Chapter Forty-nine
Lisa’s indignation refused to fade. Here she thought her mom would play fair and instead, she’d treated Lisa like a child. Wrenching her arm for the zillionth time with no luck, she felt thirsty and wished her mother had thought to leave her some water at least.
Finally, bored, she searched the interior, and in the dim lighting, spotted the full bottle in the holder on the driver’s door. Thankful that her mother had grabbed her right wrist, she scooted across to the driver’s side and reached for the bottle.
Satisfying herself, she decided not to drink it all because who knew how long she’d be here. Settling back against the seat, she closed her eyes and fumed. It was the full moon’s light filling the car that helped her notice the small item in the console’s cupholder. Excitement erupting, she reached in slowly, careful not to drop it.
She knew exactly why her mother would have left a paperclip where she’d see it once it became light. Because she’d know how to unlock the handcuffs by herself. Hadn’t they worked on the trick as a lark one day when she’d been bored, and her mom thought of a way to keep her quiet? It had taken some time before she’d perfected the move but once she had, it took only seconds for her to get loose.
Moments later, she’d gained her freedom and left the truck only stopping long enough to be sure she had a flashlight too.
Then she wandered along, as close to the road as possible without being seen. First, a car passed her by and then an eye-catching truck. Unable to make out either driver or passengers heightened her worry. Staying hidden, she waited a good amount of time before moving on. Driven by her need to be sure her mother and Lance were safe, she circled to the back of the cabin.
Bursting into the clearing, she stopped dead. Smoke billowing from the open door and broken window made her drop to the ground… choking.