“Shit.”
“Wait, what about Mom?” Heather asked.
“She left with Chrissy. It’s all on camera. They took off in a truck registered to the man who I put in the hospital before I came to Hillmore.”
“I don’t understand,” Heather said, tears filling her eyes. “Why would anyone want to hurt Mom? Hurt Suzy?”
“To get back at me.” A wave of guilt slammed against him so hard it almost took him out at the knees. But he couldn’t let it. “I need to let Spencer know about Suzy.”
He found his phone and dialed the number that was now a permanent part of his memory bank.
Spencer answered on the third ring.
Duke didn’t give him a chance to speak. “Suzy’s gone. Heather said the deputy standing guard was here when Suzy stepped in the hall.He’s gone, too.”
Spencer muttered a curse. “How long has he had her?”
“I just found out. Hold on.” He lowered the phone. “Lane, go check the security feed. Check if we can see where the hell she went.”
“On it.” Lane ran from the room.
“Lane’s getting that information now,” Duke told Spencer.
“Let me know as soon as he gets it, but I was just about to call you. We found your mom.”
He locked eyes with Heather afraid to ask for more information. Fear and hope clashed, turning his stomach. “Is she okay?”
“She’s banged up and scared but she’ll be okay.”
His shoulders dropped and for a second, he believed the nightmare was over.
“Chrissy dumped her on the side of the road,” Spencer continued. “Someone stopped and helped her. She’s on the way to the hospital so sit tight. You’ll see her soon. Now we can switch gears and put all our effort behind finding Suzy.”
“What’s happening?” Heather yelled. “What’s he saying?”
“Mom’s on her way here. She’s going to be fine.”
“Oh, thank God!”
He didn’t tell her she’d been dumped like trash on the side of the road. The thought of her scared and bruised boiled his blood.
Lane reappeared in the doorway.
Before Lane said a word, Duke held out the phone and activated the speaker button to reach Spencer. “Lane’s back. What’d you find?”
“The deputy took her. He walked her out a side door then we lost sight of them.”
All the blood drained from Duke’s face. “It’s got to be Carl. He must have found a uniform somehow. What vehicle did he take?”
Lane’s jaw tightened. “Cameras didn’t pick up where they went or what kind of vehicle they were in.”
“If Chrissy had his truck and the authorities are on the lookout for Chrissy’s car, he might not have a vehicle,” Duke said, praying his logic was correct. It’d be much easier to find Suzy if she hadn’t gone far. “Which direction did they head?”
“East,” Lane said.
“That’s the far end of the hospital, away from the road, right?”
“Yes,” Lane confirmed. “There’s a park a mile or so away with a few hiking trails and a lake. It used to be one of our favorites growing up.”
