Hunted (32 page)

Alex sat in a chair, leaning both forearms on the table. His head lowered to Jake’s eye level. A smug grin lifted the corners of his mouth. “Hello, Jake.”

Jake glared, not bothering to disguise his contempt. “I want to go home. I want my mom.”

“Jake, you know I want nothing more than to reunite you with your mother. You’ve seen this. But she’s proving hard to locate since we lost her in Minnesota. I’m beginning to think she doesn’t want to find you.”

Jake slammed his fist on the table, sending eggs flying into the air. “That’s not true.”

Alex tilted his head, his face remaining expressionless. “Has she tried to locate you?”

Jake’s expression wavered.

A grin spread across Alex’s face. “She has.”

“No!” Jake’s chest burned.

“Jake, if I tell you where we are, you can tell her and she can come and get you.”

“You’re lying.” Electricity shot down his arms.

Alex studied him, yet didn’t look frightened. “If you don’t believe me, look into my mind. You’ll see it’s true.”

Jake reached out into Alex’s consciousness. It was different than before, puzzling Jake, but he pushed deeper, looking for his answer. His eyes widened in surprise. It was true. Alex intended to let him go with Emma. As he made the discovery, Jake realized Alex had pushed back, into Jake’s mind, scanning and searching before Jake panicked and shut down his thoughts. He shrank back in his chair, frightened.

“You’re right,” Alex said, his face blank. “I’m different. I can read your mind and do other things, too.” He bowed his head slightly. “Thank you. Your thoughts were
most
helpful. The next time your mother reaches out to you, tell her you’re in Montana. White Horse, Montana. Tell her Alex said to come and get you.”

He stood and turned to leave. Jake’s fear turned to rage and before he could stop himself, he shot a ball of energy toward Alex, but it stopped at his back, dissipating in the air. Alex turned and winked, his mouth lifting into an evil grin. “That was one of the other things.” Then he walked out of the room.

Jake jumped on his bed and crawled under the covers, clutching Rusty to his chest. Tears welled in his eyes. He struggled to hold them in, finally releasing them in gulping sobs into the pillow. As he calmed, his mother called out to him, her words a warm comfort to his fears. He pretended that he sat in her lap, her arms wrapped tight around him. Her voice became frantic.

“Jake, please,” she begged. “Talk to me.”

He hiccupped, torn in indecision. He wanted his mommy so much. He had never wanted anything more. Yet, he knew Alex was bad. Even
he
had said so. What if Alex hurt her?

He’d let his guard down and she picked up on his thoughts. “Jake, Will is with me. Alex can’t hurt me. Tell me where you are.”

“He’s different. He
can
hurt you.” His tears fell again. He didn’t mean to answer.

Her relief washed over him. “It’s okay. I’m different, too. I can take care of Alex and so can Will. Will even has his friend James with us to help. We can protect you, you just have to tell me where you are.”

Jake didn’t know how Mommy could take care of Alex. Not this new Alex. But Will had guns. Maybe guns could take care of Alex, though something deep inside told him bullets weren’t enough. Could he take the chance?

She sensed his indecision and her tone became desperate. “Jake, baby,
please
. Tell me where you are. Are you in Montana? We think you’re in Montana.”

A fat lump lodged in his throat and he struggled to swallow his fear. “Yes,” he whispered into the darkness.

Warmth and love covered him with her presence. He realized that the more he let her in, the more he could feel her. “That’s good, Jake. Do you know where in Montana?”

He buried his face into his pillow, sobbing anew. He couldn’t tell her. He couldn’t risk it. But his guard was down and she rushed into his mind and she knew, without his even saying it. He clamped down, completely shutting her out, and she was gone.

***

Emma sat up in the backseat with a jerk. “Oh, God. I know where he is.”

Will turned to face her, wide eyed. James stared at her in the rearview mirror.

“He’s afraid.” Her voice broke and her eyes burned. “He’s in White Horse, Montana. Alex is with him.” She paused, the full impact of what she saw hitting her. “He told Jake to tell me to come and get him.”

Will’s face turned red as his jaw tightened. “That son of a bitch has nothing to worry about. I’m coming to get him, all right.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Will took a deep breath and told himself to calm down and focus. He had to come up with a plan and the first was to get to White Horse. He and James plotted a route to the northwest corner of Montana. The drive was simple enough, just long. They’d be in the car all day. Which gave him plenty of time to scour the book.

He pulled it out of his backpack and studied the leather binding.
The Complete Essays of Lorenzo de Luca
emblazoned the front in gold letters. Opening the cover, he found the title page and behind it the first page of text. It didn’t have a copyright page to tell him the book’s age, but it had obviously been printed for the Vinco Potentia.

Will scanned the pages one by one, carefully separating the pages that stuck together at the edges from the rain. The book contained the papers of the 18th-century Italian philosopher. Senator Warren had told him that most of the papers were rubbish and he was right, until the last quarter. The previous pages contained the English translation of de Luca’s work, but the last several pages of the book were written in a language Will didn’t recognize. Will found Warren’s version of the prophecy in English printed below the undecipherable text.

Will found the drawing of the mark on his arm, the preordained mark of The Chosen One. The final proof to Warren that the prophecy was true, but the irony was the Vinco Potentia had it wrong. Their version of the prophecy was different than the one Jake gave him.

He looked over his shoulder to Emma. “I’m not sure...”

She slumped in the seat, staring out the side window. Dark circles underscored her eyes and the bruise from her injury spread across her forehead in dark purples. Her head turned at the sound of his voice, her eyes welling with tears and her words came out in a raspy whisper. “He’s scared.”

Will’s heart lurched. He turned in his seat and took her hand in his. “We’re going to find him, Emma. I swear it.”

She nodded, a tear sliding down her cheek.

