Her eyes wide, she nodded. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t swal-low. The pressure on her throat eased, and she gulped in the sweet night air. He thrust her toward a dark-colored sedan. Reaching the car, he opened the back door and pushed her and Heidi inside.
A grate separated them from the front seat. The door shut then locked. Faye couldn’t find a way to release the lock. She tugged on the handle but the door refused to open. There was no way to roll the window down either. This was all her fault. She should have put Heidi down and told her to run.
And her husband was bleeding in the upstairs hallway. She could only pray he would be all right. He must have surprised the man taking Heidi. They never should have gone to bed, but Curtis had been sure things would be fine. He’d activated the security system and taken his pistol into the bedroom with them. All those precautions hadn’t been enough.
Faye’s mouth was dry, and she cuddled Heidi close. She had to protect her somehow, even though she’d failed at all those things with her own children. All her life she’d run from problems. Tonight that would stop. She was going to have to reach deep inside and find what small, tattered courage she possessed to stand up to whoever was behind this.
Heidi stirred and lifted her damp face. “I want to go home,” she whispered. “Where’s Uncle Jesse? And the man hit Mr. Curtis. You need to help him.”
“I know. I saw.” Faye smoothed the hair back from Heidi’s face. “Mr. Curtis was moving around when I saw him. He’ll be all right.” She said the words as much to reassure herself as the keiki.
The car shifted as the man got in. Faye stared at the back of his head where a small swirl of hair crested the top of his skull. “What do you want with us?” she asked.
The man didn’t answer as he rolled the window down a crack to let in some air. His dark eyes met Faye’s in the rearview mirror, and she shuddered at the implacable expression in them. She began to shake deep inside, though she tried to hide her fear from Heidi.
Heidi crawled into her lap, and Faye rocked and crooned to her as if she were only three instead of eight. Heidi buried her face against Faye. Faye strained to see through the darkness, hoping for someone walking a dog or jogging along the street so she could pound on the window and scream for help, but there was no one around. Though nightlife wasn’t totally unknown on this side of the island, it wasn’t common either. The golden glow from streetlights revealed a sleeping town, then the car left the city limits and headed into the dark night.
Jesse wrenched the steering wheel, and the tires screamed around a tight curve. He knew he was driving too fast, but he kept his foot glued to the accelerator.
“No answer at the house,” Kaia said, clicking off the cell phone.
“They’ve had plenty of time to snatch the keiki,” Bane said.
“Do you think they hurt Curtis and—and Faye?” It would have been typical of Faye to fail to protect Heidi. He should have known better than to take his niece to a woman who would desert her own children.
“What did the police say?” Mano asked.
“They’re sending over a patrol car.” Kaia’s voice was strained. “They should get there about the same time as we do.”
The Jeep careened around another curve then went airborne when it hit a bump. The tires slammed onto the pavement, and Jesse fought to keep the SUV on the road. The lights of town were just ahead. He jammed his foot into the floorboard and sped to the outskirts of town where he slammed on the brakes and barreled around the corner.
The Latchet house was at the end of the lane. A police car, its motor running, sat at the curb, and two uniformed officers stood at the front door. Jesse parked behind the squad car and jumped out of his Jeep. The officers turned as Jesse got to the porch. Kaia was right behind him.
“We called you,” Kaia said. “Jesse’s niece was threatened by a man who forced me into his car.”
“There’s no answer from inside,” the youngest officer said.
“Did you try the door?” Jesse twisted the doorknob, but it was locked.
“Let me call in and get permission to force the door.” The older, portly policeman started toward the patrol car.
“I’ll go around back,” Jesse said. He jogged around the side of the house with Kaia on his heels.
The back door stood open. Kaia took hold of his arm, and her nails bit into his arm. “Oh no,” she whispered.
“Go get the officers,” he said softly.
Kaia nodded. “Wait until they get here.” She ran to the corner of the house and disappeared around the side.
Jesse approached the back steps and examined the frame. The door didn’t look like it had been broken, but it stood wide open. Jesse stepped into the kitchen. Fruit lay scattered on the floor, and his sneakers crunched broken pieces of pottery underfoot; he nearly slipped on mashed chunks of fruit. The aroma of mango filled the air.