Threat of Darkness(51)
“So, where did you go?” Samantha whispered to herself. “What would I do in your place?”
No earth-shattering answers came to her. She had been so overwrought when she’d discovered Danny was missing, she hadn’t even thought to pray.
Now, cruising slowly down the narrow, tree-shaded streets, she remedied that oversight. “Father, help. I know I’ve fought You many times when I should have listened, but I’m not asking this for me, I’m asking it for Danny. Show me where to go. What to do. For the sake of a helpless little boy. Please.”
* * *
Shadows danced in the shade along the country road as clouds scudded across the sky and the wind ruffled the leaves above.
A slightly built woman clad in black jeans, a designer T-shirt and matching cropped jacket held the hand of a thin child and hurried him along.
Samantha braked, studying the pair as she cruised slowly past. The woman’s head was covered by a dark-colored scarf so she couldn’t tell what color hair it masked, but the size and build of the child certainly fit Danny. The question was, why were they afoot? If Lindy was planning to escape, why not drive?
A nearby alleyway provided a convenient place to turn around. Samantha reversed directions and headed back to get a better look.
That was when she saw the men. There were two of them, one larger than the other. Both were clad in the nondescript clothing typical of that area: tattered jeans, faded shirts and lace-up hunting boots. Each was bulky enough to pose a serious threat even if unarmed, and they were approaching the woman and child warily, not as if they were merely passing in the street but as though they were preparing to accost her.
There was no doubt in Samantha’s mind. She was about to witness an assault. It didn’t matter who the victims were. She was duty bound to try to help them.
* * *
John was still trailing the speeding car that had caught his attention when he’d passed through town. He noticed it starting to slow.
He scowled when he thought he recognized Sam’s car in the distance, as well. There was probably more than one ancient sedan like that running around Serenity, but given her penchant for getting herself into trouble, he figured there was a good chance she was involved in whatever was going on up ahead.
The highly polished black SUV braked so rapidly that John had to swerve to keep from rear-ending it. His trajectory carried him past. That’s when he saw Sam. His jaw dropped.
She was standing beside another woman and bravely facing several very large men. If he hadn’t seen it for himself he wouldn’t have believed it.
* * *
Samantha whispered to Lindy behind her hand. “What were you thinking? Danny was safe in the hospital.”
“He’ll never be safe unless I take him away from here and hide him,” the boy’s mother replied.
“Who are these guys? What do they want?”
“I don’t know. I left my car parked right here and when I came back for it, it was gone.”
One of the men laughed sardonically. “Yeah. It was real nice of ya to bring the kid out to us like this. I thought we were gonna have to sneak into the hospital to spring him.”
Samantha closed ranks with Lindy, pushing Danny behind them. “Leave us alone.”
That made both of the attackers chortle. The apparent leader said, “Listen, lady, we don’t want nothin’ to do with you or your friend. All we want is Ben’s kid.”
“Did my husband send you?” Lindy asked.
“Not hardly. We want to find him as bad as the cops do. Now hand over the boy. We need him for bait.” He spread his arms as if expecting the frightened women to simply cave in to the threat and deliver the child.
Samantha had other ideas. She took her eyes off the main assailant only long enough to whisper to Lindy, “When I make my move, you run for it.”
There was agreement in the woman’s teary glance. She swallowed hard and nodded.
Raising her own hands in mock surrender, Samantha took one step forward, then another, hoping she could work her way close enough to the man to be within kicking range. A person didn’t have to have a medical background to know what method of assault would have the strongest effect.
“The kid,” he demanded. “Quit stalling.”
“Okay, okay,” Sam drawled, hoping her voice wouldn’t crack from fear. “Let’s get this straight. You don’t really want Danny, you want his father. So why not concentrate on Ben and leave us alone?”
“It’s not that simple. Tell Southerland we just want to know where he put the money. He’ll know what we mean. When we get those account numbers he can have his kid back.”