Page 51 of Shattered
When Zelda brought Flynn to the car, she gave me a curious look. I couldn't blame her, not only was I in a stranger's car but I was sitting there in Drew's passenger seat still wearing my pajamas.
"Everything alright, Harper." The older woman's gaze flicked between me and Drew.
I gave her a reassuring smile and said, "If you could just call Logan and let him know I've already picked up Flynn that would be great."
"Dammit, Sarah," Drew gritted out from beside me. He leaned over and I felt the unmistakable feel of his pistol dig into my side. With as much sweetness as Drew could muster he addressed Zelda, "We're kind of in a hurry if you don't mind…"
Her smile was weak but still, she opened the back door and loaded my boy into the car. My heart plummeted, I was hoping Drew would get agitated and leave without Flynn.
The moment the door closed Drew stepped on the accelerator, the momentum of his speedy pull-away pushed me back into the seat.
"Mommy?"
That one word just about broke my heart. In all the years and places we had lived I had never, not once, heard that fear in my little boy's voice. I needed to somehow reassure Flynn that I wasn't going to let anything bad happen to him.
I reached around the seat until I felt his little hand in mine. I squeezed as hard as I could, "It's okay, baby. We're just going for a drive, okay?"
Drew opened his mouth but before he could speak, I leaned over to him and whispered, "He's five and he doesn't understand what's happening right now." I could just hope that some part of that man was still human enough not to want to frighten a scared little boy even more.
Drew gripped the steering wheel in a white-knuckled grip, but surprised me when he didn't say a word. As we continued on our way out of town, I prayed for courage and strength to do what I needed to do when we reached our destination.
It wasn't long before we turned onto a narrow dirt road, shadowed by the enormous trees of the surrounding woodlands. After about ten minutes we reached a little cabin that was completely isolated. You didn't have to be smart to know why Drew had picked this place.
I knew two things without a single ounce of doubt: I wasn't that same weak woman Drew used to push around and there was nothing I wouldn't do to keep my boy safe.
The ten-minute drive back to Eli's office felt like ten hours, especially when every single second counted. Once I arrived, I didn't even bother switching off my engine; I just hopped out and sprinted into the building.
I was vaguely aware of officers yelling after me, but I honestly did not have the time to stop and explain the situation to them. Eli was busy on the phone again, so I did what anyone in my position would do; I pulled the receiver from his ear and dropped the call.
"What the-"
"What car does Drew Mercer drive and what the hell does the bastard look like?" I knew I sounded manic, and I didn't give a damn; my girl was in trouble. I couldn't even stand still; pushing my fingers into my hair I started pacing in front of Eli's desk. "I shouldn't have left her alone this morning," I mumbled to myself.
"Logan, what's going on?"
I stopped my pacing mid-step and glared at my brother, whose confusion was evident on his face. "Harper is gone." I heard the blame in my voice. "Her place is a mess, and she's nowhere to be found. Mrs. Jensen saw her leave with a blonde guy and apparently she did not look happy about it."
Just then my cell rang. I was about to dismiss the call when Zelda's name flashed across the screen. My heart stopped beating. With an unsteady finger, I poked the green button on my phone. "Zelda?" My throat constricted and my voice came out hoarse.
"Normally I wouldn't bother with things that aren't my business," she started, sounding nervous. "Harper just picked up little Flynn, but something seemed off, Logan. I can't be sure but she looked frightened."
I closed my eyes and tried to calm my breathing and my racing heart. "Hold on," I pulled the phone from my ear and pressed the little button that put it on speaker. "Can you say that again, Zelda?"
As Flynn's teacher repeated what she'd just told me, I saw the blood drain from Eli's face. I'd had a feeling that my brother was responsible for that bastard finding Harper, my suspicions were confirmed.
I ended the call and slammed my palms down on Eli's desk. Leaning over, I ground out, "What the hell did you do?"
My brother shook his head in disbelief, "I sent that email months ago, dammit, I thought she was a fugitive." He looked up at me, his eyes wide. "He is a detective, Logan. How the hell was I supposed to know?"
"You could've just asked her but instead you led her nightmare right to her front door." Fear reached out, wrapped its cold fingers around my throat and squeezed. "You have to help me find them, Eli. I can't lose them."
"You won't," my brother promised. His fingers flew over the keyboard of his computer and a minute later the printer in the corner started spitting out pages. Eli grabbed the papers and handed me two. I stared at them as he spoke, "A guy like that will surely stick out in our little town. We'll ask around, maybe someone has seen him or knows where he's staying. There's only one road leading in and out of town, I'll send officers."
I left the Sheriff's Office feeling both determined and helpless–what a combination. My first stop was the shop where I found Brett working on Lizzy's yellow beetle.
"Someone has to tell that woman that this car needs to be retired," he said by way of greeting. When I didn't answer him, his head popped up from under the hood. "You okay, man?"
I shook my head and proceeded to tell him the short version of everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. With a low whistle, Brett took the papers from me and studied them.
