Escaping the Past

Elizabeth ran into the bathroom behind him. “What’s wrong with you, Brody?” she barked, becoming agitated herself.

“Sarah!” he called loudly as he ran out of the room. He turned to Elizabeth. “I only took my eyes off her for a second.” He frantically scanned the dispersing crowd, looking for her sequined dress and dark hair.

Sarah was gone.

C

hapter Sixteen

Brody ran around the gymnasium, his fingers shooting through his hair in frustration as he searched for Sarah. He called her name. No response. The other parents noticed his plight and walked over. Over the heartbeat drumming in his ears, he heard Elizabeth say to them, “It’s Sarah. We can’t find her.”

Sarah’s teacher said, “Oh, I’m sure she’s here somewhere. She probably just wandered around the corner.”

“Sarah can’t wander,” Brody cried in frustration. “She’s supposed to stay with me. The whole time. God, I can’t believe I lost her!” He ran out the gymnasium door and scanned the parking lot.

Then he saw it. He saw a tiny flash of sequins as he heard a shrill, “No!” Brody’s heart jumped into his throat as he recognized Sarah’s tiny form being carried across the parking lot. She struggled in the arms of her captor, biting into the flesh of his hand as he tried to cover her mouth. The man cursed as he jerked his hand from her mouth and lost his hold on her. Sarah fought, kicked, and screamed with all her might.

Brody streaked across the parking lot toward them as the man put his hands on Sarah again, trying to throw her over his shoulder. Her assailant adjusted his hold, but Sarah continued to struggle.

Brody could feel his heart beating in his chest. Blood filled his face as anger overtook him. If not for Sarah’s struggling, they might have gotten away. Instead, Brody overtook them and crashed with all his strength into the man who held Sarah so unkindly. The man stumbled and dropped Sarah to the ground. Sarah scrambled away on her hands and feet like a crab as Brody spun him around, his fist connecting with the meaty jaw of the dark haired man. He fought back, striking a blow to Brody’s eye and one swift jab at his belly, which caused Brody to double over. Sarah sobbed gently behind him and straightened back up.

The skin of his knuckles tore as he connected with the man’s teeth. The injured man sank to the ground. Brody stood over the fallen one, putting himself between Sarah and her captor. “Who are you and what do you want?” Brody ground out.

The man stood up slowly. His five-foot-ten frame was dwarfed by Brody’s. But he quickly took the upper hand when he reached into his jacket and pulled out a pistol. Brody realized what it was as soon as he saw the black barrel. He took two steps back and raised his hands.

“I want the girl,” the man said, spitting out a mouthful of blood onto the asphalt.

“She’s not going anywhere,” Brody stated calmly.

The man waved the pistol at him, indicating he should move from in front of Sarah, but Brody held his ground. “Not on my watch,” he said. “You’ll have to kill me first.”

They heard the sirens at the same time. Brody looked up to see two police cars racing down the street. Recognition dawned on the other man’s face. “Next time, you won’t be so lucky,” he said. The man jumped into a black SUV and quickly drove away.

“There won’t be a next time,” Brody grumbled as he turned and scooped Sarah up into his arms. Her hands were bleeding from her mad scramble across the parking lot and her gown was a filthy mess. Her curls were disheveled and her face was streaked with tears. Her feet were bare and her stockings torn. Brody pulled her close to him and said gently, “I told you to stay with me the whole night, remember?”

Sarah hiccupped and wiped her nose. “I came out of the bathroom and you were gone. I thought you left me,” she sobbed.

“I would never leave you, Sarah,” he said, kissing her gently on the forehead.

Two police officers walked up to them and said, “Do you want to tell us what happened, sir?”

“Hell, I don’t even know what happened,” Brody replied honestly. “I was trying to find Sarah. I came outside and this guy was carrying her across the parking lot.” He reached up and wiped a trail of blood that ran from his eye down the side of his face. “I…” He was cut off mid-comment by screeching tires as the Westers’ Jeep flew into the parking lot.

Lou jumped from the car, John hobbling behind her, and ran over to Brody, snatching Sarah from his arms. “What happened?” she barked, dropping Sarah to the ground and kneeling in front of her to look over her injuries.

“How did you…?” Brody began.

“I called her,” Elizabeth said, pointing to her cell phone. “Right after I called the police.”

“Good thinking,” he threw over his shoulder as he approached Lou. “She’s okay, Lou. I caught him before he could hurt her.” He placed one hand on her shoulder but she violently shrugged him off.

“That’s not what it looks like to me, Brody!” Lou snapped. “Look at her! All you were supposed to do was keep her safe for one night.” She shook a finger in his face. “That’s all I asked you to do, Brody! One night!”

“I did, Lou,” Brody pleaded. “I did keep her safe. Damn it! I did more than that!” he yelled back at her.

Lou snarled a curse at him as she picked Sarah up and put her in the Jeep. She buckled her seatbelt and got in the driver’s side. She addressed the officers. “I trust Dr. Wester can fill you in on any details you might have missed. I am taking my daughter home.”

Brody had never felt more like an outsider than he did when walked into the house after talking with the police for an hour. Jeb and Sadie sat at the kitchen table, sipping coffee.