“We don’t know.” She shook her head. “The man who has been guarding us came and got her a little while ago, but we haven’t seen Miss Evie since.”
A string of curses flew through Beckett’s mind. Had the bastard taken her somewhere else so he could question her? Beat her? Worse?
With no way of knowing for sure, they had to assume the worst. Which meant they needed to find Evelynn Mitchell fucking yesterday.
We’re here now, darlin’. And we aren’t leaving without you.
CHAPTER TWO
Evie spat out blood as she pushed herself up, her arms trembling with weakness and fear. The man who’d brought her here had taken his frustrations out on her by way of his meaty fists and booted feet. And after hitting and kicking her until Evie was certain she would die right here in this room, he’d left, taking any hopes of her survival right along with him.
Hers. The girls. And there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to stop it.
I can’t believe my father refused to pay the ransom.
Not only had the coldhearted man acted as if she didn’t exist, but he’d also singlehandedly stolen any reason for their captors to keep them alive. They’d been taken for one reason, and one reason only—money. If these men didn’t see a big fat payday in their near future, they’d no doubt rid themselves of the burden that was Evie and the girls.
She glanced over at the door. It had been several minutes since her guard had left, and she could only assume he’d gone to deliver the bad news to his terrorist friends.
How will they do it?
The macabre question was one she couldn’t help but ponder. She’d read horror stories of Taliban prisoners being shot,stabbed, beheaded… That last one scared her more than the thought of enduring another beating.
At least it would be quick.
A humorless laugh bubbled up inside her chest, bringing with it a waterfall of tears. How had this become her life?
Evie had been born into privilege. She’d been raised in a mansion with enough bedrooms and bathrooms to accommodate a small country. Had attended the most elite private schools in East Hampton with kids whose parents were all mega-rich doctors, lawyers, famous actors, or politicians.
But no amount of designer labels or fancy schools had ever made her feel like she’d belonged. Not the way she did when she was in front of a classroom filled with students eager to learn.
Her first two months here with the girls had been every bit as rewarding. If not more so. But now…
Now they were going to be executed in this Godforsaken cave, and the rest of the world would probably never even know.
How could he do this to me? To us?
It was a question to which Evie knew she’d never get the answer to. Not when the man who’d left her here had promised her death upon his return.
More tears escaped, falling in unending streaks along her bruised and tender cheeks. Painful sobs tore through her as she remained on her hands and knees in the dirt. She was almost certain the bastard had cracked one of her ribs in his unprovoked attack, and it was all she could do not to cry out when she began the slow ascent back to her feet.
Another glance toward the door and more thoughts began to form. Rather than focusing on her impending death, Evie began to contemplate her odds.
She’d been down on the ground, crying and doing her best to breathe through the pain when he’d stormed out of the room.But even through her blurred vision, Evie had been able to see there was no other guard posted outside the room.
One could have been sent after the fact, she supposed. But something told her the arrogant jerk who’d left her here probably assumed she’d be in too much pain to even think about trying to escape.
People were always doing that. Her whole life, Evie had been underestimated. The kids she’d gone to school with. Her fellow teachers.
My father.
He was the worst offender, by far. Always lecturing, spending what little time he’d carved out of his busy schedule to be with her over the years to mansplain why every choice she’d ever seemed to make was wrong.
But they weren’t wrong. They were just different than the ones he’d made for himself. Of course, going against her father in any manner was unacceptable. Lord forbid the only heir to the Mitchell fortune have a mind of her own.
I do have a mind of my own, damn it.
And right now, that mind was telling Evie to get herself and the girls the hell out of here now, before it was too late.