“Gary?” she called again. Her voice was high and thin, as if her heart might pop out of her throat at any second.
Still no answer. No sound at all.
She inched forward, her light on the floor. A centipede wound its way toward her, retreating when she pointed the dim light at it. She watched it on the ground, moving along until it reached the dark edge. Then it disappeared into it. Dominique didn’t understand how that was possible. There was nothing but an abyss that light and bugs disappeared into, a black hole in the center of the basement.
Nana’s voice pushed her on. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
She took a step closer, then another. There was nothing but darkness in front of her. She reached out with the penlight, poking it into the unrelenting black void.
The void rippled.
She jabbed it again. Her hand brushed against fabric. Drapes, she realized. There was a set of blackout drapes bisecting the basement, rendering part of the space invisible. She trained the light on the ceiling. It wasn’t easy to see the track, but once she knew what she was looking for, it was evident.
Running her hand across the drapes, she found an opening. Pulling it aside, she had the shock of her life. There was Gary, lounging on an overstuffed sofa. He had a blanket pulled over his feet. On a table in front of him was a glass of orange juice, an open beer, and the remnants of a bag of tortilla chips. Gary had white headphones plugged into his ears, which were in turn plugged into an iPad. His hands weren’t in cuffs. He wasn’t in any kind of restraints at all.
When he noticed Dominique, he smiled.
“Finally.” He tugged out the earphones. “What took you so long, babe?”
Chapter 12
What the hell is going on here?” Dominique demanded.
“Not much. I’m watching Die Hard again.” Gary looked like the proverbial cat who’d just swallowed a canary. “How’s tricks with you, babe?”
“What…?” Dominique felt her world crumbling under her feet.
“Were you coming down to check on me? That’s sweet. It’s nice to know that even though you wanted to drug me into oblivion, you’re still kind of fond of me. What was that you gave me earlier?”
“It was a muscle relaxant.” She answered automatically, not believing what was in front of her eyes.
“Really? What were you trying to do to me?”
“I was going to tape you saying all the horrible things you normally say about your wife.”
“You were going to blackmail me?” Gary’s squared-off jaw dropped a little. “Don’t you think that’s hitting below the belt?”
Dominique didn’t answer. It was good that Gary had instantly leapt to a conclusion, especially a wrong one. It meant she wouldn’t have to explain, and that was a relief.
Gary sighed. “Never mind. Like Mike Tyson says, everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” He waved his hand at small aluminum fridge against one wall. “You want something to drink? I’ve got plenty of beer, but there’s champagne in the kitchen fridge if you want it.”
“Champagne…”
“You look like you could use a drink, babe. Come sit down.” He lifted the blanket and swung his legs off the sofa. “It’s cozy over here.”
She didn’t want to, but she moved toward him. Her body was on autopilot, and her mind was spinning. “I don’t understand any of this,” she said, reaching the sofa just before her legs gave out under her. “You know a couple of guys kidnapped us, right?”
“Right. We’ve been kidnapped this weekend. Isn’t that perfect? We could use some alone time. Plus, we’re in the middle of nowhere, so you can’t leave.”
“Gary, what’s going on?”
“You look like you just saw a ghost,” Gary said. “What do you want to know? We can play twenty questions.”
“I’m not playing a game. Just tell me what’s going on.”
Gary shrugged. “That’s not a question, you know. But it will be interesting to see your reaction, so okay. Welcome to the wonderful world of kidnapping. It can be done for fun or for profit. For all kinds of reasons, actually.”
She stared at him, her face blank.
“Don’t be so glum. Look around.” Gary gestured expansively with one hand, palm up. “What a nice place for a romantic retreat.”
“Where are we? New York? New Jersey? Connecticut?”
“Nope. We’re not far from the Delaware State Forest.”
“We’re in Delaware?”
“No, the Delaware State Forest is in Pennsylvania. You ever hear of the Pocono Mountains? We’re near them.” He shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter. Point is, it’s Nowheresville. We’re so far from civilization, we don’t even have Internet out here. No phone. So private. So quiet. We’re just in our own little world here. Pretty perfect alibi, don’t you think?”
“Alibi for what?”
“Come on, babe, you’re not even trying.”
“None of this makes any sense. I thought you might be—” Dead, she was going to say, but her eyes filled up with tears and she gasped.
“That’s sweet. You still care. I was kind of wondering.” Gary picked up her hand and kissed it. “I suppose, since this is your first kidnapping, it must be very confusing for you. You had no idea your mission for this weekend was to be a good girlfriend and back me up.”
“You set this up?” She pulled her hand away from him.
“Of course I did.” Gary looked pleased with himself. “Just like I set up everything for my last kidnapping.”
“Your last kidnapping?” Her mind reeled, snapping back into the present with a force that made her body jolt forward. “That time you were kidnapped in Mexico… you arranged that?”
Gary nodded. “I knew you’d figure it
