The prick of another needle pierced through her skin and Savannah felt the warm liquid rush through her veins. Whatever drugs they injected were swift as they tormented her bloodstream. Her body jerked and tugged and whipped around, but she never felt any of the movement. It was all in her mind. Everything was fighting against the drugs but enjoying the state of ecstasy at the same time.
Until this moment, Savannah wanted to fight, but as the burning grew and expanded, leaving a wildfire of torment within her veins, there was only one outcome she craved.
Savannah wanted all of it to end. She wanted it over. She wanted to succumb to the darkness.
And as the footsteps of her kidnappers trailed away, Savannah did the only thing she had left; she turned off her mind and let everything go.
***
Beau was aware that Preston was breaking land and speed records in his police cruiser to get to the place where Jameson had pinged Savannah’s location, but it still wasn’t fast enough for him.
He pushed his hands through his hair again. At this rate, he’d have no strands left on his head by the time they found her.
“Preston,” Beau pleaded.
“Calm down. We’re almost there. Jameson just messaged that Alexis and Cliff apprehended the assailants. He was able to shoot out their tires while she pit maneuvered the SUV.
“From all signs, they were definitely working for Harposia. Alexis has called the Feds and they’re going to search the car for bugs or any information. Harposia isn’t one to have anyone that would snitch.”
“What. . .what do we do if we find her? What happens if. . .” Beau let his sentence trail off. He didn’t want to think about what needed to happen if he found her dead. Or what kind of condition she may be in if she was still alive. His body shivered, thinking about all the possibilities that Savannah could be in. That was if they could find her.
“Do you think she’s here? Or do you think it’s just a decoy with her phone?”
“Well, there’s only one way to find out. We’re here.”
Throughout the drive, Beau had been so completely focused on the what-ifs that he hadn’t kept an eye on his surroundings.
The lights from Preston’s cruiser shone on a dilapidated cabin that appeared to have been vacant for the last century. Whatever paint may have been on the siding was now long gone. Shutters hung haphazardly beside the windows. The roof looked like the last bit of it was ready to cave in and join the other half.
None of that mattered, though. The moment the SUV came to a halt, Beau jumped from the vehicle. He knew in an instant that Savannah was inside. He could feel her presence, sense her being. It was the same connection he felt to her when she answered the door at Doc Sullivan’s house a month ago.
How had someone so profoundly changed his life in such a short time?
Beau hurried around the car, but Preston tugged his arm, yanking him back.
“Hold on. We can’t go barging in there. Harposia isn’t dumb despite the imbeciles she has working for her. The entire place could be rigged, or someone could be waiting for us.”
“What do you suggest we do then? Just stand out here and wait?”
“Of course not.” Preston pulled a device from his pocket and Beau noticed it was a camera of some sort. “This is a thermal camera. I can see f there is anyone else in the house or the surroundings.”
“What about booby traps?”
“Well, we’ll just have to step carefully for those,” the sheriff tried to joke, but it fell flat.
Beau waited impatiently, shifting his feet as Preston held up the camera. He almost choked on his tongue when the camera showed a lifeless figure lying on a floor in the house. It was the only heat signature the device gave off.
“Go. Slowly,” Preston said and Beau took off toward the house.
He’d never run track, but he was fairly certain he broke a few world records in his quest to get to Savannah. Beau tried to be careful as he made his way into the house, jumping the stairs that served no purpose for him and bashing through the door with the gracefulness of an elephant.
When he didn’t find her in the front of the house, Beau continued toward the back. He found a mound of her figure lying on its side in the dark room that used to be a kitchen.
“Savannah,” Beau cried out as he fell to the floor beside her. He pushed her hair away from her face, gagging as the stench grew.
He could barely see her in the moonlight shining through the window, but by all accounts, she was already gone or was moments away from the end.
“I need to give her this,” Preston said as he knelt beside Beau, opening a box and revealing a nasal inhaler.
“What is it?”
“Narcan,” Preston explained as he closed one of her nostrils to administer the dose in the other. “I don’t know what she has in her system, but this will help either way.”
“Baby, please.” Beau shook her shoulders, then turned her over as he felt for a pulse. It was faint, barely noticeable, as he shoved two fingers into the base of her neck. “Please wake up.”
Beside him, Preston spoke into the walkie-talkie attached to the top of his uniform. “Female, twenty-seven, possible overdose. Potential suicide. Three hundred Carson Square Drive. One mile on the left.”
Beau turned an angered eye toward Preston, who shrugged his shoulders.
“Sorry, man. We can’t rule out all causes of her disappearance.”