Plain Retribution

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“We might have a witness to the attack on Holly,” Lieutenant Tucker began.

Every muscle in Miles’s body tightened.

“One of the tenants in the apartment across the street saw a man approach her as she was getting in her car. She couldn’t see his face. He was wearing a mask. But she was able to clearly see that he grabbed the young woman. She struggled, then sagged. He carried her to a van and drove off.”

“Did she get a make? Model? Plate number?” The questions burst out of him. He couldn’t have stopped them if he tried. Granted, he didn’t try.

Lieutenant Tucker shook his head, the regret stamped across his somber face. “Sorry, Olsen. I wish she had. She had just taken out her contacts, and everything was blurry. The only reason she recognized Holly was because she went into the restaurant often and was familiar with all the employees.”

He kept a lid on his disappointment. It was more information than they’d had five minutes ago. “So, on the positive side, we know two things. She was abducted and didn’t leave under her own power. And, more importantly, we know she may be alive.”

“Third,” Lieutenant Tucker added, “it solidifies our suspicion that Miss Miller was attacked by the same person, given that the two women were both attacked by a man wearing a dark ski mask. And there’s more.”

How much more could Rebecca take? His gut tightened as Tucker gave him the rest of the news.

“How much can I tell Rebecca?”

The lieutenant hesitated. “I think we should go ahead and tell her everything. She needs to understand that this is a focused attack so she can stay vigilant.”

Miles agreed, though he so didn’t want to be the one to tell her and see that lovely face fill with fear. But, the flip side of that was he didn’t want her to get the information through an interpreter, whose code of ethics stated she was there only to relay information. That would be such a cold way to learn such hard news.

No, he’d better tell her himself. And he needed to do it now. Waiting wouldn’t make the news any easier.

Nodding to the lieutenant, he left the office and made his way back to the conference room. To his surprise, the other officer followed him. Taking in a deep breath outside the door, he hardened his resolve and opened the door.

And found himself looking straight into Rebecca’s face. He and Lieutenant Tucker moved into the room. The lieutenant sat at the table. Miles moved to stand next to Rebecca. He nodded briefly at Tara, the visual artist, who’d arrived while he was talking with the lieutenant. Then he moved his gaze back to Rebecca.

Her gaze narrowed as she searched his face. He tried to school his features into a blank expression.

“What happened?” she signed.

He needed to work on his cop face.

“I will sign for myself,” he informed the interpreter. “But I would appreciate it if you would voice what I sign for the benefit of the other people in the room.” That way he could turn off his voice and switch totally to ASL instead of the pidgin he was using before.

Without displaying a flicker of surprise, she folded her hands into her lap.

“I was just informed we might have a break in the case,” he signed, then went on to relate the first part of his conversation with Lieutenant Tucker—the information about the witness—to her. The only sound in the room was the low voice of the interpreter.

“So, she might be alive.”

“I’m not going to say yes. I am going to say that I’m almost convinced my original thought was correct. I think your attacker meant to abduct you, as well.”

“I concur,” Lieutenant Tucker agreed after the interpreter finished voicing Miles’s words.

Miles wasn’t done. There was no way to soften it. Better to just tell her outright. Sucking in a breath, he prepared to deliver the devastating blow. He then told her the rest of what he and the lieutenant had discussed. “You remember the pictures you sent me? Holly and Ashley? I told you that I recognized Ashley.”

Dread shifted into her face. She squirmed slightly in her seat. He thought she looked like she was getting ready to run. Unfortunately, there was no escape from this nightmare.

“We found a match for her in the database. Two weeks ago, a woman matching Ashley’s description was found unconscious in Cleveland. She’d been stabbed. The assumption is that either her attacker was interrupted, or he thought she was dead when he abandoned her.”

Rebecca swallowed hard. Her lips trembled. She bit them. “Was her attacker the same person? The person who took Holly? And attacked me?”

She looked so forlorn. Tears were tracking down Rebecca’s pale cheeks. Otherwise, her slim body was still. Shocked. He wanted to comfort her. But there was nothing he could do for her. Nothing except find whomever was responsible and put him away.

“It’s possible, but there’s a lot we don’t know. We don’t even know where exactly she was attacked. The police believe she was moved from the original scene. Until now, they had nothing to go on. No one had reported her missing. I have ordered additional precautions at the hospital, just in case her attacker gets the dumb idea to go after her again. Hopefully, she’ll regain consciousness and be able to give us more to go on.”

Suddenly, she gasped. “Brooke! Is she safe?”

“I intend to find out. And I will let you know.”

“Why? Why is this happening?”

“I don’t know yet. But I promise you, I will not give up until you are safe and the man responsible for terrorizing you and your friends is in jail.”

FOUR (#u4d5356ff-5e68-507c-a43d-f4c143e4bf4b)

She wasn’t happy.

