Chapter 2

 


Four weeks later, John Dock sat in a diner two hundred miles away from his hometown of Newburg watching children file out from the school across the street. A veritable smorgasbord awaited him. No one knew him or his past here. He learned a lot from his past mistakes and knew he wouldn’t make them again. John knew the double jeopardy law and was now a free and smarter man.


Dock sat eating his lunch, a greasy hamburger and a double order of fries and a Cokaye. Across the street, a small brunette caught his attention. She looked to be about six and wore all pink. Her lightweight jacket had a cartoon character on the back and matched her pink and white jeans. Even her new lookaying sneakers were pink. Laughing and yelling goodbye to her friends, she hopped into a maroon minivan waiting half a block away. He knew he’d be seeing her again…soon.

 

As Dock left the diner, a blue Ford Taurus followed at a discreet distance. The hunter had now become the prey.

 

Two weeks later, Dock made his move. He watched the small girls leave the school with two friends. The giggling trio never noticed the man sitting on a park bench reading a paper as they passed. His target twirled her long, mousey brown hair around her fingers as her friends teased her about a boy she liked. One girl called out a cheery goodbye as she ran up the sidewalk of her house.

Dock stood up, stretched, and walked the opposite direction to his van parked around the block. He pulled over a few blocks ahead of the girls, knowing that the other friend would take a right at the next intersection. He had to time the take just right. If he didn’t grab her as soon as she crossed the small alley, he’d have to wait. That was the only place with any concealment on her route home. He knew her routines. He’d watched her and her family long enough to know that Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays her mother picked her up. Today was Tuesday, his lucky day. He backed his beat-up van into the alley, opened the side door about two feet, and raised the hood.

 

Mary Carter said goodbye to her friends, promising to ask if she could have a sleepover that weekend, and walked slowly home, enjoying the bright spring sun. She knew there was no hurry because her mom worked late on Tuesdays and her dad had to take her sister to dance practice. She thought about sneaking a few cookayies and watching television before her dad came home. He didn’t like some of her favorite shows, so she snuck them in when she could.

Mary remembered the cake her mother baked yesterday and started to skip with anticipation, when something jerked her backward and covered her mouth.

A voice whispered close to her ear, “Make a sound and your mother will die. She’s in my van, and any noise from you will make my friend slice her throat.”

Too many emotions hit Mary at once, and a small whimper escaped, but she refused to scream. She’d do anything to protect her mom, and maybe if the men kept them together, her mom could save them.

She let him pull her into the van and cover her eyes, but immediately she knew she’d made a mistake…she didn’t smell her mother’s strong, flowery perfume. The door slammed shut, and the smelly man put something sharp around her throat like a collar, warning her not to make a sound. A moment later she heard him swear and the side door that had just slammed shut opened so fast she almost fell out, having scooted back against it, trying to get as far from the man as possible.

Rough hands grabbed her and yanked her out and she had an impression of something heavy leaping past her.

 

Dock had tightened the spiked collar around the girl’s small, creamy neck with the spikes inside, to prevent her from trying to run. The leash held loose in his fist. He’d anchor her to the steel bolt, then go to the abandoned barn he’d found. Licking his lips and sweating, his attention on the fun awaiting him, he didn’t see the blonde woman until just before she yanked the door open. He lunged for the door when the woman yanked the kid out and a very large man dove through it, tackling him.

The hulk atop him grunted, “Go.” The woman slammed the door shut as someone else climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

Everything happened so fast, Dock couldn’t even fight being slammed to the floor and cuffed until he felt the warmth spreading beneath him. The powerful odor of urine filled the van as Dock tried to move.

 

“Well Johnny, I’d say your luck just ran out. Shut up, lie still and maybe you’ll live to see another day.” Said a voice from the front.

 

Mary lay curled in the stranger’s arms, crying and trembling as she was carried away.

“Come on honey, let’s get you home,” the lady said in a kind voice. Mary tried to pull the blindfold off, but the lady stilled her hands and said, “No, sweetie, leave it on for a few minutes. We won’t hurt, but it’s better for now.”

Scared but trusting this silky voice, Mary lowered her hands and allowed the woman to climb into a car with Mary on her lap.