Page 122 of Fame And Secrets

You for her. Tell anyone and I’ll kill her. Get in your car alone, now, and park at the top of Mulholland Drive near the Hollywood sign. Do as you’re told, and I’ll give her back.

The paper shook in my trembling hand. It wasn’t his handwriting, but every part of me knew it came from my father. Years of his hand taught me not to trust his promises, but he held all the cards. What mother would I be if I didn’t do everything humanly possible to bring her home?

I glanced up the staircase where Julian slept soundly. For a moment, I considered telling him everything. But in my heart, I knew he’d try to stop me. He’d never let me go through with it, and Iris didn’t have time for Plan B. My father showed his hand. Whether it was a trap or not…I couldn’t risk Iris’s life on a gamble.

I thought of Jaxon. But since notes and gifts had been coming regularly to the house for weeks, I wondered if one of the FBI agents he’d brought into our home had been working against us all along. At this point I trusted no one.

With a final glance up the stairs, I blew Julian a kiss he’d never see and stuffed the note in my back pocket. Quietly folding the keys in my hand, I snuck out the front door and down the sidewalk. Within minutes I made the turn on Mulholland Drive and drove as far as I could up the hill. Parking on a narrow, dusty embankment, I silently cursed myself as I slammed the door.

Forgetting my stun gun was a rookie mistake. I knew better.

As the sun broke over the Hollywood sign, I shielded my eyes and scanned the area for signs of life. Promising myself I’d only wait a few more minutes before getting the hell out of there, I silently ticked the seconds off in my head.

I counted to forty-six before something hard crashed against the back of my skull and everything went black.

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