She made note of a couple of outbuildings that hadn’t been on the list she’d given Jake to start. Then, placing the tip of the pen on the carousel, she drew a smaller circle inside the boundary she’d already created. The line ran straight through the Ferris wheel standing silent sentry next to her, to the duck pond game and through the kiddie rides.
Flexing her jaw, she lifted her head and looked out over the midway. “I see you,” she whispered to her unseen terrorist.
Max made a soft, inquisitive noise. It reminded her of old Scooby-Doo cartoons. The canine vocalization of a question mark.
“I think we’re getting there, buddy.”
The dog turned his head, as if awaiting a command, but did not move from his post.
Cassidy stared down at the map again, willing the key to this puzzle to come to her. “They’re getting closer,” she said distractedly. “What’s next?”
Beside her, her phone buzzed, skittering along the bench.
She jerked as if struck by a bullet. The cell Bud had brought to her was not the device lighting up. It was her phone. A text notification blared across the screen. Dread pooled in her gut. “Oh no.” She reached for the device. “Why can’t you leave me alone?”
Max keened softly and moved closer, his amber eyes liquid with concern.
She opened the messaging app and found two terrifying words glaring back at her.
I’m bored
A choked laugh of disbelief escaped her. She pressed a hand to her chest, but it did little to quell the hammering of her heart. “Dude, this is your idea of a good time, not mine.”
As if sensing the uptick of tension in her, Max moved to sit directly in front of her, his backside planted firmly on her toes. She gave the dog a puzzled frown. “You trying to hold me captive, too?”
Then something changed.
At first, she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. A breeze blew her hair back from her cheek. She looked up at the cables and trailers scattered along the back of the midway. Something was different. It was definitely breezier than a minute earlier. Was there weather moving in? Without thinking, she glanced up, but the canopy of the carousel was now her sky. She turned to look out at the concourse and found the sun was still shining brightly.
Max’s toenails clattered when he shifted, throwing his weight into her. “Hey now,” she chided.
And then it all clicked.
The carousel was moving faster.
Whipping her head around as they sailed past the controls, she expected to find someone standing near them. But the area around the ride was clear. She locked on to the damaged food stand, silently counting the seconds as she zipped by.
She wasn’t imagining it.
Max sat with his front paws splayed wide, struggling to hold his ground against the increase in centrifugal force. Cassidy placed a hand atop the shepherd’s head, unsure if she was trying to steady him or herself. Either way, it seemed to help them both.
“Someone hit the gas, huh, boy?” Head swiveling, she scanned the entire three-sixty view for anyone who might be responsible for the sudden acceleration.
Then her phone buzzed.
Another message from another number.
Turns out time doesn’t fly when you’re having fun. Let’s speed things up.
“Oh no.” A part of her wanted to surrender to what felt like the inevitable outcome. Give up. Give in. Throw in the towel and tell whoever was doing this they’d won.
She was over it. And if they asked for something—anything—in moment, she would concede to their demands if it meant an end to the torment.
But they’d made no demands, only taunts. There could be no negotiation because they’d asked for nothing. Was it truly possible they only wanted to torment her? What had she ever done to deserve this? And how, if she was the target, could she make it all stop? At this point, she’d gladly give herself over to whatever outcome the perpetrator deemed optimal. But this needed to stop. She needed to get off this ride.
As if sensing the conciliatory direction on her thoughts, Max turned his head and placed his large muzzle on her thigh. Cassidy found herself staring into his stern, vigilant expression, and all thought of concession fled.
He wasn’t giving up.
