Page 56 of A Colby Christmas Rescue

“Got it.”

In the bathroom, she left the door ajar. “Why don’t you go first?” Jamie suggested.

While Lillian did her business, Jamie studied the small room. There was a window, but it looked painted shut. Getting out the window wouldn’t likely be easy. She checked behind the shower curtain and under the sink, careful not to alert their keeper.

When Lillian was done, Jamie relieved herself, using that time to continue her study of the small room.

Once they had washed their hands and exited the room, she asked, “Any bottled water around here?”

“You couldn’t get a drink from the sink?” He gestured to the bathroom.

Jamie shrugged. “No cup or glass.”

He swore and stamped back down the hall. Jamie took Lillian’s hand and followed him. The hall opened into a small living room that fronted a kitchen-dining combination. The rest of the house was unfurnished other than a couple of plastic chairs. Definitely vacant. Probably a rental.

In the kitchen there was a six-pack of bottled water on the counter. No dust, which told her it had been provided for this operation.

“You can each have one but don’t ask for anything else.”

Jamie passed a bottle of water to Lillian and then took one for herself. “Thank you.”

“When are my mom and mad coming?” Lillian asked.

The man looked at her for a long moment. He grabbed a bottle of water for himself, twisted off the top and took a long swig. Then he said, “Don’t worry, kid. As soon as we get what we need, you’ll be back with your family and on the way to your fancy vacation.”

Wouldn’t it be great if it were that simple? The trouble was that Jamie couldn’t assume he was telling the truth.

“Let’s go,” he said with a gesture toward the end of the house where the bedrooms were.

Holding Lillian’s hand, Jamie led her back to the bedroom. She’d been right. A padlock had been added to the door. Once they were inside, he locked it.

Jamie slowly walked the perimeter of the room. This bedroom was on the back side of the house. She peeled back the dusty paper that had been taped to the window. She squinted to see beyond the dirty glass. The overgrown grass in the small backyard led right up to the woods. Definitely an advantage.

Next, she checked the lock on the window. It moved. She set it to the unlock position. The window was an old one—wood, not vinyl or aluminum. The screening was long gone. The issue with wood windows was if they had been painted without being moved up and down afterward, then often, they were glued shut. Not so terrible if one had a utility knife with which to cut them loose.

She turned to Lillian and leaned close to whisper in her ear. “Talk to me about the vacation. Try to sound natural.”

Lillian nodded and started talking. “We’re going to New York.”

“Wow, that sounds exciting.” Jamie braced herself, her hands on the wood sash. She pushed. The sash didn’t budge.

She took a breath and tried again. Pushing upward with all her strength. The sash moved the tiniest bit, giving her hope.

“I hope it snows,” Lillian was saying. “We almost never get snow here.”

“That would be nice,” Jamie said. She readied herself and tried again. This time the sash moved about three inches.

While Lillian went on about all the sites in New York she wanted to see, Jamie braced her hands on the bottom of the sash this time and shoved upward.

The window went up another four or five inches.

Jamie glanced toward the door and nodded to Lillian to keep going. Then she shoved one last time with all her might.

The sash went up as far as it would go. Jamie shook her arms to release the throbbing tension.

Now all they had to do was climb out.

Jamie went first. She surveyed the backyard but saw nothing of concern. She motioned for Lillian to climb out.

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