Page 37 of Captive at Rescue Ridge

Travis and Archer together meant Annalee would have to partner with someone else. The thought of being apart sent an icy chill down her spine. Archer had been keeping her alive. It was the only reason for her body’s reaction.

“I’ll take Beau and Annalee,” Hudson said. “They don’t know the way.”

Archer nodded. “She’ll slow us down.”

If she’d expected him to argue for the two of them to stick together, she would have been dead wrong. In fact, he couldn’t wait to dump her off on someone else. It was good to know where they stood.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t force herself to make eye contact. Impulse had her wanting to look into those gorgeous browns to see if he’d truly meant to hurt her with the comment, or if he was just creating a necessary distance between them. Being together over these past hours had affected her, too. Made her want things she knew better than to expect, like real peace and a small family of her own.

Either way, she intended to respect his wishes. She turned to Hudson, her back to Archer. “Ready when you are.”

“I think he meant once we get close,” Hudson said, unaware of the emotional turmoil going on between her and Archer.

“Now is good.”

Hudson stood there for a long second like he wasn’t sure what his next move should be. Archer must have signaled, she wouldn’t know while her back was turned, because Hudson gave a slight nod of acknowledgment before motioning for her and Beau to follow him.

No matter how tempting, Annalee didn’t turn around to get a final look at Archer. She drew on all her willpower to keep her head down and her gaze forward.

With each step deeper into the thicket, her pulse kicked up a notch. Hudson turned around at one point and made a show of silencing his cell. Good idea.

Annalee did the same thing. She assumed the others followed suit. Looking at Archer would be too hard right now. She couldn’t force herself to do it when they were about to get closure on the situation, so she made herself think about how incredible it would be to get her mother back. Could they repair their relationship? There was still time, right?

She’d never broached the subject with her mother. She’d never told her she was dissatisfied with the current state of their relationship. Would it make a difference?

Suddenly, it felt important to try.

However, getting her mother to sit down in one place long enough to have a serious conversation might be a trick not even Annalee could pull off. Surely, this near-death experience would have Becca contemplating what was important in life, too. This would be a good time to have the conversation with her mother that was long overdue in Annalee’s book. For one, no more getting blitzed on holidays. Annalee wanted a sober Thanksgiving and Christmas with her mother. They could cook together, for once. She couldn’t remember the last time they’d done anything remotely mother-daughterly. The image of the two of them baking cookies together would make her laugh under normal circumstances. That might never happen. But throwing together a meal might be a good place to start. Hell, she’d settle for takeout and a holiday movie. No boyfriend allowed, especially not the lowlifes who had been dragging her mother down for years. The wear and tear were visible in Becca’s eyes. The woman looked tired, like she needed to sleep for a month.

Would Becca let Annalee take care of her? Help her straighten out her finances? Hadn’t her mother said she was in debt up to her eyeballs after the last jerk had run up the one credit card that still worked?

Annalee was no financial wizard, but she managed to pay her bills on time, keep a roof over her head, and food on the table.

Maybe they could rent a little house together?

Hudson stopped.

Far in the distance, in between the trees, she saw it. The double-wide trailer. Weeds threatened to overtake the building propped up on cinderblocks. Vines twisted and tangled around fence posts and everything else.

There it sat. Right next to the double-wide.

The barn.

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Archer raised his fist and stopped. This part of the property was overrun with scrub brush and weeds. The back window of the trailer near the kitchen had been busted. It looked like some kid had thrown a rock at it. He could only imagine what the inside must look and smell like. It was a shame to waste this part of the land. He made a mental note to discuss possibilities with his siblings. The talk could wait until after his brother’s safe return.

The barn consisted of two stalls and a storage pantry. From this distance, roughly twenty-five to thirty feet out, he could see the sliding door was slightly open. It wasn’t by much, not more than a crack.

The sun was out, but the barn was dark.

Would the bastard have left Owen and Becca alone? Was there more than one person involved? This felt like a two-person operation at a minimum. One person couldn’t pull off attacking Owen, and then somehow transporting him to this location. Owen was too heavy to carry unless the suspect was a former Mr. Universe-level bodybuilder. His twin wouldn’t go anywhere without a fight, if conscious. Carrying him as dead weight would be easy.

Was there some type of vehicle stashed nearby?

Travis came up beside Archer. The others came around to the right, stopping roughly ten feet away. Annalee hadn’t made eye contact with Archer since he’d requested to split up. The request hadn’t been personal. He would be distracted by her if she was in his group. It came down to being practical and surviving while keeping her safe. In Hudson’s group, she would be close enough for Archer to make a surprise move if needed but far away enough for him to focus without checking on her every two seconds. Split attention could mean certain death. He wouldn’t risk her life.

Or, at least, that had been the idea.

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