The man was one of the thugs who had threatened Stephanie in her shop. The bald one.
“If you don’t want me to shoot your girlfriend, do exactly what I say.”
Craig went still as he looked from the man to Stephanie’s terrified face.
“Don’t hurt her.”
“That’s up to you. Play this smart, and everything will be okay.”
He doubted it, but he asked. “What do you want?”
Without answering the question, the man said, “Walk ahead of us down the driveway, then turn right.”
Craig’s heart was pounding as he followed directions. He walked carefully, knowing that any false step could get Stephanie killed.
As they headed down the sidewalk, he kept searching for a way out. What if a neighbor came out of the house? What if someone called the police? Craig prayed thatsomethingwould happen. The big problem for him was that Stephanie and the guy were in back of him, and he couldn’t see what was going on back there. If he moved on his own, she’d get shot.
Desperately he tried to reach out to her with his mind, but he couldn’t make contact across the space that separated them.
“Stop here,” the guy ordered as they drew up beside a van that could have been a delivery truck. The only windows were in the front. The entire rear compartment was a solid wall.
The other man, the one with the wavy hair, opened the door at the back of the vehicle. “Get inside,” he ordered.
Craig hesitated, thinking that if he followed directions, he’d lose control of the situation.
“I said get in.” The man behind him gave him a shove, and he flew forward, striking his head against the bare metal floor of the interior compartment.
His head hit the floor so hard that he saw stars. Behind him, he heard Stephanie cry out.
“Shut up,” the man with the gun growled.
Craig fought to stay conscious as the man flipped him on his back and pulled his hands behind him, quickly securing them with tape. He did the same with his legs, then rolled him back over and banged his head again, sending a wave of pain through his skull.
“Easy,” the other guy complained. “We’re supposed to deliver them in good shape.
“Yeah, well, that’s for mauling me this afternoon,” The curly-haired one answered while he tore off more tape and slapped it over Craig’s mouth.
He was still trying to clear his mind as the bald-headed man shoved Stephanie into the van.
She gasped as he pushed her to the floor and began taping her the way Craig was already taped.
He was silently screaming, wracking his brain for some way out of this, but he could come up with nothing.
When both of them were secured, the men climbed out of the van and slammed the door closed, leaving their prisoners in the dark.
Craig struggled to think clearly, struggled to send Stephanie a silent message, but he couldn’t reach her mind.
As the vehicle lurched away from the curb, he sensed Stephanie moving beside him. Through the fog in his brain, he realized that she was wiggling her body closer to his. Finally, her right shoulder and arm were pressed to his left.
He felt her fear and also a spurt of hope as his thoughts collided with hers.
Are you all right?she asked urgently.
Yeah, he answered, knowing that she immediately picked up on the lie.
She rolled so that her body was half on top of his, and they pressed more tightly together. When she moved her cheek against his, he longed to raise his arms and fold her close. But the tape prevented that.
Still, as he absorbed the physical and the mental contact with her, he felt a profound sense of relief.