She was scared, mad and moody. And feeling guilty, as she wondered if her escaping from her assailant had led to Holly being abducted. Then she’d remember that Ashley had been attacked, too. So maybe it was all a matter of time before they were each targeted, one by one.

She sat quietly as the car wove smoothly through the winding roads of LaMar Pond back to her apartment. Inside, though, she was anything but quiet. Inside she was a chaotic mess of whirling thoughts. Fear for herself, and for Holly and Brooke, filled her. Miles had already left a message with Brooke’s family to contact him immediately.

The one positive thought was that she didn’t have to go in to work today—she had already been scheduled to have the day off. Not that she would have gone. It would have been more than she could have borne to have gone back into the bookstore today, knowing that just yesterday someone had sat in her car, waiting to pounce on her. Someone who knew who she was and where she worked. Goose bumps broke out all over her. Tomorrow would be soon enough to face that fear. For now, she had to concentrate on going back to her apartment, knowing Holly wouldn’t be there.

She shivered.

The car stopped. Looking up in surprise, she saw they had arrived. She had been so lost in her own mind, she hadn’t even noticed how close they were.

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Miles reach out and shut off the car before removing the key from the ignition. Every movement was quick and decisive.

“Let’s go,” he signed.

Ready or not, she mentally signed. Not. Sighing, she opened her door and followed him to her apartment building. She entered the security code, then they moved inside. They passed Mr. Wilson and his wife on their way up the stairs. The elderly couple moved slowly. Painfully.

All thought of her neighbors fled her mind as they approached her apartment door. The sudden, irrational hope that Holly might have found a way to escape and make her way home sprung up, only to die when she unlocked the door and entered the empty apartment. Holly’s coat was not hanging on the hook, nor were her shoes on the mat beside the door.

But...

She shivered.

“Something feels off,” she signed to Miles.

He frowned, but didn’t mock her, or tell her she was imagining things. Instead, he motioned for her to stand against the wall while he drew out his gun. It still seemed odd to be around someone holding a loaded gun, knowing that he was willing to shoot or stand in front of her to protect her. The Amish didn’t believe in violence. While her father and brothers would gladly put themselves at risk for her, she knew they would never consider shooting another person. Even if they or their loved ones were in danger.

But Miles was clearly prepared to do that.

She tracked him as he moved down the hall to the back of the apartment. He turned at Holly’s room, sliding along the wall.

A movement broke her focus away from Miles. The closet door beside her was opening. Slowly, slowly. Like a horror movie. A sense of horrible fascination held her captive. She watched, dread building up inside her like a wave about to crest. When a large figure dressed in black slipped out of the closet, she broke from her haze. The figure halted, then charged at her, grabbing her in a viselike grip. His muscular hands squeezed her upper arms until they hurt and attempted to drag her toward the door.

A scream ripped from her throat.

Miles tore around the corner, his gun ready. The man jumped in surprise. He literally threw Rebecca at the policeman. Off balance, she sailed across the room, falling as she did so. Strong arms caught her, then let her go. Miles jumped past her and took off out of the apartment, following after her would-be kidnapper. She ran to the door and followed him down the stairs.

In the parking lot, Miles raised his gun again.

He didn’t fire.

The assailant barreled into frail Mrs. Wilson and knocked her to the ground. Agony spread across her wrinkled face. She wouldn’t be getting up on her own power. Mr. Wilson sank to his knees beside his injured wife, his face pale.

The attacker never looked back. He hopped into a van that was idling. Into the passenger seat. An instant later, the van took off.

He had an accomplice. There were at least two people who they needed to track down before she could be safe again. Unfortunately, from where she was standing all she could tell about the other person was that he or she was wearing a baseball cap. The grimness that settled over Miles’s countenance as his gaze met her eyes made her take a step back.

Miles shoved his gun back into his holster and jogged over to the couple, his hand already at the radio attached to his shoulder. Rebecca didn’t need him to sign to know he was calling the 911 dispatcher.

The old man looked up angrily as Miles kneeled down beside the couple. He pointed a harsh, trembling finger in her direction. Uh-oh. She didn’t know why, but the man clearly held her responsible for whatever had happened to his wife.

Miles shook his head firmly. He said something to the man. Both his expression and his body language indicated that he had spoken firmly, but not angrily. Like a man in command. The old man scowled, but backed down. Although his glance cut to where Rebecca stood. Even from a distance, she could sense the animosity simmering beneath his skin.

Before long, the ambulance crew and additional police arrived. The woman was put on a stretcher, then both she and her husband were off to the hospital. Rebecca recognized Lieutenant Dan Willis, brother-in-law to Jess’s husband, when he hopped in his cruiser and followed the ambulance. No doubt to question the couple about the man who had barreled into them while he fled the scene. The man in the ski mask.