Minutes stretched into hours as the van drove. And drove. Each time Rachel thought they had arrived, the van simply set off again.
On her side in the back, Rachel lay still trying to fight off the groggy feeling. Her hands and feet were tied. A rancid cloth had been secured over her mouth so that she couldn’t take a breath or swallow without tasting it. Black fabric—some kind of hood—had been pulled up over her face.
The needle mark in her arm where they’d doused her with whatever made her head swim, still ached.
Alexis. She didn’t even know if her friend was okay.
This wasn’t how she expected her night to have gone. Not by a long shot. And not like being kidnapped was one of the possibilities, but still. She’d had a plan, and this was what she’d gotten? She’d wanted to bring the truth to light once and for all so she could move on with her life.
She had to keep it together. Stay calm. Survive. She’d done it before, and she could do it again.
Bradley. He was in town. She knew he’d talked with Steve at Double Down today. Not that her brother had told her. She was a senator. She could find things out if she wanted—especially when Steve’s assistant had called to ask what her brother’s cell number was. Her feelings for Steve were one thing, the idea Bradley might go to work for him, another. It meant her brother would be home. She could run into Steve at a BBQ, or some other function. Both sent a rush of excitement running through her.
Alexis and Bradley were her family, and she wanted them to be happy. She could have gotten them back together. Everything she wanted had been so close she’d been almost able to grasp it. To clutch it in her grip and make sure nothing ever happened to any of them.
Not ever again.
Now look at yourself. Thinking about Steve brought up another set of spiraling thoughts she had to rein in. It wasn’t worth thinking about him—or the fact he’d had his assistant call instead of calling himself. Like a chicken who couldn’t speak to her himself.
Focus.
The van set off again, and her whole body rocked with the motion. A tear slid from her eye and ran into her hairline.
Survive.
Bradley was here. Her brother would find her.