The Broken Road (The Broken Series) (37 page)

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I
hadn’t a clue how long I’d slept. One minute I was sitting in the dark thinking
about how to get my arm loose, and the next minute I was waking up in a sun
drenched room. I breathed a sigh of relief when I discovered I was alone. My
eyes locked on the window, which framed pine trees heavily blanketed in snow.

A
loud crash drew my attention away from the window. Something… no
someone
…
was banging around in another room. Heavy footsteps echoed down the hall before
his large frame filled the doorway to my room.

“Hungry?”
he asked.

“Yes,”
I admitted grudgingly. I was hungry, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to eat anything
he prepared. I was worried he might try to drug me again.
My stomach
growled, urging me to throw caution to the wind.

The
doorway was empty once again. I glanced around in confusion.
Now
w
here
did he go?

He
suddenly reappeared, this time with a tray of food. Tendrils of steam rose from
the bowl on the tray.

I
scooted back against the pillows as I sat up in bed. My right arm was still
sore where it had been injured earlier.

He
strode toward the bed, then stopped abruptly. He narrowed his eyes at me as he pulled
the tray against his chest. “Don’t try anything funny.” Shockingly, he didn’t
trust me.

I
pasted a sincere look onto my face. “I won’t. I’m hungry. I just want to eat.”
That wasn’t entirely true, but I wasn’t an idiot. I knew it was what he wanted
to hear. I glanced down at my clothes and my stocking feet as I contemplated my
options.
No shoes.
I shivered, recalling the snow I’d seen outside the
window.

He
closed the distance between us and set the tray on my lap. He backed up two
steps, shoved his hands in his pockets, and stared at me.

I
raised one eyebrow and my right arm, sliding the handcuff up the spindle as
high as it would go. “I can’t eat with my left hand.”

“Sure
you can,” he responded smugly. He turned and walked out of the room.

I
studied the steaming bowl of oatmeal.
I would have thrown it in his
face, had he released my hand. The rational side of me knew that pissing him off
and trying to run away barefoot in the snow was a ridiculous plan; but deep
inside I knew that the dangers I’d face outside were nothing compared to what
lie ahead with this delusional man. He was being nice now, but how long would that
last?

My
stomach rumbled. I sniffed the oatmeal, took a bite, and prayed it wasn’t
drugged. The oatmeal tasted like cinnamon and brown sugar. Nothing tasted out
of place, so I ate a few more bites. I took a sip of orange juice and winced as
my stomach turned. I shoved the tray aside.

I
fell back against the pillows as I pondered my predicament.
How much time
had passed? Had Kadyn discovered that I was gone? Who was taking care of Cade? How
was I going to get away when I didn’t even know where I was?
The questions
and concerns circled around me like vultures slowly picking apart my brain. I
needed answers, and I wasn’t likely to get them if I was lying around in bed. I
sat up and stared at the doorway. “Hey! Are you out there? I need to use the
bathroom!”

He
approached the doorway, folded his arms across his chest, and studied me.

I
steeled myself for an argument. “Look. This isn’t going to work. You can’t keep
me chained up all day and night. I need to use the bathroom. I need to move
around at least a little bit, and I
really
need a shower.”

He
muttered something unintelligible as he approached the bed. He unlocked the
handcuff, grabbed my wrist, and yanked me out of bed, once again wrenching my
arm.

The
pain brought tears to my eyes. Still, I refused to cower. I stared at him
defiantly as I rose to my full height.

“You’ve
got fifteen minutes to use the bathroom and the shower. If you aren’t done in
fifteen minutes, then I'm coming in.” He shoved me toward the bedroom door.

I
stumbled toward the bathroom. I went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and
showered in record time. Sadly, the bathroom didn’t have any windows.

I
was wrapping a thick white towel around me when the bathroom door swung opened.
His large frame quickly filled the small space.

I
pulled the towel tight. I was painfully aware of the fact that the towel was
the only thing standing between me and the man who wanted me desperately enough
to kidnap Diwa.

His
eyes raked over my half-naked body. He shoved a small bundle of clothes at me.
“I brought you clean clothes.”

I
reached for the clothes while clutching the towel against my chest. As the bundle
unraveled, I examined it in shock. “A sun dress? There’s snow outside.”

He
crossed his arms stubbornly. “So?”

I
gave him a look that ensured he knew that I knew he was bat shit crazy. “So… I
guess I’m wearing a sun dress. There are no panties?”

He
smiled maliciously as he snatched up my dirty clothes. “Your powers of
observation never cease to amaze me.” And, with that snide comment, he turned
and walked out the door.

I
had no choice but to wear a sun dress with no bra and no underwear. “This
sucks,” I complained miserably. I slipped the soft yellow dress over my head
and stepped tentatively from the bathroom. I was barefoot and still finger-combing
my hair.

He
grabbed my shoulders and pinned me against the wall. “You make one wrong move
and I’ll handcuff you naked to that bed.” He pressed his body against mine,
proving just how unpleasant that would be. Suddenly, his eyes softened.

He
looked like he was about to kiss me, so I turned my head away.

He
grabbed my jaw and forced me to look up at him. “I’d love an excuse to do just
that,” he stated gruffly. The silence spanned between us as his eyes burned
into mine.  

Slowly,
he released my jaw. He reached for my left arm and dragged me into the middle
of a large living room. The furniture had been carved from logs, just like the
bed. Massive windows ran along an entire wall from the ceiling to the floor,
peaking in the center.

I
took a step toward the windows. I couldn’t resist the breathtaking view.

He
stared at me. Then he gradually released my arm.

I
walked to the windows and pressed my hand against the cold glass. The sky was a
brilliant shade of blue, and there was nothing but snowcapped trees as far as
the eye could see.

