Page 52 of Girl Long Gone

A sharp gasp rang from inside the ambulance, and he turned his back to the open door of the ambulance.

She stood on her tiptoes, and her heart lodged in her throat. The bottoms of Monica’s feet flailed on the gurney and sobs floated into the air. She took a step forward, but a hard pinch of pain at the small of her back halted her movement. Hot breath skimmed against her ear and anxiety raced through her.

“Don’t move. I’d hate to ruin Detective Mitchel’s reunion with his sister by shooting his girlfriend.”

Gabriel.

Fear bit into her flesh.

“You’re going to turn around and walk to my car. Be quick before your boyfriend knows you’re gone, or I’ll open fire on all these innocent people. You’d hate to have that weighing on your conscience.”

She wanted to scream, to alert Connor and the police to Gabriel’s presence, but she didn’t doubt he’d kill as many people as he could before they got to him. Connor’s self- defense lessons spun on repeat in her mind, but he never went over what to do with a gun pointed at her.

“Don’t make me hurt you.” Spit spewed from his mouth as he spoke.

He slid his cheek against hers and pressed his lips to her ear. A shiver threatened to shake her entire body, but she clamped her teeth together to stop it. “You’re mine now, my little mouse. I can’t wait to take you home and play with you.”

Evelyn sucked in a deep breath, and bile sloshed in her stomach as she glanced around...and gave one last, silent plea to the universe to send help.

It didn’t come.

Gabriel grabbed her biceps and steered her toward the car. Numbness crept through her like a crack on a windshield spreading slowly from the center. He opened the door to the back of his car, and she sank onto the leather seat. Her heart pounded in her ears. She cast one more glance toward the back of the ambulance. Connor straightened and glanced outside, his gaze gliding across the crowd.

It was too late. He couldn’t see her.

With his hand on the roof of the car, Gabriel pressed into her personal space, and the smell of whisky drifted from his breath. “This time you won’t be so lucky.” In one swift movement, he lifted the gun in the air and brought the butt down hard on her skull.

Stars erupted in her vision, and she faded into darkness.

24

Monica gripped Connor’s shirt, and terror filled her bloodshot eyes.

He wiped the tears from her face. Joy filled his heart, but she still wasn’t out of the woods. “You’re safe now. Everything’s okay. Just calm down.”

Connor jumped out of the ambulance and scanned the crowd for Evelyn as Sanders hurled questions at him. “Listen, I’ll call you when I get to the hospital, okay? She’s not in any state to answer your questions right now. I need Evelyn so we can get out of here.”

“We need to go.” One of the paramedics hopped down and grabbed the edge of the door.

“Wait. The man who took my sister is after the woman I was with. I have to find her now.”

“Fine, but hurry.”

Connor searched for Evelyn. His pulse quickened. Dozens of sets of eyes stared back at him, but none of them were the kind brown ones he needed to find.

“Evelyn?” He shouted her name, pushing through the spectators.

“Sir, we need to leave. Now.”

Connor spun to face the paramedic. “I can’t find her. Did you see where she went?”

“Ms. Price?” Sanders asked. “She was right behind you when we started talking. Didn’t she follow us to the ambulance?”

“I...I don’t know.” He thought he’d seen her hovering nearby when they loaded Monica into the back of the ambulance, but he’d taken his focus off her for one damn second when Monica woke.

“Sir! Are you coming with us or not?” The paramedic slammed the back door closed.

Indecision weighed him down. He wanted to be with his sister, but he needed to find Evelyn. She wouldn’t have just left. She could be in trouble. He couldn’t leave. Even if he wanted to stay with Monica.