Hands grabbed her and pulled her back into the deep labyrinth of trees. She didn’t have time to let out a scream before a hand went over her mouth. She could feel herself being dragged deep into the tangle of undergrowth. She couldn’t see the street anymore.
The force that held her was strong. She kicked her feet and twisted her body while clawing at the hand that suctioned over her mouth. The man threw her on the ground. When she landed on her back, she tried to sit up, but his hands went around her neck before she could cry out. She fought for breath as his thumbs pressed on her breathing tubes. The night got even darker as her vision was reduced to a pinhole. She scratched his hands, which made him press harder. She gasped for air.
She could hear pounding footsteps on the sidewalk. A dog barked.
The man dropped her on the ground, kicking her once in the side before running through the trees toward the back of the apartment building. Lydia curled up from the pain. Maren rushed past her with Haven right beside her.
A second later, River was by her side. He gathered her into his arms. Frankie licked her cheek. “You all right?”
“I guess.” The impact of the push and then being kicked had knocked the wind out of her. She’d hit the ground hard. Her back hurt. “Her coat.” She turned to the side where she’d dropped Elsie’s jacket. She gathered it close to her body. “This is Elsie’s. She wore it the day she disappeared.”
“It was a trap to get you here so he could have another crack at you.”
“He’s the one who has her.” The windbreaker was close to her nose. It smelled like her daughter, a mixture of honey and milk. She started to cry. Who had her baby? And was she hurt? When would she see her daughter again?
River took her in a tighter embrace. “Let’s get you back to the car.”
Still holding on to the coat, her knees felt weak. River wrapped an arm around her waist and helped her walk. Once she was secure in the passenger seat, he phoned the police. “There’s a man fleeing in the two hundred block of Catron Street. A K-9 officer is in pursuit on foot. Can we get some more units in the area…thanks.”
Lydia still hadn’t caught her breath. She breathed in the scent of Elsie coat while the soft fabric brushed her cheek. “He’s the one. He has her.”
“Did you get a look at him?”
She shook her head. “It all happened so fast. He meant to kill me. Why?” Holding the coat gave her hope. Elsie was alive.
River’s phone rang. “Maren?”
Lydia could hear Maren shouting something through the phone.
A dark figure emerged from the trees just as River put his hand over her and pulled her down. A single shot came through the window.
* * *
River ducked, pushing Lydia down as the shot rang out. A moment later, still draping a protective arm over Lydia, River raised his head above the dashboard. The windshield was spider-webbed but not broken. He could just make out the dark figure darting up the street, away from the occupied apartment buildings. After getting out of the car, he opened the back door and commanded Frankie to jump out. He made sure Lydia was safely locked inside, then drew his gun and took off running.
When he looked over his shoulder, Maren and Haven had come out of the trees by the building. His feet pounded the asphalt, which was uneven and in need of repair. He could no longer see the man who had just taken a shot at them, so he ran in the direction the attacker had gone.
He’d probably doubled back because his car was somewhere around here hidden from view. The attacker had seen his chance to take a shot at Lydia and fired a single bullet.
River passed a dilapidated house that clearly had not had anyone living in it. He slowed down. He couldn’t see any movement anywhere, nor did he see a vehicle parked where the street came to a dead end and butted up against some overgrown bushes. The pounding footsteps behind him told him that Maren was close.
“You go that way,” he shouted, pointing toward the bushes as he made his way through the falling-down fence that surrounded the abandoned house. The door creaked when he pushed it open. Frankie was one pace ahead of him. She let out a low-level growl.
His feet seemed to echo on the worn floorboards as he moved past the stairway through the living room to what must be the kitchen.
A sound above him caused him to tilt his head. Frankie let out a yip. The sound wasn’t footsteps, more of a scurrying. A mouse maybe.
He stepped into the kitchen. He heard one abbreviated creak of the floorboards and then an object hit him in the back. A second blow knocked him to his knees. The gun fell from his hand. Frankie barked wildly.
He heard retreating footsteps. Before he could get back to his feet, Frankie was moving toward the door they’d just come through. He grabbed his gun where it had fallen and bolted outside.
The attacker was going to take another shot at Lydia.
When he stepped outside, River saw the man only feet away from his car. The attacker took three shots at the passenger’s-side window, then darted up the street toward the occupied buildings.
River could barely take in a breath as he sprinted for his car with the shattered passenger window.
Maren and Haven emerged from the bushes. She must have heard the shots. “That way.” He pointed up the street.
