Page 59 of Mountain Captive

“You’ll have to take that up with the child-welfare person,” Travis said. He settled into the chair across from them. “What I need from you is everything you know about the people who kidnapped you.”

The last thing Chris wanted was to sit there and give them all the details about the Vine. But she pushed aside her annoyance and told Travis what she knew, about the group’s history, its habits and the people involved in the group now. She and Rand described the various guards and the woman they had seen with Jedediah. “Jedediah is the one you really need to find,” she said. “He’s the Exalted’s right-hand man.”

“The Exalted is what they call Edmund Harrison?” Travis verified.

“Yes. And he’s got most of them so brainwashed they’ll do anything he says.”

“And you indicated they’re armed?”

“I saw at least three rifles,” Rand said. “And one of them took my pistol.”

“I never saw firearms when I was with the group,” Chris said. “But that was fifteen years ago. And they never shied away from violence against their own members, though they called it ‘punishment.’”

“We’ll talk to Serena once the child advocate is with her,” Travis said. “She may be able to tell us more, including where the group might be now.”

“They’re very skilled at packing up and vanishing in the middle of the night,” Chris said. “They did it often when I was living with them. They talked about moving on to enlighten a new audience of people who could benefit from their message, but later I decided they probably left to avoid too much attention from local law enforcement.”

Travis nodded, then stood. “You two are free to go. We’ll be in touch.”

“I think Chris—and maybe Serena too—are still in danger,” Rand said. “The Exalted has gone to a lot of trouble to pursue them. I’m not sure he’ll give up so easily.”

“Do you want us to find a shelter for you to stay in?” Travis asked.

“No.” She looked at Rand but said nothing. If the Vine tracked her to his place, she would be endangering him also. “But maybe I should go somewhere like that.”

“You can stay with me.” Rand took her hand. “But it wouldn’t hurt to have a deputy cruise by occasionally.”

“We’re spread thin as it is, searching for all these people,” Travis said. “But I’ll do what I can.”

Harley was waiting for them in the lobby. Someone had fed and watered the dog, and he looked none the worse for the ordeal of the last forty-eight hours. Chris wished she could say the same. She was exhausted, as well as worried about Serena and about the Exalted. Those moments when that helicopter had hovered over them, bullets ricocheting off the rocks, had been among the most terrifying of her life.

Back at Rand’s house, he insisted on checking everything before she and Harley went in. She spent several anxious moments on his front porch, waiting until he returned. “Nothing’s disturbed,” he said. “You can come in now.”

They filed inside. The house was quiet, nothing out of place. She told herself she could relax, but tension still pulled at her shoulders. “You can have the shower first,” he told her.

“Can I have a bath?” she asked. “I’d really like to soak in a tub.”

“Sure. There’s a tub in the primary bath. Let me get my things, and I’ll shower in the guest room while you soak.”

“Thanks,” she said, too weary to make even a polite token protest about him giving up his bathroom for her.

She went to the guest room and dug out clean clothes and her toiletries. Rand still hadn’t appeared by the time she returned to the hall outside his room. She heard running water. Had he decided to take a shower first after all?

She was about to knock and check on him when he finally came out of his bedroom. “I was just getting everything ready for you,” he said.

She followed him back into the primary bedroom, past the king-size bed with its blue duvet neatly pulled over the pillows. He opened the bathroom door to a fog of steam and gestured toward a garden tub, already filled, froths of bubbles floating on the top. He had arranged candles along the far edge of the tub and lit them, and the scents of lavender and vanilla made a soothing cloud around them.

Tears stung her eyes. “You didn’t have to go to so much trouble.”

“You’re worth any amount of effort,” he said, and took her in his arms.

They kissed, a heady caress that left her dizzy and breathless. Rand slid his hand beneath her shirt and rested it at her waist. “I should let you bathe in peace,” he said.

She moved in even closer. “I think that tub is big enough for two.”

He didn’t protest, but pushed her shirt up farther. She helped him guide it over her head, then reached back to unsnap her bra. His hands were hot on her breasts, his fingers gentle but deft as he stroked and teased her. She stripped off the rest of her clothing with shaking hands, clinging to him for balance but also because she wanted to be closer to him.

He was naked in no time, and her breath caught at the sight of him. It had been a long time since she had been this excited about a man, and she was both eager and anxious. When he stepped into the tub, she followed, the silky, warm bubbles closing over them. She let out a sigh as she sank beneath the water, then lay back, her head on a folded towel, and closed her eyes.

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