“Help!”
The woman’s scream was filled with such terror, such desperation, it caused pain to the point I couldn’t move.
“Help!Help!Help me!”
My mind disconnecting, I tossed my tea mug aside and raced to the window.
And froze.
A woman was coming out of nowhere.
She was wearing a stark-white old-fashioned, billowy nightgown.Her blonde hair was down.And she was racing through the wood toward the cabin like the devil was at her heels.
She saw me in the window, reached an arm to me, and I jumped as she was abruptly tackled from behind by a figure that came out of the darkness.
Tonks went berserk.
I hated myself for it, but the tableau before me was so petrifying, I couldn’t move, even as she kept screaming and fighting while she was thrown over a man’s shoulder.
She reached to me again, “Please help me!”
And then another man came out of the darkness, long beard, long hair, dark button up, dark pants, and my blood stilled in my veins as he looked right at me, lifted his finger to his lips, stood there for what felt like an eternity (but was likely only a second), then he turned and loped into the woods.
I turned and dashed to the phone.
Still not functionally computing, I went to recent calls, hit Hutch’s name under Kacey’s as I raced to the front door to check if it was locked.
Two rings and I was racing to the side door.
“Hey, babe, what’s up?”
“Hutch,” I pushed out, shades of her terror and desperation in his name.
“Talk to me,” he barked.
“A woman.In a nightgown.Running to the cabin from the cult.Screaming for help.They caught her, Hutch.They took her?—”
“Did you call 911?”
Oh my God.
What was Ithinking?
“No,” I breathed.
“I’m on my way.”And he sounded like he was running.“Call them.Get up in your bathroom.Lock the door.Call andgo.”
He hung up.
I ran to the stairs calling, “Tonks,come.Come now.”
She darted to me.
My heart cracked because I’d have to hope Moxie was okay if they thought of coming back, but I couldn’t delay this call to look for her or delay getting to the bathroom.
As I wound my way up the stairs, I dialed 911.
I hit the bathroom, Tonks came in with me, and bless her soul, Moxie dashed in after him.
