Naomi was gone, and he was utterly petrified that he was never going to see her alive again. Her stalker was fixated on destroying her, now he had her, once he’d finished playing out whatever game he still had left to play, then he would kill her.
There was zero doubt about that.
Sam knew it with absolute certainly. Naomi may have hours, days, or even have a couple of weeks, but the end result would be the same. He would kill her.
And Naomi knew it.
Knew it and yet she had willingly offered herself up on a silver platter.
He had never in his life been as angry with anyone as he was with Naomi in this second.
What had she been thinking?
Walking straight into a trap, knowing that her death would tear him up inside. How could she do it?
As furious as he was, a little voice in his head told him that if he had been in Naomi’s shoes, with the life of someone he loved hanging in the balance, he would have done exactly the same thing. He would have sacrificed himself for his sisters, his baby great-niece, his parents, Naomi’s sisters, and their partners. He would gladly have sacrificed himself for Naomi, without a moment’s hesitation.
“Stop. Sam, stop. They’re gone.” Strong arms suddenly wrapped around his chest, halting him. He fought against them wildly. “They’re gone,” Nick repeated.
Nick was right.Theywere gone, but perhaps Ruth wasn't.
Breaking free from Nick’s grasp, he sprinted back the way he had come. Stopping in front of the house the stalker had led Naomi to, he scanned the driveway. It was empty but the garden was an overgrown mess, making it a perfect place to dump a body you didn’t want anyone to find right away.
Right now, he had to pray that Ruth Sullivan was still alive.
Although he didn’t hold out much hope.
What reason would the stalker have for leaving a witness alive? He had killed everyone else he came into contact with, bar Clara who had managed to get away. And killing another one of her sisters was a sure-fire way to cause Naomi pain.
Frantically, he began to search the garden. Ruth had to be here, surely the stalker wouldn’t want a hostage to get in the way of his time with Naomi, she was the one he wanted after all.
“Nick,” he yelled a moment later when he spied a brunette lying face down under a bush, her hands bound behind her back.
“She alive?”
Crouching beside the woman, Sam curled his hand under her neck and checked for a pulse. “Yes, call an ambulance.”
While Nick took care of that, he pulled out his knife, cut the plastic zip ties binding Ruth, and eased her over onto her back. His hands skimmed her body, searching for injuries. He found nothing but a large lump on the side of her head.
Hope was fluttering inside him now. For some reason the stalker had left her alive, she could identify him, once they knew who he was then they could find where he had taken Naomi. Sam just prayed they could find her in time.
“Ruth.” He tapped at the woman’s face. Her skin was icy, she was wearing only a light sweater and skirt. He hadn’t grabbed his coat when he’d fled his house in search of Naomi, so he had nothing to cover her with. “Ruth.”
This time as he patted her cheek her eyelashes began to flutter. A moment later he was looking down into large brown eyes. Largepanickedbrown eyes.
“It’s all right, it’s me, Sam.” Since they had known each other for more than two decades, he hoped his presence might be enough to calm her.
It didn’t.
Struggling to sit up, Ruth started looking frantically all around her.
“You're safe now, Ruth.” Sam had to force his voice to calm out with at least a minimal soothing quality.
“Where’s Naomi?” she shrieked.
“She’s gone. He took her.”
“He just showed up. I was pleased to see him, but then he hit me. He tied me up. Threw me in his trunk. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe,” she babbled.