Don't Let Go (29 page)

“I’m not crazy!” Daisy yelled. The guard grabbed both of her arms and started dragging her away from the bed. “Open your eyes, Ella!”

The door slammed shut behind them. Daisy screamed and kicked and struggled, but the guard was too strong. Pike drew back his hand and slapped her across the face.

The blow snapped her head sideways, and she saw stars. Daisy choked out a sob as Pike leaned in and hissed, “You will pay for that, you little bitch.”

He nodded at the guard, then stalked toward his office. The guard dragged Daisy behind him; she fought hard, but he didn’t even acknowledge the blows.

Pike held the door for them. Dread blossomed in her stomach as she was hauled inside: That awful man from the plane was standing by the desk. Pike snapped, “Your turn to deal with her, Mason.”

Teo had a bad feeling. A few minutes earlier, he’d heard Daisy screaming and yelling, swearing a blue streak. It had definitely been coming from downstairs. He’d had to resist the urge to charge out the door and rush to her aid.

Then, silence. He’d stood with his ear pressed to the door, his whole body tense with fear. If they hurt her . . .

He couldn’t stand it anymore. Whether or not help was coming, they had to get out of this house, now. He just prayed it wasn’t too late.

It was nearly dinnertime; his guard would be unlocking the door and coming to collect him soon. Tonight, he’d be ready for him.

Teo clenched the clock from the mantelpiece in both hands. It was heavy, made of solid brass. His shoulders ached from holding it—if this took much longer, he might not have enough strength left to swing it.

A click as the door unlatched. It slowly opened.

Teo held his breath. He was standing in the shadows behind the door. It was the usual guy, Baldy. He stood at least six-five, with huge meaty arms that strained the sleeves of his black shirt. Baldy peered around the room, muttering, “Where the he—”

Teo swung the clock forward with everything he had. Baldy’s eyes went wide a second before it connected with his forehead. The guard staggered a few steps, then dropped to the ground.

Teo let the clock fall to the floor, gasping from the effort. Baldy’s gun was tucked in a holster—hurriedly, he grabbed it. Teo had never held a handgun before, it was heavier than he’d imagined. And he wasn’t confident that he’d be able to hit anything with it. But if he was going to get Daisy out, he needed a weapon.

Teo peeked into the hall: empty. Moving silently, he made his way down the corridor, toward the room where they’d been holding Daisy.

But the bedroom was unlocked and empty, and there wasn’t a guard in sight. His apprehension built; they hadn’t escorted Daisy back to her room. He tried not to imagine all the horrible things that could have happened to her in the past five minutes, all the ways they could have killed her. He needed to get downstairs.

At the end of the hall, he encountered a second staircase. This one was unfamiliar: plushly carpeted, with a polished mahogany banister. The enormous stained-glass windows above it gathered the dying light and fractured it into hundreds of tiny colored fragments. This must be the main staircase: He’d been hauled down a much less impressive one for meals. Teo quickly padded down it, wincing every time a stair creaked. He checked the second floor hall: also empty.
Where the hell is everyone?

He was starting to despair; Baldy would be coming around any minute now, and he’d sound the alarm. And if all the guards stationed outside rushed into the house, well . . . he didn’t like his chances. There were at least a dozen of them, based on the patrols he’d been monitoring. And he didn’t even know how many bullets this gun held.

Teo fought to quiet his breathing. He was gripping the gun so hard, his hands shook. In the front hall, he heard voices: more guards, coming this way from the sound of it.

“Christ, I hate these kids,” one was grumbling.

“Yeah, me too. I hear they’ll be gone soon, though.”

“Not soon enough. This little punk gives me any trouble, I’ll snap his neck.”

A low laugh from the other guard. Teo scrambled back up the stairs, taking them two at a time. They were heading to his room. He’d let them pass; hopefully that would leave the downstairs hall clear, and he’d have a narrow window to grab Daisy and go.

He reached the landing as the first guy came into view over the banister. Teo hustled back down the hall, checking doorknobs: Every room was locked. He got a flash of kids huddled inside each room—but that would be ridiculous, right? Still, why the hell did Pike keep his entire house locked up so tightly? It didn’t make any sense.

He had to find a place to hide quickly; they were almost at the top of the stairs.

Teo pressed himself into the shadows and started praying.