He turned back to the book with a renewed purpose. Even when they got Jake, this whole nightmare wouldn’t be over. He needed the information in the book to help dig them out of it.

But, after an hour of reading, he knew they needed more. Other than the vague list of foretold events, there was little new information. Will couldn’t believe the Vinco Potentia had so much hinged on so little. He couldn’t even figure out how they tied Emma to all of this.

***

James drove for several hours while Will napped, then Will took over. Emma tried to sleep but every time she closed her eyes, the memory of Jake’s fear rushed in and stole her breath.

They reached White Horse before nightfall, but Will continued driving to the next town, Spruce. Emma protested, demanding they stay in White Horse but both men agreed that it was too dangerous. If Alex was waiting for her, it was bound to involve a trap. As they drove through, Emma pressed her hand to the window, calling out to Jake in her mind, telling him they were close. When she felt his wall, she steeled herself and refused to cry. She was too close to him now to break down.

They found a secluded campground with a cabin available. It was farther from White Horse than she liked, but Will insisted on the distance. The location reminded her too much of staying in the lodge with Raphael. But she couldn’t voice her opinion without dredging up a host of feelings and reactions she couldn’t handle.

They rented the last one-bedroom cabin, which was set back at the edge of the forest with a view of the lake. The campsite lay closer to the water’s edge. Will and Emma carried their bags into the cabin while James shopped for dinner at the small campground store.

Will dropped their bag in the only bedroom. “We’re taking this room and James gets the sofa. If you want to go lie down for a little bit and rest, I’ll let you know when dinner is ready.”

Emma shook her head. “No, I’m too jumpy to sleep. Maybe I can after I eat.”

“How’s your head?” he asked, lifting her hair off of her forehead.

“It still hurts, but it’s better.”

“You sure you don’t want to take some Tylenol?” Worry lines crinkled around his eyes.

“No.” She glanced toward the door to make sure James hadn’t returned, then lowered her voice. “I don’t want to take anything because of the baby.”

His hand lingered on her cheek as he searched her eyes. He lowered his head and kissed her gently. “I’m just worried about you.”

She smiled and wrapped her arms around him. “I know. Thank you.”

The front door swung open and James groaned. “God, get a room,” He carried a bag full of groceries and he kicked the door closed behind him.

Will sighed into her hair. “Hey, Einstein. We did get a room.”

James grumbled as he unpacked the bag. “Hope you like spaghetti because that’s what you’re getting.”

“No complaints,” Will said.

Emma didn’t answer, sure there was no right answer as far as James was concerned.

Will took a jar of sauce from James. “I’ll take over cooking dinner. You go find out everything you can about White Horse.”

James camped out at the kitchen table while Emma sat on a barstool at the kitchen counter, watching Will work in the kitchen.

They ate dinner in silence, the room thick with tension. James resumed his work while Emma helped Will clean up the kitchen. They fell into a comfortable rhythm and she let her imagination wander to the daydream of a normal life, with a husband and a family. She and Will, with Jake and the baby. A cute little house with a picket fence. She watched Will dry a plate and her heart strained with the possibility of it all. In front of her was the chance at everything she’d ever wanted. She handed Will a plate and he caught her wrist in his hand, wrapping his fingers around her. She looked into his face in surprise.

“I’m going to get him back, Emma. I promise you.”

She bit her lip as she struggled with her emotions. They were so unsettled around Will, she was no longer sure of anything. “I trust you, Will. I know.”

He leaned down and kissed her and her hope blossomed.

They finished washing the dishes in silence and as Will put the last plate away, James called out. “I think I have something here.”

James looked over at Will. “I doubt they’re going to hold a kidnap victim at a permanent residence. They might be cocky, but I doubt they’re stupid. So I suspect they’re renting. I drew up a list of all the rentals listed right around the time of the kidnapping and then sectioned off all the rentals that no longer show up as available. The list is still fairly lengthy, about thirty houses.” He handed a print out to Will. “But at least it’s a place to start. I’ll do some cross referencing and see if I can link Alex to any of these locations.”

Will took the list and looked it over. “But this is just the rentals that were listed. They could have rented from someone who knew someone. Or just broke into an abandoned house.”

“True, but I doubt they’d go the second route. Too risky. You’ve got nothing to lose by searching the recently rented houses. You just might get lucky.”

Will sighed. “Yeah, it’s worth a shot. I’ll get started on it first thing in the morning.”

“No!” Emma shouted.

Both men turned to look at her in surprise.

“He’s scared and alone. I’m not leaving him with that bastard Alex a minute longer than I have to. Let’s go now.”

“Emma...” Will’s eyes were full of love. And pity.

She burst into tears. “I can’t leave him there. I can’t.”

Will put his hand on her arm. “Emma, you’re exhausted. You had a head injury and you’ve hardly slept in the last two days. You won’t be any good to Jake if something happens to you.”

“As much as I hate to admit it,” James crossed his arms across his chest with a frown. “She might be right. It might be best to scope some houses out at night. You’ll be less obvious that way. If you like, I’ll play babysitter while you do some surveillance, see if you can knock some of those off the list. Emma can stay here and rest.”

“No. No way.” Emma protested. “I’m going. He’s my son.”

Will looked torn with indecision.

“Will, surely you can see the sense in this. I’ll stay behind and do more research while you get some legwork done. Emma can stay here and get some rest.”

“I’m going!”

Will closed his eyes. “I don’t want to leave her.”

“Emma,” James said, his voice softening. “I promise to be on my best behavior. It doesn’t take a genius to see that you’re exhausted and I’m sure you have a raging headache guessing from the bruise on your forehead. I’ll keep guard while Will is gone and he’ll be back before you wake up in the morning, isn’t that right, Will?”