Author's Note: Okay, so I've been told that I left the previous chapter off on an excruciating cliffie. Sorry about that...but you know it's what I do best. If there weren't cliffhangers, would you honestly come back and read it?
I thank everyone for the wonderful reviews. I was very excited about them and I am glad that you are as excited about this story as I am!
Just so you know, I will update as often as I can, but it is now a little hard because I just started my second year of college and I am taking a full load this summer. I do have several chapters written out for this already, but I am having to go back and edit and add bits and pieces here and there.
As for one thing I didn't explain at the beginning of the last chapter...B.D. Hawkins has now been promoted to Chief. So in my universe that means that Chief McGinnis has retired and has gone off to do whatever it is that he has always wanted to do.
Read and let me know what you think!
Ryan Stewart was always up at four a.m. every day for his morning jog. He'd been jogging for five years now and had never missed a morning, even if it was storming.
"That's what they made rain jackets for, after all," he would always say to his friends. Besides, jogging to Ryan was right up on the list with breathing–it was something that he had to do.
Ryan had even bought a dog to join him on his morning jogs. Rusty, a Golden Retriever, had become his best friend and most trusted companion. Ryan never had to worry about running alone, because Rusty was usually up before him, eager to go.
Ryan loved the small town of River Heights–it was a town that he had called home all thirty-two years of his life. The only downside was that he lived in a neighborhood that wasn't ideal for running. So that's why he always drove the ten minutes it took to get to the River Heights Municipal Park. The running track was a mile long and very well lit. And the scenery wasn't bad to look at, either.
Ryan parked and got out of his late model Volkswaggen Passat, taking in a lungful of fresh morning air. He opened the back door and snapped a leash onto Rusty, who was wagging his tail excitedly.
"You ready, boy?" Ryan asked.
Rusty barked happily and bounded out of the car. Ryan laughed and allowed the dog to lead the way.
They stopped just before the start of the track so Ryan could do his normal warm-up routine. After ten minutes, they were soon on the track, oblivious to everything around them.
They jogged for about a half a mile when Rusty all of a sudden stopped, all senses on alert. He started to bark madly and Ryan stopped. He gave a jerk on Rusty's leash, urging him to run again, but Rusty held firm and continued to bark at the bushes.
Ryan looked at Rusty, confused. "What is it, boy?" he asked.
Rusty looked at back at Ryan, but then turned away and kept barking and looking at the bushes.
It must be an animal, Ryan thought, rolling his eyes. He pulled the leash again, a little harder. "Come on, that animal isn't going to hurt you."
Ryan started to move again, and Rusty reluctantly went with him. He had barely gotten ten feet when the dog broke free from his grasp and ran back to the bushes. Ryan let out a sigh of frustration and seeing as how he couldn't just leave his dog, made his way back to the bushes.
"Rusty, you have to learn that not all animals want to play with you," Ryan said as he made his way behind the bushes where Rusty was wagging his tail. Only now instead of barking, he was whimpering softly.
Even in the pale light of the streetlamp, Ryan could see what was causing his dog to behave the way he was. A woman with her hands tied in front of her, was lying on the ground, unmoving. But what freaked Ryan out the most was the fact that her long reddish-blonde hair was saturated in blood.
Ryan stumbled back and fell on the ground, hard. That and the pleading look from his dog quickly snapped him out of his momentary shock.
"It's okay, boy," Ryan said not sure if he was trying to calm Rusty or himself. Rusty looked at him, and stepped back as Ryan knelt down next to the woman.
He softly put his fingers to her neck and felt a very weak pulse. And it was at that moment when he knew who the woman was. Her face had been all over the news and on posted flyers throughout the town for the past week. He looked back to see where his car was parked and made a decision.
Though he hated to leave her there alone, he needed to get her some help before it was too late. He had no idea how long she had been out here, and he didn't want to take any chances, especially if he was able to save her.
He left Rusty there, knowing there was no way that the dog was going to leave. Rusty had always had a heart of gold, especially when it came to females. Ryan unlocked his car door and grabbed his cell phone. He dialed 911 and soon an operator answered.
"911–what is your emergency?" a woman's voice asked.
"I'm at River Heights Municipal Park. I found a woman who's been hurt!" Ryan said frantically.
"What do you mean hurt, sir?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, but she's bleeding from her head," Ryan said.
"Is she alive?" the woman asked.
"Yes!" Ryan said, tersely. "But barely. Look, I think it's the woman who's been missing!"
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"Not absolutely," Ryan said. "Just get someone out here now!"
Ryan hung up and threw the phone back into the car. He didn't even bother to lock the car back up and he made his way back to Rusty. He wished there was more that he could do for the woman, but he also knew that he couldn't do anything to jeopardize the scene or risk hurting her any further. He had seen enough television crime shows to know that.
As he gazed down at her, anger flashed in his green eyes. Why would anyone do this to her? What did she do to deserve this kind of abuse? Could someone really hate her this much? Or was this simply just a cheap thrill for some perverted bastard?
Ryan sighed in frustration when he knew he couldn't answer his questions. But before he could even think about giving them any more thought, he heard the distant sounds of sirens approaching. By the time he got back to his car, an ambulance and two police cruisers were pulling into the park.
