had he already done?
Was Ruby lost somewhere, terrified and alone? Hurting or locked up in some scary place?
Was she…
No, Leah wouldn’t give up hope. She couldn’t.
But the local police hadn’t been able to find her. Not that she trusted them, especially with Charlie Driscill, a guy from her old high school, as the deputy and acting sheriff. He was following in his father’s footsteps, preparing to take over as sheriff when his dad retired soon.
She’d considered the fact that her own secrets might have played a part in Ruby’s kidnapping, that the kidnapper was someone from her past—someone from that terrible night eight years ago—but everyone in town had been questioned and supposedly had alibis.
She’d even wondered if Ruby’s father had taken her. But that was impossible. Ruby’s father didn’t even know she existed.
Had she made a mistake in calling the police? Would the kidnapper have contacted her if she hadn’t?
A sob choked her. She’d been second-guessing herself for days now, praying for a phone call or a message that someone had seen her sister. But that phone call had never come.
GAGE STARED AT THE NEWS broadcast of the update on Ruby Holden’s kidnapping, emotions rising to the surface. He still couldn’t believe there had been a kidnapping in his hometown. Not in Sanctuary.
The news clip summarized the past few days of the search and then showed the deputy sheriff, Charlie Driscill, approaching Leah Holden. He’d said, “I’m sorry, but we’re calling off the search team.” Then Leah collapsed in a fit of tears.
Seven days missing—he understood the reasoning behind calling off the search. By now, the kidnapper would have left the area.
Or the child was dead.
Every hour a child was missing lessened the chances that she would be found alive.
He watched as neighbors surrounded Leah, supporting her, and frowned.
There had been no ransom call. No word. No physical evidence except that shredded teddy bear and the note warning Leah not to call the police.
So what was the kidnapper’s motive? Was he a pedophile? Someone who’d lost a child and wanted to replace it with another? A crazy lunatic who simply saw an opportunity?
He glanced at the screen again. Leah looked so lost, so devastated….
He had to do something.
Not that he wanted to see her again after all these years, but she needed help. And a child was in danger.
The past week he’d decided to start his own private investigative firm specializing in children’s cases. In memory of Ramona Samples, the woman who’d helped him find a home with the McDermonts, he’d decided to call his agency Guardian Angel Investigations. He planned to hire other detectives to work for him, ex-cops or military men, as well as security and computer specialists. GAI would step in when the police or feds failed.
Or when a client chose not to call the police.
And he’d jump-start his agency by finding Leah’s sister.
Leah had called in the locals, but after seeing her plea on the news, he sensed she was hiding something. If she’d done something to her sister, he’d nail her ass to the wall.
But memories of Leah in high school returned and he couldn’t believe she’d hurt anyone. He’d harbored a crush on her in high school and had planned to meet her at a party once, but then she’d hooked up with his brother.
He’d never spoken to her after that day. And it had caused a rift between him and Jerry.
Maybe moving back home for a while would enable him to mend fences with Jerry. After all, Jerry had probably changed. He owned a construction company and had built neighborhoods all around Sanctuary.
Gage turned off the TV, tucked the newspaper photo of Ruby inside his bomber jacket, climbed in his Explorer and headed toward Sanctuary.
He’d find out what happened to this little girl and make the person who’d abducted her pay.
HE WATCHED Leah Holden’s house from the top of the ridge with his telephoto lens, the frigid December air biting at his neck and hands. His skin was raw, dry and chafed, but he barely noticed. Rage heated his bloodstream, making it flow thick and hot through his system.
Leah shouldn’t have called the police. He’d never expected her to, counting on her fear and cowardice to keep her quiet.
The bitch should have heeded the warning. If she had, she’d have the kid back by now, and life could go on as normal.
But no, she’d called the damn cops.
She’d be sorry she ever came back to town. Ever messed with their lives. Ever lived.
Because of her, Ruby might have to die.
Chapter Two
Shoulders tight with tension, Gage left the beltway for the curvy roads to the Blue Ridge Mountains. He’d thought he’d never return to Sanctuary—but the moment he’d seen Leah Holden in trouble, he knew he had no choice.
The roads grew more narrow and winding as the hills and ridges encroached. Thick, tall pines and evergreens covered the sloping hills, the deep recesses, the cliffs—perfect hiding places for moonshiners, meth labs, domestic violence and possible criminals. Fishers, hikers, campers and vacationers as well as locals came and went. Anyone could have been a possible suspect in a child abduction.
He wound through the heart of Sanctuary, past the town square with the park, and the local storefronts decorated for the holidays with bows, lights and wreaths. He recognized Delilah’s Diner, the drugstore which still boasted an old-fashioned soda fountain, and of course Magnolia Manor, where he’d lived for a while.
Remembering how it felt to be a lost, lonely little kid, he wondered how Ruby was holding up.
And if she was still alive.
Leaving the small downtown area, he drove past signs pointing to several rental cabins and the creek gurgling along the ridges, then turned into the entrance to the small rural development where Leah’s family had lived. It was an older subdivision which, judging from the yards filled with toys and bikes, was still home to many families.
He’d read the reports—Leah had a degree in education, and had been teaching at Sanctuary Elementary. She made a modest teacher’s salary but had no money to speak of.
Could explain why there had been no ransom request. The kidnapper hadn’t wanted money. He’d wanted Ruby.
Not a place he wanted to go…but he had to.
In spite of the fact that winter had descended, pansies bloomed around Leah’s mailbox, and a bird feeder was perched in the front yard, making the place look homey and well kept.
Holiday lights dangled
