A board creaked beneath her satin wedding pumps. Holly froze.
The man didnt stir. She moved forward, acutely aware of the weight of the baby in one arm and the swish of fabric audible above the rain. Outside, the wind rose, and a branch scraped the window so loud that it sounded, to her ears, like a bomb blast.
The door. She turned the knob and pulled. It held stubbornly in place.
There had to be a bolt. She just hoped it didnt require a key to open from the inside.
With Ben resting against her shoulder, Holly clamped the bedspread beneath one elbow to keep from dropping it as she probed with her free hand. Was the lock above or below the knob?
Next time I get kidnapped, Ill make sure to check out the door while theres enough light.
The grim humor steadied her, and she located a small slide-lock about six inches above the knob. Struggling against the stiff device while trying not the jolt the baby, she tugged on it.
The metal rasped, halted, then slid the rest of the way. Breathing hard, Holly grasped the knob.
Icy wind hit her in the face. Ben squirmed beneath the spread.
Trying to let in as little cold air as possible, she edged outside and closed the door. From beyond a small overhang, rain gusted into her face.
Holly could see nothing except sheets of water and the outline of black trees against a charcoal sky. It was as if she stood on an island surrounded by a raging sea.
A flare of lightning showed her a muddy, unpaved clearing overhung by low branches. A rutted path led away through the brush, with
no lights or traffic noises to indicate how close a road might be.
Tightening the makeshift cloak, Holly stepped off the porch into the full force of the storm.
A RAW BLAST of air woke Sharif. He came awake instantly, his warriors training jolting him to full alert.
The door had opened. Someone had come in or gone out.
Cursing himself for falling asleep on watch, he ducked and dodged in case of attack. Nothing moved, other than a flicker of light from the TV screen. Except for him, the cabin was empty.
The woman had taken his child.
He had promised to deliver her safely to the authorities. She had agreed to tell them the truth. Now she had betrayed that agreement.
He knew better than to assume she was unarmed. Although there were no guns in the cabin, she might have found a knife in a drawer.
A pat of his robe confirmed that the phone was in place, so she hadnt been able to call for help. She wouldnt be able to travel fast on foot, either.
If she blundered into the woods, however, she might easily get lost. A few hours of exposure could prove fatal to the child.
Sharif did not wish to injure Holly. Despite his anger, he couldnt entirely blame her for fleeing. But he must retrieve his son at any cost.
The overriding need to reclaim Ben drove him to action. He yanked open the door and leaped out, to give the woman no chance to react.
Another long step carried him beyond the porch to the dark cloth-covered shape struggling away from him. Their bodies collided, hard.
In the darkness, Sharif must have misjudged the distance, because he shot way over balance. Grabbing Holly, he managed to twist partway beneath her as they fell, to shield the baby from hitting the ground.
A gasp from the woman blended with the squalling of the bundle in her arms. The impact knocked the breath out of Sharif, but he had no time to waste.
Grasping the child, he rolled away through the mud. Raising himself on one knee, he kept the child tight against him and the woman in sight.
Rain poured over them. The sheikh ignored it as he watched for the flash of a blade.
Instead, he found himself staring into a pair of terrified eyes. From the looks of her, Holly was so frightened she couldnt even scream.
What on earth are you doing? he demanded. I agreed to take you back tomorrow.
Finally, words choked out of her. You killed her!
Who? Had lingering traces of Zahads medicine given her a nightmare?
My sister!
Ive never even met her. I told you that. He stood up, sheltering the baby beneath his robe. The boy was surprisingly wiggly, and he found it hard to support his head as Aunt Selima had taught. Besides, for all we know, she is sitting in a bar somewhere, having a laugh at our expense.
No! How could you? As she scrambled to her feet, Holly still didnt seem capable of finishing a sentence.
Youre not making sense, he told her. Ive been sitting in the cabin all night, not out marauding!
Shes dead. The pain in her voice convinced him, finally, that she wasnt referring to some dream. It was on TV.
Sharif had left the set on so he could keep track of what information the police were giving out. They found your sister?
Beneath the mud-streaked bedspread that half-covered her, Holly nodded. In the desert. Shes been deada few weeks.
Wind whipped the wet tendrils of her hair, giving her a half-drowned appearance. In a flare of lightning, he saw that she was shivering.
Youll make yourself sick, Sharif said. Lets continue this conversation inside.
Let me go. Let us both go!