Page 92 of The Captive Missing

But she wanted to still help the underground, too. She wanted to help get the rest of them out. And Charlie. Stepping into the shower, her knees felt weak. She forced herself to slow down. Inhale. Hold. Exhale.

Scrubbing at her body, Val took the time to shave and even condition her hair. She was going to see her family again. It was time to wash off the past. She wanted to start fresh. She wanted to feel new. By the time she was finished, Val was looking at a subdued version of herself once more in the bathroom mirror. Maybe her green eyes were a touch jaded, but they were free eyes.

Back downstairs, Val resumed her chronic pacing in the front parlor. Clay was nowhere in sight, probably back in his office, doing important Clay things. She looked out the windows and surveyed the far entrance to the valley, the one she herself had driven down not so very long ago.

Dusk was coming on strong now, giving an unearthly feel to the pastures dotted with snowfall. The hunting party hadn’t returned. Shoot time was almost over.

Eventually, Connie made an appearance and convinced Val to sit and have a bite to eat.

“It won’t do you any good if you faint at the sight of the man,” Connie persuaded, setting a plate of cold chicken and apple slices in front of her. “You must eat something.”

“You’re right.” Val picked over the food distractedly. “What time is it? How much longer do you think?”

“He’ll get here soon enough. Now eat.”

With one bare foot tapping a nervous beat beneath the table, Val made herself eat everything Connie offered. She drank deeply from her glass of water, ate all of the chicken and managed the apple in a series of purposeful bites. When she was done, she trailed Connie to the sink and cleaned her plate, then offered to assist with dinner. Shaking her head, Connie waved her back to the front of the house where Val resumed her vigil.

Night fell. The men returned empty handed from their hunt and Clay sat down beside her in the parlor. Feet propped up against a long window frame, they waited together in silence, watching the edge of the valley. Where was he? Had something happened? Val twisted the ends of her hair between her fingers, then returned her hands to her lap in an attempt at self-control.

“There.” Clay pointed to the flash of far off headlights as they disappeared and reappeared through the trees.

Jumping to her feet, Val was out the front door with Clay walking calmly just behind. It was blistering cold outside but deadly calm. They stood on the porch and watched the progress of the vehicle. It wound its way towards them, eventually clearing the tree line and sweeping to the left along the dirt road that skirted the central pasture.

As the car rounded the final corner and slowed in its approach, Val leapt from the porch and ran forward. Before the vehicle came to a stop, the front passenger door burst open and Jason was stumbling out to meet her.

She threw herself at him. His hands circled her body. She clutched at his shoulders. He buried his face in her neck.

“I thought you were dead,” he whispered. “They told me a guard killed you. I thought you were dead.”

“I’m sorry.” Val sobbed. “I’m so sorry.”

“You’ve got to understand.” Jason squeezed her against him, making her gasp. “We didn’t know you were safe. We didn’t know.”

“I know.” Val buried her face in his chest, inhaled his scent.

“They kept sending videos of you doing things with another man. Then the videos would stop. We didn’t know what they were making you do. We didn’t know.”

Val grimaced, remembering the fake videos with Ben. Anyone watching would think they had completed each act in private. That was how she and Ben had structured them, in order to fool Cambric.

“Nothing happened.” Val tried to pull back, to look Jason in the eye, but he wouldn’t let her.

“You have to understand. We made the deal thinking they still had you.”

“What are you talking about? Who’s we?”

Jason’s hands slid up to her shoulders. He loosened his grip, let his arctic eyes dart across her face. She could see him in the light from the farmhouse. Tentatively, he reached up and brushed one thumb across her lips. Squeezing his eyes shut, he took a sharp breath.

“He told me the two of you had a deal.”

Jason paused then, opening his eyes wide.

“Who? What deal?”

“That night on the dock… you made a deal.”

“No.” Val shook her head, trying to back up a step, but he wouldn’t let her.

“You both agreed. He would give you a chance to fix things. If it didn’t work… then he would fix it himself.”

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