Suddenly, the door behind him opened, and he fell backward. Someone grabbed him under the armpits and dragged him into the room. Teo struggled for a second, until a familiar voice hissed, “Quiet!” in his ear.

All the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Teo scrambled to his feet as his savior eased the door shut.

“Zeke?” Teo said disbelievingly. “But . . . you’re dead!”

“I wish I could read these myself,” Noa complained.

“Me too,” Peter said. “My throat is killing me.” He’d been serving as her eyes, reading files aloud for over forty-five minutes. He understood her need to finally know everything, but honestly, he was sick of staring at them. Aside from driving, it was all he’d done the past few days.

Plus, he couldn’t stop going over every element of the plan in his mind. Unable to shake the sense that no matter what, it was going to go horribly awry. By this time tomorrow, they might both be dead.

“Sorry,” she mumbled, looking crestfallen. “I know it’s a drag.”

“It’s fine,” he said, feeling guilty. It wasn’t her fault she couldn’t see. “Really, I get it. I just need a break.”

“Okay.” She squinted at the screen, then shook her head with frustration. “I feel so useless. This is torture.”

“It’ll get better,” Peter said encouragingly. “Maybe when you wake up tomorrow, you’ll be able to see what a shithole this place is.”

“Maybe.” She sighed.

Peter rolled his head from side to side to loosen his neck. “I’m still starving. I think I’ll go check out that vending machine.”

“Get me a Red Bull, if they have them.”

“You got it.” Peter grabbed his wallet and went to the door. The clouds had thickened, causing night to fall prematurely. A smattering of raindrops were spiking the pavement. He paused, suddenly uneasy; aside from the hum of traffic on the overpass, it was eerily quiet, especially for this time of day. All the other motel doors were shut, the interiors dark. Even the neon sign that proclaimed
KNIGHT’S INN: VACANCY
had been extinguished.

And the parking lot was filled with dark sedans.

Quickly, he stepped back into the room and locked the door.

“What is it?” Noa asked with concern.

“Time to go,” he said, rushing past her. Peter scooped up the laptop and shoved it in his pack. There was a single window in the bathroom. Small, but they could squeeze through.
And then what? How am I supposed to get a blind girl out of here?
He’d figure something out. Peter threw open the window and hissed over his shoulder, “This way! We’ve got to go, now!”

He was suddenly blinded by the glare of a spotlight. Holding up a hand to shield his eyes, Peter staggered back.

An amplified voice called out, “FBI! Drop your weapons and come out slowly with your hands up!”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“S
it,” Mason ordered. Daisy tried to bolt backward, but another guard had joined the first, and the two of them formed a human wall. Mason rolled his eyes and said, “Please, Miss Stoia. No need to be impolite.”

Daisy’s shoulders slumped with defeat; she was trapped in this room. And after what she’d just done, they’d never let her leave alive. She’d just have to pray that Teo’s plan worked, and that he was rescued. It was already too late for her.
I’m so sorry
, she thought, tears spiking as she pictured his reaction. Wordlessly, she crossed the room on rubbery legs and perched on the couch farthest from Mason.

He smirked, then came over and sat down next to her, too close. His nose was still swollen, and there were fading bruises around his eyes. Mason examined her with those awful black irises. “Has anyone ever told you,” he finally said, gesturing to her hair, “that the blue looks tacky? Shame, because you could be a very pretty girl.”

“How’s the nose?” she asked defiantly.

“Painful,” Mason replied smoothly. “I’m looking forward to having another chat with your boyfriend. Now, then. I understand you took a phone from Ms. Pike’s room?”

Daisy kept her mouth shut, lips pressed in a firm line.

“Who did you call?” Pike growled.

“No one,” Daisy snapped. “We thought it might be a trap.”

“We?” Mason’s eyebrows shot up, and Daisy’s heart sank. Crap. She’d basically just told them that Teo knew about the phone, too. Still fixing her with his cold, beady stare, he said, “Could someone please escort our other young friend down here?”

One of the guards started talking into a radio as he left the room. Daisy chewed on her lower lip, stealing a glance at the clock. They’d figured it would take at least a day for someone to respond to their SOS, and it had only gone out a few hours ago. By the time anyone showed up to save them, it would be too late. If anyone even came.

