Christmas Stalking. Jo Leigh

      Max walked over to stand next to her. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

      “If you like the middle of nowhere.”

      “My dad used to bring me out here hunting when I was a kid. It’s in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.”

      “Fabulous. So you’ve got me in rural hell. What’s your plan now?”

      Max’s piercing blue eyes met her gaze. “I’m going into town to make some calls.”

      “What about me?”

      “Get dressed.”

      She looked down at the blue pajamas, at her bare legs, forgotten in the face of the winter desolation outside. As she headed to the chair where she’d left her clothes, he stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

      “Want some cornflakes?”

      “Sure,” she said absently, her excitement mounting. If he took her into town with him, she had a much better chance of getting away.

      “They’ll be ready when you are.”

      True to his word, when Jade came out of the bathroom, there was a box of cornflakes, a bowl, a quart of milk, a sugar bowl, and a few packets of Sweet ’n Low on the table.

      “Only one bowl.”

      “Like I said. I have some things to do.”

      “What about me? I’m going with you, right?”

      “You won’t be bored. You’re going to be reading.”

      Jade stood with her hands on her hips. “You can’t just leave me here.”

      Smiling, he opened his briefcase. “There’s all this, and some stuff on my laptop. I don’t know how much you’ll be able to get through in a couple of hours…”

      “Couple of hours?”

      “That’s how long I figure it’ll take me to make some calls, get some more groceries and pick you up some clothes.”

      “Clothes?”

      “You need some warm shoes, warm clothes.”

      Her shoulders sagged. “So you’re not going to let me go.”

      “Not yet.” He sighed. “I have a friend—someone who’s been helping me track down leads—between him and a guy I know with the FBI I’ll see if I can’t work out a way to get you back without me getting my head blown off. In the meantime, you’ll read.”

      After she sat, she poured some cornflakes into the bowl, then looked up at him. “You’re going to leave me here alone?”

      “Cuffed to the bed, so don’t get too excited.”

      “What if something happens to you?”

      “You mean if the cops stop me?”

      She nodded.

      “I’ll send them back here to get you.”

      “Yeah, right.”

      He put a hand on her shoulder. “Believe what you want but I never intended to hurt you.”

      Her eyes fell to the bandaged wound on his forearm. “Better pick up a first aid kit while you’re at it.”

      He withdrew his hand. “Finish up your breakfast. I think it would be best if you skipped the coffee until I get back. I don’t have any way of giving you room to maneuver when I’m gone.”

      As Jade ate, thinking about being chained up for the next few hours, Max piled a stack of papers on the floor near the bedstead and placed his laptop next to them. “Write your pants, shirt sizes, shoe size, that kind of stuff, on this piece of paper.” He set a pen down with the paper. “Anything else?”

      “I don’t know. I’ve never been kidnapped before.” She finished writing and pushed away from the table.

      He guided her into position and handcuffed her to the bedstead.

      Trying hard not to panic, she took a deep breath, then let it out slowly, calming herself as much as possible, although the thought of being trapped here to die was right there. She believed that he’d be back as soon as he could, but there was always the possibility of a car accident, of him being shot, of…anything. She settled her back against the pillows he’d placed against the wall.

      “Probably as good as it’s going to get.”

      She rattled the cuffs. “I’m still worried. Something could happen.”

      He sat down, his weight dipping the bed. He stared at her for a long moment, his lips pursed and his brows creased. She supposed he’d had the same thoughts. That something unforeseen could occur. “Tell you what. I’ll tell my friend that someone’s here. I’ll e-mail him right now. I’ll say that if he doesn’t hear from me in three hours, he should come to the cabin.”

      “Where does he live?”

      “He’ll be in D.C. And don’t worry. He’s never let me down.”

      She nodded. It was more than she’d hoped for.

      He opened his laptop, typed for awhile, then went over to the desk, where he plugged the unit into the wall. She heard the familiar squeal of an online connection. It took a lot longer than she’d figured, but then she had a cable connection at home and at the office, so she never had to wait. Finally, he unplugged the computer and brought it back.

      “Do you want the TV on?”

      “Is there a remote?”

      “No. I just picked up a cheapie so I could watch the news.”

      “Skip it. This should keep me busy.” She waved at the computer and the stack of papers.

      “Okay, then.” Max stood over her chewing his lower lip. “The files that are pertinent are under Geotech. I’ve written the password on that sticky note.” He nodded at the top of the stack of papers. She saw a string of letters and numbers written in a neat hand.

      He headed across the room and picked up a heavy jacket, then got the phone line that was still connected to the jack and put that in his pocket. He paused at the garage door. “A couple of hours then.”

      “Oh boy.”

      He opened the door and a blast of cold air swept across the cabin as he stepped out. He pulled the door closed behind him.

      Jade heard the garage door open. Her car started up and backed out, then the garage door closed again. She kept listening until she no longer heard the engine, until she was left in silence. At least she’d be able to hear when he came back.

      As she had last night, she listened for any noise that might indicate she was near other people, but if anything, the blanket of snow outdoors cloaked even more sound than before. She heard a distant creak and it took her several minutes of concentration to realize it was a large tree swaying in the light breeze.

      It was so quiet in the cabin that she could hear her own heart beating. A whoosh in the garage marked the water heater turning on, followed mere seconds later by it going off again. She saw a small flurry of snow fall past the window and heard the pattering of a squirrel’s feet on the snow-packed roof.

      At least she hoped it was a squirrel. In a brief fugue state she imagined herself attacked by rats as she sat chained to the bed. Max would come back and find a bare skeleton chained to the frame like in a horror movie.

      To ward off any more sickening images, she picked up Max’s laptop and turned it on, watching it boot up quickly. It was not unlike her own, and she clicked a couple of the unfamiliar icons to see what they might be. With any luck, Max might have one new enough to have a wireless connection.

      She looked in the system folder, and it did, indeed. She double-clicked it, then held her breath as the laptop attempted to connect. Finally