the tires.”

She cocked her head to one side. “Meaning?”

“Whoever pulled that trigger wanted to stop us, not kill us,” he said. “They wanted us alive in—”

“In case I didn’t have the evidence on me,” she cut in, finishing his sentence.

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