Page 157 of You Found Me
He joined Spencer in the back of the van and studied the array of monitors. One showed the tracking app, another showed a satellite map of the Pennsylvania/New York area, while another showed a confusing string of text that moved so fast he couldn’t focus on it. “You got a solid lock now?”
“Not…exactly.” Spencer shifted to the second monitor and typed furiously on one of three keyboards. The map zoomed outto show more of the country, then started zooming slowly back in.
“Not exactly?” Ward stared at the tracking app display. There should have been five dots, but the two representing Annie and Diggs had been knocked out in the crash. “Where’s her dot, Spence? I only see two. Yours and mine. I thought you said stopping here would make it easier to find her.”
“It would. It did. Except it’s not there.” Spencer pointed at the scrolling text. “I’ve piggybacked onto the signal from the convenience store and have the satellite link up and running. With it, I should be able to triangulate the tracker’s general location based on random grid strikes as it…she…travels through populated areas. But the system’s unable to process the current trajectory due to incomplete parameters.”
“English, Spencer.”
“This isn’t a blip or fluctuation or malfunction. Her signal is literally gone.” Spencer looked up at him. “I don’t know where she is.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Della snuggled under cozy covers, relishing the silky-soft sheets caressing her bare skin. She loved slow, sluggish Sunday mornings.
She was caught in the space between asleep and awake, a delicious place to be. All of her muscles were utterly relaxed. Last night had been so amazing. She could still feel Ward’s hands, the heat of his body. He…
Wake up.
She frowned. Why did he sound so urgent?
The stalker found you.
Adrenaline pushed her pulse up, up, up, and her eyes shot open as flashes of memory flitted in and out.
The crash.
The big man with angry eyebrows and crazy, too-bright eyes. He’d pulled her out. He’d caressed her face and eased her out of the wreck with gentle hands. He’d called her by her name. Herrealname.
Then he’d shot her.
Her hand automatically went to the raised, itchy spot on her arm.
Drugged.
He’d drugged her.
After that…she couldn’t remember.
Frantic, she looked around as she struggled to get out from under the covers and the fog clouding her mind.
“Greg? Annie?” Her voice came out as a cracked whimper. Her mouth was so dry. “Ward?”
Nobody answered.
Her breath came in uneven gasps as reality settled in.
She’d been taken.
She pushed herself up, wiggling until she could lean against the headboard for support.
She was in a very nice hotel room. A door led to a bathroom on the right, and there was a large sitting area to her left. It was filled with dark wood furniture, rich gold carpet, and red and gold striped drapes.
Except…the wall and door leading to the outside were white. They looked…unfinished.
What kind of hotel was this?
Her neck and chest hurt. She ran her hand along the diagonal line where the seatbelt had dug into her chest, her throat tightening as she realized she was naked. All she wore was the necklace Ward had given her and the underwear Ward had thrown at her…