Beautiful Stranger. Kerry Connor

a vehicle would be leaving. She knew from listening to the sounds outside her window that the loading dock was somewhere nearby. Every Monday for the last three months a truck had made a delivery around this time. If she could get down to the dock and sneak onto the departing truck before anyone noticed she was gone, she’d have a fast way out of here.

      She just had to hope Hobbs hadn’t waited too long to retrieve her. Every second she’d spent out on that veranda had seemed like an eternity. They’d only started taking her outside in the last few weeks. She didn’t know why they bothered, but the change in the schedule had thrown off her plans enough she’d had to wait a few days longer than expected.

      Reaching the first floor, she yanked the door open and shot a quick glance in either direction. Seeing no one, she burst out into the corridor, easing the door shut behind her. Her best guess was that the loading dock was to the right, so she headed in that direction, sending up a prayer that she’d chosen correctly.

      She moved quickly but quietly, her slippered feet silent on the linoleum. The fluorescent lights flickered unsteadily, casting shadows on the sickly green walls. She swallowed her nervousness and kept moving.

      After turning two more corners, Claire found herself facing a set of double doors at the end of another corridor. The faint rumble of a large engine emanating from behind them was unmistakable.

      Hurrying to them, she pressed her ear against the doors to try to detect any voices or footsteps inside. Hearing none, she waved Hobbs’s pass in front of the security scanner. The lock released with an audible click. With painstaking slowness, she cracked the door open a fraction and peeked inside.

      And watched with stunned horror as a truck, no doubt the one she’d been hoping to catch, pulled away from the dock.

      There was no time to lament this turn of events. Staring into the open space, she quickly considered her options. Despite this setback, they hadn’t changed much. She still needed to catch a ride out of here.

      Maybe another truck would pull in immediately afterward to take the last one’s place. Doubtful, but a possibility. Otherwise, she would need to find a car. Either way, cutting through the loading dock was the best and fastest way to get outside.

      Silence hung in the large, empty space. The far end of the room was wide open, filling it with fading sunlight. Ninety feet and she’d be outdoors. Poking her head through the opening, she looked to see if anyone was around. It appeared deserted. She eased through the doorway and took one last look around the room from ceiling to floor, just to be certain. Still nothing.

      As sure as she could be, she dashed across the room, moving on the balls of her feet to minimize the sound. At the end of the dock she raced down a few short steps to ground level, burst around the corner and threw her back against the wall. Relief barely penetrated. Now that she was outside, she felt even more exposed. She had to find cover.

      There was a parking lot a short distance away, across the driveway and a short stretch of lawn to her left. The rows of cars gleamed in the sunlight, each offering a possible escape. The sight practically called to her.

      She started in that direction, crouching down and staying near the building so no one looking out a window could see her. Within seconds she reached a spot that gave her a straight shot to the parking lot. She drew in a shuddery breath and checked in every direction.

      And ran.

      It couldn’t have lasted more than thirty seconds, but the mad dash to the parking lot seemed like a thousand times longer. By the time she crashed to the pavement between two cars it felt like her heart had pounded through her chest.

      Her breathing coming in short, rapid gasps, she slowly counted to ten, waiting for the sounds of running feet or raised voices, any sign that she’d been seen. None came. Even if someone had seen her and notified security, there wouldn’t be any immediate sign for her to know. She had to keep moving. First and foremost, she needed to find a car that would get her out of here ASAP.

      Rising to her haunches, she quickly poked her head up just enough to see through the window of the car she was hiding behind and looked around.

      Then she saw him, a familiar figure appearing out of the horizon just as he had the first time, now heading toward the parking lot.

      It was the man she’d seen before. Hobbs must have left her sitting on the veranda for an eternity if the newcomer had conducted his business and was just now leaving.

      She felt a surge of excitement. Great timing. He would be the perfect person to catch a ride with. He wasn’t a shrink and he didn’t work here. Combined with the fact that he was leaving, that just about made him her favorite person in the world at the moment.

      He was still far enough away that she should be able to get to his car long before he did. She remembered what the other doctor had said to him. He drove a beat-up old wreck.

      It didn’t take her long to spot the sedan. The back window bore a parking sticker from Center City General in downtown Philadelphia, no doubt the hospital where the other doctor said this one worked. The car had to be a couple of decades old, its paint faded and chipped. Not exactly a car she would have thought belonged to a doctor, but maybe he was paying off med-school bills, especially if he worked at a low-paying city hospital.

      Unlike most of the cars in the lot, it was unlikely this one was equipped with any kind of alarm. Heck, its owner probably wouldn’t even feel the need to lock it.

      For the first time in four long months her lips curved into a smile.

      Maybe the knight could come to her rescue after all.

      And the best part was, he didn’t even have to know.

      Chapter Two

      He’d sold his soul to the devil.

      Dr. Walter Emmons had suspected as much for some time now, ever since the day he’d admitted Claire Preston to Thornwood for a considerable fee above the norm.

      Staring into the dead eyes of the man standing before him erased what little doubt remained in his mind.

      “How long has she been gone?” his visitor demanded.

      “At least an hour. That’s when the orderly took her back to her room. He was found about fifteen minutes later, and I was immediately notified.” And when the first search produced no results, he’d made the decision to contact the man who’d paid him to keep her here, figuring it would be far worse to have him learn about her disappearance some other way, like having her turn up on his doorstep without warning.

      Thirty minutes later, despite his assurances that the situation was under control, this man had arrived at Thornwood at the other’s behest. And Walter Emmons wished he’d kept his mouth shut.

      The man was tall, well over six feet, and lean, with dark olive skin and black hair cut close to the scalp. But it was the eyes Emmons couldn’t look away from, no matter how much he wanted to. They seemed to be all pupil, two glowing black orbs that focused unerringly on his face and seemed to burn right through him. He didn’t think the man had blinked once since he’d arrived.

      His clinical side kicked in, and he knew without a doubt this man should be a patient in a facility like this, not responsible for tracking one down.

      “How did this happen?” the man, who hadn’t introduced himself other than to say who’d sent him, demanded.

      “I don’t know. I’ve been monitoring her medication closely—” a lie “—and every indication was that she was in a catatonic state.” Every indication being the reports from his staff he’d relied on so foolishly. He’d been assured that Claire Preston was unaware of her surroundings, her mind broken. Clearly, she’d managed to fool them all.

      “What are you doing about finding her?”

      “I have people checking the grounds and the building in case she’s still here. I’ve also had security review the surveillance tapes from the gate. Only three vehicles left the premises in the