“I’m using every resource I have to get you all out of there safely,” he said. “You just need to be patient and stay safe.”
“I know. I just want these girls out of here. If you can get them to release any hostages, it’s got to be the girls who get out.”
“I want you all out safely,” he replied. He asked her several more logistical questions. Then, “I couldn’t believe it when I heard you were in there. I thought you were teaching at a college in Missouri.”
“I was, but I got this offer to work here and I needed a change. These kids...oh Evan, they are wonderful. They are so bright and so loving.”
“Uh... I have to ask this next question... Do you have a spouse we need to contact for you?”
“No significant other.” She looked toward the doorway to assure that she was still safe to talk. There were so many questions she wanted to ask him. They were personal questions that had no place in what was happening right now.
“Evan, are we going to get out of here?”
“We’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen.” She could hear the determination in his voice.
She pressed the phone more closely to her ear and made sure the girls were sleeping. “Evan, I’m scared.” The words fell from her lips before she’d fully realized they were in her head. “I’m trying to act so brave for the children, but inside I’m just as terrified as they are.”
“Annalise, I want you to stay afraid. It might be that fear that keeps you on your toes and alive,” he said.
“I always hated it when you were blunt with me,” she replied with a panic-stricken laugh. A short, awkward moment of silence ensured.
In that moment flashes of the times they’d shared together swept through her mind. He’d always made her feel like a sexy, passionate woman whenever he’d gazed at her with a hunger in his dark brown eyes.
Their backgrounds couldn’t have been more different. He had grown up poor and on the streets of the Bronx while she came from wealthy, nurturing parents in Knoxville. A chance meeting in a coffee shop in Knoxville had been the beginning of a two-year relationship that had ended with her making the difficult, but necessary decision to leave him, and ultimately she’d taken the job offer in Missouri to make the break a clean one.
“Are you still there?” His voice broke through the memories.
“For now, but if Jacob comes back I’ll need to disconnect quickly. He has no idea I have the phone, and he’s got a nasty temper. His wife’s is even worse.”
“For God’s sake, Annalise, don’t take any unnecessary chances.”
“I know it’s been a long time, but maybe you could give me a big hug when I get out of here?” Tears once again burned at her eyes. “I’m sorry, I sound so pathetic.”
“You don’t. You just need to stay strong until that can happen.”
“I’m working on it.”
“Can you tell me if there are any weaknesses in the guards, anyplace or anything we can exploit to get you all out of there?”
“I know they didn’t plan for this. They wanted to get in and out for whatever reason before any police arrived. They’re eating snacks we keep in here for the students, but that isn’t going to last long. I also think there’s some in-fighting among the group.”
“That’s all helpful to know. Anything else?”
She frowned thoughtfully. “I can’t think of anything.”
“That’s okay. You’re doing a great job,” he said encouragingly.
She leaned her head back against the wall. “Evan... I’m sorry about how things ended between us.”
“I have a lot of regrets, too,” he replied softly. “I...”
She heard footsteps approaching from the hall and hit the disconnect button on the phone. She slid it under her thigh just before Jacob walked into the room.
He turned and stared at her with narrowed eyes. Although there were no lights on in the classroom, he was visible from the bright lights shining in from the outside. “I thought I heard talking in here.”
Her heart banged against her ribs beneath his suspicious glare. “I was humming to myself. It’s how I self-soothe in a stressful situation.”
Dear God, she hoped he bought it. If he didn’t, and for some reason he made her stand up, then he would find the phone. She held eye contact with him as her heart continued to race and finally he grunted. “Don’t do it again,” he warned, and then headed to his chair near the window.
She released a shuddery sigh of relief and felt the burn of the phone beneath her leg. It was her lifeline to the outside...to Evan.
Once again she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Images of Evan chased through her mind, images of happy times they had spent together.
She’d known the very first time she’d seen him that he was going to be somebody special in her life. It had been a Saturday morning, and she’d been getting a coffee in her favorite café. The shop was crowded, but she’d managed to claim one of the small, round tables near the front window.
The minute she’d seen him walk in, her heart had jolted. She couldn’t help but notice how good-looking he was. When he’d approached her and asked to share her table, she’d readily agreed. That day they had spent two hours talking together.
She finally drifted off to sleep and dreamed of the midnight picnic under the full moon. He’d surprised her that night. He’d picked her up at her apartment at dusk and then had taken her to his backyard, where he had a blanket spread out on the close-cropped lawn. He’d had chicken salad sandwiches and fresh strawberries, chunks of her favorite cheese and champagne.
In her dream she was in his big, strong arms and he was kissing her with all the passion of a man in love. She’d believed he loved her as
