The truck brakes squealed and then the truck’s forward momentum stopped. It was time to get ready. She lifted the pole gingerly, readying herself to strike given the opportunity. She heard footsteps crunching on the gravel surface, heard the latch on the shell being turned and finally felt the cool, moist air as the lid to her dungeon was raised.
One quick jab to the man’s upper sternum sent him reeling backward, but still scrambling to right himself, howling in pain. Shannon slipped her legs through the opening and dropped to the ground. Her feet were covered in mud all the way to her ankles.
By the light of the moon, she sifted through dense foliage, stepping into puddles like little tidepools filled with who knows what. She didn’t even want to think about predators in the area: coyotes or even crocs, snakes and other animals that could be deadly. But she held onto her pole and used it to poke areas she was afraid to step in.
The sound of rustling leaves and branches told her he was following right after her. Shannon knew she would not be able to outrun him, and that this area was probably some familiar place for him putting her at a disadvantage. If she were captured again, she knew she wouldn’t survive the second ordeal, so she crept behind bushes and through ponds to avoid capture, or at least get closer to some roadway to seek help. If she could, she could hunker down until morning, where light would be her friend.
When she no longer heard the brush moving in the distance, she stopped to take stock of where she might be. That’s when she heard rushing water but not like from a river or stream, it was coming from a spillway of some sort at her feet, and she sensed a steep gorge below. Using the pole for balance, she slid down the bank beside the metal culvert, not sure how far it would drop, until she found an area below the culvert that was dry and formed a sort of cave.
Wind started blowing rain into the opening. She moved as far back as she could, still clutching the pole in her now muddy hands, hugging her legs together to make a small ball, and leaned back as far against the back of the opening as possible. She was rewarded with the wonderful feeling of warmth, and the smell of moist loamy soil that seemed to fall all around her, giving her partial shelter from the cold air. Though the rain was heavy, the surface of the terrain remained warm from the hot sun of that afternoon. She leaned into the wall of mother nature’s womb and felt safe for the first time in hours.
Chapter 16
Sunlight poured through the hospital window, covering Marco’s upper forehead and scalp. He blinked, then tried to cover his eyes, but realized his right hand was already hooked up to an I.V. He was confused and startled for a few seconds until he remembered this was to be his surgery day. He turned his head away, searching for anyone else in the room and found it empty, and pushed the buzzer.
Several minutes later, one of the floor nurses came in, with Rhea right behind her. Both were smiling. Marco was starved for some good news.
“They found her, Marco. Early this morning, Kevin and Forest located her hiding in a water culvert.”
“Is she all right? Did they hurt her?”
“She’s fine. Scared, and a little scraped up. She apparently ran through a tule lake, got some enormous bug bites, but nothing that won’t heal quickly. Kevin says she actually looked pretty good for what she’s been through.”
“Thank God.” He took in a deep breath and blew it out, as if that was the end to a very long and painful chapter. “I suppose she’s still angry at me?”
“Not on your life, Boss. She’s grateful they found her. And she knew you’d send out the dogs after her. We caught the guy, too. Art and his buddies located his truck which had gotten stuck in the mud. We had one hell of a rainstorm last night. He was trying to make his way back to the highway on foot when the Coast Guard chopper located him, and Art and the guys picked him up.”
“Who the hell was he?”
“He’s the lead cameraman at TMBC for the evening news. Turns out, he has some history. I’ll let the boys tell you about it.”
“But what about Rebecca?”
“She tried several times to come back here and talk to you. I managed to convince her to tell me what was so important. She knew this guy was a whacko, had run into him on the street when he told her he was working on some breaking news regarding your project. He told her he was a reporter there. She spilled the beans on all kinds of stuff about you and Shannon, what she knew, anyway, and that’s how he figured out how to get to her. Technically, Rebecca is an accessory, but I think she didn’t realize she was being used until she ran into him at the station, looking for Jared.”
“I’m not holding my breath. I don’t think her claws retract. She’s still committed to ruining me, for some reason.”
“Woman spurned.”
“Except she did the turning away. I don’t buy that for a minute.”
“Well, just forget about it. You’ve got to get ready for your big day, and then after that, a reunion with Shannon. So, I just wanted to let you know. Decided since it was good news, I’d let you sleep. Doctor’s orders.”
“Thanks. Where’s Dax?”
“She went over to be with Shannon. I mean, the cops must take pictures, process everything. She’s in for an ordeal before she can get cleaned up and get some rest. I guess Shannon’s friend, Judie is meeting them at the station to help as well. She’s got good support. She’ll be fine. You worry about you.”
Marco looked at the nurse who was injecting something through his I.V. “This is to help with the surgery so just relax. Dr. Patel will be in shortly. We’ll get you down to surgery right after. How do you feel?”
“Hungry.”
“Any pain?”
Marco looked between his legs. Rhea scrunched up her nose and upper lip. “Ouch,” she said.
“Well, I’m sorry. Can’t do anything about that unless you want me to look. I can pull the curtain,” the nurse said with a smirk.
“No, thank you. I’ll have the doc do it.” Marco’s irritation was rising. He wanted his life back.
“How are the princes?” he asked Rhea just before Dr. Patel entered.
“Sleeping off a bender. You owe Pete and Ron a nice, quiet vacation after this. With the girl, I guess it was quite a scene.”
“But no trouble, right?”
“Reckless, but no trouble. Honestly, for being bright guys, they sure don’t seem to act like it. We’re to call over there when you’re out of surgery. I think they’ve been instructed to pay their respects.”
“Just what I need.”
“Except you’re gonna have Shannon back, Boss. That makes a difference, doesn’t it?”
“If she’ll have me.”
Dr. Patel, who had been writing in Marco’s chart, moved closer to the bed. “Okay, Marco. We’re ready. I understand the team had success last night. So, all’s well with your future?”
“I hope so.”
“Looks like you’re going to owe some pretty big thank yous. I’m glad it worked out. So now we must focus on the next big hurdle. There is always the chance that the knee repair will result later in a total knee replacement, but we’ll see how well I can get you fixed up. And always there is the possibility that this new surgery will exacerbate the femur stabilization. So, let’s keep our fingers crossed. You think about all the good things in your life you have to look forward to, except perhaps running marathons, and ask your little healing angel to give you a hand.”