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Carson Drew hated the silence of his lonely house. It was at times like this when he realized how much light Nancy brought to his life. Her absence was making the house eerily still and he didn't like that.
This had actually been his first night back in the house. Since the day Nancy had disappeared, he had found reason after reason not to come home. He had spent every night in his office in downtown River Heights and not getting much sleep.
And that showed in his meetings with his clients. He had managed to put off court appearances and he was glad that he did. He never would have been able to represent his clients fairly and he had always prided himself in that. He never would be able to earn respect if he went into court and threw the cases away.
So, here he was, sitting in his study and staring at a picture of him and Nancy sitting on their patio, smiling. The picture was only a few months old, but it had become something he treasured, especially tonight.
Or should I say this morning, he thought ruefully. He glanced at the clock on his wall and saw that it was four-thirty in the morning. Here's to another sleepless night.
He put the picture back down on his desk and rubbed a weary hand over his face. He could feel stubble on his face and figured that he should shave. He had barely gotten out of his study when the phone rang. He quickly forgot about shaving as he grabbed the phone before it could ring for the second time.
"Hello?" he said, anxiously.
"Carson?" a familiar voice asked.
"Chief, tell me you have something to tell me," Carson said.
Chief B.D. Hawkins let out a sigh and Carson felt a tight knot form in his stomach.
"What is it, B.D.?" Carson asked.
"We found her, Carson," Chief Hawkins said. "But it's not good. You better get down to the park right now."
Carson threw down the phone, grabbed his keys and was out the door in a matter of seconds.
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When Carson got to the park, he was met with a spectacle. Police cruisers were everywhere, along with an ambulance, fire truck, and more media vans than he dared to count. He figured he broke at least fifty traffic laws to get to the park, but he didn't care about that. Nothing was going to stop him from getting to Nancy, even something as petty as a speed limit.
As soon as Carson was out of his car, he was instantly bombarded by the throngs of reporters, all jamming cameras and microphones in front of his face. He waved them away and muttered a few "no comments" before he was able to break free. He spotted Chief Hawkins speaking to a couple of his officers and made his way over.
"Carson!" B.D. called out. He finished what he was doing with the officers and met Carson. He nodded his head towards the reporters. "I'm sorry about them. They started to gather not two minutes after I got the call."
Carson shook his head. He didn't care about that; all he wanted was to know what had happened to Nancy. "Where is she?"
"They're loading her onto the gurney right now," B.D. said. He moved so Carson could see that two paramedics were indeed loading Nancy up. He pushed past B.D. and made his way over.
"Sir–" one of the paramedics began but B.D. shook his head.
"It's okay," he said. "He's the father."
The paramedic nodded and reluctantly moved away so Carson could see his daughter. The site of Nancy before him made a sob catch up in his throat. He had never seen her like this–bruises covered her face and she had a busted lip. And then he saw the brownish-red in her golden hair and felt cold all over. It was blood–blood covered her beautiful, long hair.
He leaned down to kiss her on the forehead. "Everything will be okay, sweetheart," he whispered. He then looked at the paramedics. "Will she be okay?"
"It doesn't look good," the second paramedic said, sadly. "We'll know more once we get her to the hospital."
Carson nodded as he felt a tear run down his cheek. He stubbornly wiped it away and let the paramedics take her. He watched as they loaded her into the cab of the ambulance and refused to look away until they were out of view. He then turned his attention to Chief Hawkins, who had been looking at him, concerned.
"Who found her?" Carson asked.
"A jogger–actually, it was his dog," B.D. answered. Before he could say anything there was a commotion near the reporters and they looked up to see Frank and Joe Hardy approaching them. Carson had called them at their hotel on his way to the park.
"Where is she?" Frank asked, breathless.
"She's on her way to the hospital," Carson answered.
"How is she?" Frank asked, fearing the answer.
"She's still alive, but they say it doesn't look too good," Carson said. "We should know more by the time we get to the hospital."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Frank asked.
Carson shook his head. "I want to talk to the person who found her."
Frank wanted to protest, but thought better against it. After all, Carson was having a harder time right now than he was and he didn't want to do anything to stress him out any further.
"Martinez!" B.D. called out.
A young officer with black hair looked up and nodded. He soon joined the group with another man they didn't recognize.
"Carson Drew, this is Ryan Stewart," B.D. said. "He's the one that made the call to us."
Carson felt tears form again but he pushed them back. He was now staring at the man who had possibly saved his daughter's life. "Mr. Stewart, I don't know how I can thank you," he said, holding out a hand.
The other man grasped it and shook it firmly. "I'm only glad that I was able to help," he said. "Actually, I'm glad that my dog was able to find her. I'm always getting onto him about being so nosy, but I guess this time it actually came in handy."
"You have no idea how much," Carson said.
Frank held out his own hand to Ryan. "That goes double for me," he said.
"I only hope that she can pull through," Ryan said.
Carson gave a faint smile. "Don't worry–my daughter can pull through anything."
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Yay! No cliffie...or not a bad one I should say!
Please review!
