“Leia!”
“She can’t hear you, Beverly,” I yelled. “The girls are safe and won’t unlock that door for anything but their Daddy.”
I prayed that the girls could hear my voice and understand that I was telling them that no matter what they heard, they should leave the door locked.
As if there wasn’t enough chaos around us, my phone started ringing from my purse. I glanced down at it and knew in my heart it was Rowdy calling to see what to pick up for dinner. The phone rang until it went to voicemail and then immediately started ringing again.
“Don’t you dare answer that phone!”
“If I don’t answer it, he’ll think something’s wrong and call the police.”
“He wouldn’t dare!”
“He’s all the way in town, Beverly. He’s working and can’t get away. If I don’t answer, he’ll assume the worst and the police will come right out. If they do, you’ll never get to meet Leia or hold your baby again.”
I wondered where in the hell this woman had gotten a baby in the first place, but shook that thought off. I had a plan to save us, I just needed to keep Beverly talking until I could warn Rowdy and maybe even get him out here to distract her.
The phone started ringing again and I watched Beverly’s face.
“You can answer it, but don’t tell him I’m here. I want it to be a surprise. Just act like everything is normal and talk to him like you always do. If you warn him, I will shoot you in the fucking head.”
“Okay,” I nodded as I scrambled to get the phone out of my bag. “Whatever you say.”
“Hey, Rowdy Roo,” I purred into the phone. “Sorry I didn’t pick up when you first called, I was in Buttercup’s stall giving her some carrots.”
“You what?” Rowdy asked me, confused.
“Yeah, she and Thumper were all worked up, so I thought I’d give them some treats to make them happier. Orange is their best color, you know,” I laughed shrilly.
Beverly glared at me and I just shrugged my shoulders like I was stupid enough to really follow her directions.
“What the fuck is going on, Sierra? Buttercup? Thump… ,” Rowdy kept talking but I interrupted him. I knew he would understand when I mentioned the horses names. We had jokingly talked about naming our mares sweet names like that and had discussed all sorts of Disney names, but decided to go with Rowdy’s theme of female singers instead. My horse was Stevie Nicks, Leia’s was Aretha because she had always loved her songs, and Leia had chosen Dolly because she loved the song “Hard Candy Christmas.”
“Yeah, sure,” I said into the phone. “Um, get me that salad I like from there. The one with the fresh raspberries on it. Would you ask them for extra raspberries since they’re my favorite? I’ll pick my tomatoes off and give them to you.”
“Someone’s there,” Rowdy whispered.
“Oh, and did you get the batteries for the emergency radios? I know Leia was messing with them and trying to call and talk to Jewel or somebody over there and the batteries were messed up.”
Beverly waved her hand, motioning for me to wrap it up.
“Are the girls safe? Are you saying they’re in the shelter?”
“Yeah, well, I’m still in the barn so I’ll just wait here for you until you come home.”
“Is it Beverly? Is she alone?”
“Yeah. You know how much I love the horses, so I’m going to let you go now. I love you so much, Rowdy. I’ll see you soon.”
I flipped the phone closed and clutched it in my hand.
“He’s on his way to pick up food and then he’s going to be here. Shouldn’t be long now.”
“Okay,” Beverly narrowed her eyes. She grabbed my phone and opened it before she bent the earpiece all the way back and snapped the phone in half. “I thought for sure you were going to warn him somehow, but I guess you’re just too stupid to figure out a way.”
‘Oh, bitch, if you only knew how good I was at being the victim who plays along until she finds a way to rescue herself and her baby, you’d have me tied up or dead by now,’ I thought to myself.
◆◆◆
ROWDY
“Holy fuck!” I yelled as I snapped my phone closed. “Fuck!”
I ran from the back room through the open area area Jace used as his studio and headed toward my truck at a dead run.
“What the hell is going on?” Hank asked me as he jumped up from the chair he had been sitting in while he visited with Jace. He put his arm out to stop me and I shoved him away.
“Beverly! She’s at the house. Sierra couldn’t say it, but she was saying weird shit and I knew something was wrong, so I guessed. She’s holding Sierra in the barn, but I think the girls are locked in the storm shelter.” I jerked to a stop and opened my phone up to call Grunt. While the phone rang, I prayed that he was home.
“Sup?” Grunt answered.
“Leia’s mother is at our house. She has Sierra in the barn. When I talked to her on the phone, she said that Leia had been playing with the radio and had run the batteries down. I think the girls are in the shelter. If they are, they’re trying to raise either you or Nicole on the walkie.”
“Fuck. Let me grab it,” Grunt’s breath was heavy as he started running and I could hear his kids yelling in the background at his house. He started yelling and I knew he was talking to his kids and not me when he said, “Get in the house and lock the fucking doors! Spruce, call Lout and Kale. Tell them to get here now and to do it quietly.”
I heard Grunt’s oldest son say, “Yessir,” and then only Grunt’s breathing again and thumping as he took the wooden stairs down into the basement
