Maybe she could talk her way out of this.
"How did you find me?" She couldn’t help the way her voice shook.
"Today? I got lucky. You didn't even see me."
He hadn't been driving the Mustang today. She’d scoured every parking spot on Main Street before she’d pulled in. Did he have another vehicle?
"No, I meant here. In Sutter's Creek."
"It's not hard to install a GPS tracker on a vehicle. They're surprisingly cheap when you buy online."
She wanted to close her eyes but didn't dare take her attention off the road. Toby had known all along where she was. She'd never been safe.
"What do you want from me?"
"The same thing I've always wanted. You. Just you."
Somehow, the lack of malice in his words scared her more than anything else. He was talking as if they were having a regular conversation.
"I told you before, I don't feel that way about you."
He shrugged. "You will."
"I could never have feelings for somebody who kidnapped me. It's not right."
He shook his head. "You'll see. Once we get back home, you'll see."
Back home? If he were stupid enough to take her back to Austin, maybe the police would have a shot at finding her. But the unholy light in his eyes made her itch to bolt from the car. She had a very bad feeling that, even if it were Toby’s plan, she’d never make it all the way to Austin.
"I'm in love with Cord."
He smacked her across the cheek with the butt of the gun. It was so unexpected that she lost control of the truck. The tires skidded on the pavement, and she had to navigate back between the white lines. Her face throbbed, as if she could feel blood swelling beneath her skin already. Tears smarted.
"Don't ever talk about him again." Now therewasmalice in Toby's voice. Pure hatred.
She struggled to focus on the road. Her attention spun out. It was too much. Keeping track of Toby’s hand with that gun. Worrying about Cord. Trying to stay alive.
How was she going to get out of this? How was she going to escape?
After two hoursof combing the back roads and weaving in and out of every street in town, Cord pulled off the side of the road. He threw the truck into park and slammed his hands against the steering wheel.
What if Molly had really left him? She’d claimed she had feelings for him, but the little boy inside of him, the one Mackie had beaten and shamed, questioned whether he could really deserve Molly's love.
Maybe she was right to go.
Except the Molly he'd to come to know wouldn't leave without a good-bye. She faced her demons head on. She might've run from Toby, but that was because she tried to get help, and no one had been there for her.
If Molly had left him, she’d have told him straight out. Was it possible he missed a note back at the ranch? He was too far out to get back quickly. He unlocked the display on his phone, ready to dial up Iris and ask her to go over to the ranch house and look for a note, when he noticed a notification for a voicemail.
From Molly.
His heart jumped into this throat, and his finger shook as he hit the icon that would play it.
His heart sank. It wasn't a message after all, just the sound of road noise.
Wait. That was her voice, muffled as if she were far away from the phone.
And a man's voice. Was that Toby? A combination of sickness and anger flushed through him.