“So you didn’t call anyone.” Mason’s eyes narrowed. “But of course, there are other ways to contact people.”

Daisy glared at him, refusing to respond.

Pike snorted. “Haven’t you learned by now that the police can’t help you? It doesn’t matter who you contacted. No one is coming.”

“Really, Charles,” Mason said with a sigh. “If you’d allowed me to supervise your guests, we wouldn’t be dealing with this situation in the first place.”

Pike glowered at her. “You’re right. I should have.”

“Well, water under the bridge and all that,” Mason said, waving a languorous hand. “I don’t suppose they’ve been helpful with the Torson situation?”

“We don’t know where Noa is,” Daisy said obstinately.

“Perhaps not,” Mason said, crossing his legs. “But I’m willing to bet you know how to get in touch with her. And Charles has finally agreed to let me use my considerable powers of persuasion.”

Daisy shot Pike a murderous look. “You’re a monster.”

Pike snarled, “I gave you a chance. If you’d just done what I asked, I would have released you.”

Daisy snorted. “Yeah, right.” Mason had her fixed with a predatory gaze; it felt like he was stripping off layers, carving her up. She repressed a shudder. “You were always going to kill us.”

“Not necessarily. I don’t like the idea of killing children. Not even when they’re a waste of the world’s resources.” Pike gave her a thin smile.

“Which leads us back to the issue at hand,” Mason said. “Either you tell us how to find Noa Torson, or you become expendable. I’m assuming there’s some sort of message board?”

Daisy squared her jaw and shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m not very good with computers.”

“Really? A girl your age? I find that surprising,” Mason said.

“We didn’t exactly have a computer center in my trailer park,” Daisy retorted. “If you know so much about me, you should already know that.”

She met his gaze, forcing herself to glare back into the dark pits he called eyes. Was she mistaken, or did he throw her a small smile?

“I believe her,” Mason finally said. “She doesn’t know.”

Daisy released her breath, relieved. “Great. So can I go now?”

“It hardly matters,” Pike said dismissively. “The manhunt will pay off soon enough.”

“What manhunt?” Daisy asked.

Pike came over and bent low, until his face was inches from hers. Daisy shrank back. Pike’s demeanor had completely changed: The kind, caring dad had been replaced by something much uglier. She’d been right, it had all been an act. “Do you think I brought you here, to my home, out of the kindness of my heart? I could have had you killed at any moment.” He snapped his fingers.

“So why didn’t you?” she demanded, trying to keep the quake from her voice.

“Because once your friend Noa arrives . . . and she will, I can assure you of that . . . she might need some persuading. She’s threatened to harm herself before, and I need her alive and breathing. Healthy. So you, my dear, are an insurance policy.”

“She won’t come,” Daisy said.

“She won’t have a choice,” Pike barked.

“Really, Charles. No need to frighten her.” Mason was watching the exchange with what appeared to be amusement.

Pike straightened and stared down at her. His nostrils still flaring, he said coldly, “I only need one of you. Remember that.”

Daisy caught her breath. She was done being threatened, done being scared. Tired of pissy old men bullying her. Before she even realized what she was doing, she was on her feet. She lashed out, slapping Pike with everything she had, leaving an angry imprint of her hand on his cheek.

“My, my.” Mason shook his head. “I must say, I like this one. Feisty.”

Pike’s lips twisted with rage. He shoved hard, hurling her back onto the couch. Daisy slammed against the cushions. “You will regret that,” he said, emphasizing each word. “And so will your boyfriend.”

“They told me you were dead, too,” Zeke said with a wan smile. “Hey, where’d you get the gun?”

Teo blinked, still disoriented. Zeke looked almost the same as the last time he’d seen him, three months ago. Except his hair was shorter, and he was pale, as if he hadn’t been outside much. “I can’t . . . what . . .”

“We can talk about it later,” Zeke said authoritatively. “I heard someone scream. Is Noa here?”

Teo shook his head. “No. That was Daisy.”

“Daisy’s alive, too?” Zeke’s face lit up. “Awesome. What about the others?”

“Just us.” Teo’s mind was still playing catch-up. Zeke was alive, and being held here by Pike, too? How was that possible? He’d seen him on that beach, bleeding out from a gunshot wound. “I thought you died, man. We heard the shots.”