“There
is no place for you to run,” he warned dryly. “You leave this house and you
will
die.”

I
turned away from the window and studied him solemnly. “Why?”

He
shrugged. “Because I could.” He turned and walked toward the kitchen. “And
because you refused to give me a chance.”

I
sank into a thickly cushioned chair, feeling utterly defeated. I examined my
surroundings. I couldn’t tell whether we were in a house or a luxury cabin. The
two story living room was quite large, and there were no walls separating it
from the kitchen or the dining area. I wouldn’t be able to make a move without
being seen.

He
returned with a cup of coffee and some toast. “You barely touched the oatmeal.
You should eat.” He set the coffee on the coffee table and handed me the toast
before sitting on the couch. He rested his elbows against his knees and silently
studied me.

My
stomach warred against my brain as I picked at the toast. I couldn’t even feign
interest in the coffee. I seemed hardwired to resist everything this man was offering
me. “What are you going to do to me?” I whispered as I stared down at the toast.

“Everything,”
he replied in a very dark tone.

“
Everything
,”
I repeated hoarsely. My eyes flitted to his as I tried to choke down a piece of
toast. “Are you going to kill me?”

“It
depends,” he responded indifferently.

“On
what?” I asked, suddenly alarmed. I hadn’t thought he wanted me dead. Why would
he go through the trouble of kidnapping me if he wanted me dead?

He
walked back to the kitchen and poured another cup of coffee. “On how hard you
fight me.”

I
refused to acknowledge his response. I fixed my eyes on the view outside the
window, instead.

I
studied the silent, snow-packed mountain and shook my head in disbelief. I
couldn’t believe my life had spiraled back to this. I gazed out over the
evergreen trees, and I knew... no one would hear me scream.

Kadyn
gazed unseeingly at the magnolia trees outside his living room window. He
sighed. The heavy breath was steeped in frustration. It was getting dark, and
he was no closer to finding Kri. He turned away from the window when Mason’s
keys rattled against the door.

Mason
walked in, followed by Cenia, Roger, and Matt. Cenia and Roger were carrying white
paper bags, presumably filled with food. Matt had a bottle of wine, and Mason
was carrying a two liter bottle of Sprite.

“Chinese
takeout,” Cenia explained with a soft smile. “We figured you hadn’t eaten.”

“Thanks,”
Kadyn responded as he followed them into the kitchen. He pulled some paper
plates and napkins from the cupboard and set them on the counter.

Cenia
and Roger began unpacking the food. “Anything new?” Roger asked as he popped
the lid off a plastic container.

Kadyn
pulled some large serving spoons out of a drawer and handed them to Roger.
“Phil has identified Justin Morris as the pilot on the flight out of Leesburg.
He's still trying to track down where the plane went when it departed
Minneapolis. The Flight Service Station is having some difficulty tracking down
the flight plan.”

Mason
filled a drinking glass with Sprite and handed it to Kadyn. He gathered a
number of mix-matched wine glasses from the cupboard and set them on the
counter next to Matt.

Matt
pulled the cork from the bottle of wine. “Well, it should prove easier to find
her now that we know who’s involved.”

“We
need to know where that plane went,” Kadyn growled. He accepted a plate of food
from Cenia. “Thanks, Cenia.” He offered up a half-smile when he saw the shrimp
fried rice.

Kadyn’s
phone rang. He immediately switched over to speaker phone. “Hey, Phil, any luck
tracking down that plane?”

“The
Cessna is currently parked at Sea-Tac Airport in Washington State,” Phil
responded solemnly.

Mason
released a rather impressive stream of expletives under his breath.

Roger
shook his head. “That’s not good.”

Kadyn’s
eyes locked on Roger’s. “She could be anywhere.”

Matt
raked his hand through his hair. “He could have caught an international flight
out of Seattle.”

“Or…
he could have driven her over the border into Canada,” Cenia suggested.

Phil
cleared his throat. “I doubt he’d get away with taking a hostage over the
border, but I’ll run both names by border security. I can pull some people in
to see if either name pops up on the international flights that departed
Sea-Tac today, but this is going to take some serious manpower.”

“What
if she’s in Seattle?” Kadyn asked. “What about checking cab companies, rental
car companies, and hotels?”

Phil
groaned. “There are thousands of possibilities, Kadyn. I think it’s time to
pull in the authorities.”

“I
agree,” Cenia responded. “We're going to need some help with this.”

Kadyn
exhaled loudly. “Fine. I’ll call the Seattle police.” He hated turning control
of the search over to the police, and he wasn’t feeling optimistic about the
amount of time they’d devote to finding her, but he could no longer deny they
needed help.

“I’ll
still reach out to border security and get some people on the passenger lists
for those international flights,” Phil offered sympathetically.

“Thanks.
Let me know what you find,” Kadyn replied.

“Of
course,” Phil responded before ending the call.

Kadyn
called the Seattle Police Department, but they refused to help. He was informed
he had to file a missing person’s report with the DC police before the Seattle
police could get involved. So Kadyn called the DC police. A detective took his
statement over the phone. Kadyn e-mailed the detective a couple pictures of Kri
and agreed to stop by the police department the next morning to finish filing
the report in person.

The
friends ate in silence while Kadyn was on the phone. They cleaned up the
kitchen and offered a few words of encouragement before returning home.

Kadyn
walked over to Kri’s apartment, gathered up Cade’s things, and walked him back to
his apartment so he wouldn’t have to spend the night alone. He and Mason sorted
through additional strategies for locating Kri until exhaustion drove them both
to bed. Kadyn tucked Cade next to his chest as he settled into bed.

Cade
whimpered softly.