Taken - Before her very Eyes (23 page)

Dropping back on top of the
flower pot, Summer stared at her uncooperative arms. The strength was still
there, just forgotten, that’s all. She thought about Sabrina over there in the
next home and tried to picture Percy.

“John Scott’s dead,” Summer
muttered. “He can’t hurt you anymore. What he’s done is passed, stripped away
like his life before your eyes. He can’t cause you any more harm.” She clenched
her hands, flexing the tightness from her joints. “He is dead.”

Summer pictured Percy driving
away in the Mercedes with Sabrina crying in the back seat. That rage of anger
was returning to her body and it felt good. She concentrated hard on the look
of fear in Sabrina’s beautiful eyes until her body was shaking with fury.

Summer ran, stepped on the
flowerpot and jumped to the top of the fence, landing with one leg over the top
board. It wasn’t her best, but it was good enough to get the job done. Dragging
the other leg over, she fell to the soft ground with an awkward thud then got
quickly to her feet, not letting her mind think about anything but Sabrina’s
cries for help.

Safe from Percy’s sight, she ran
through the backyard toward the upper landing of the wooden staircase. Once
there, she clung to the railing and nervously looked over the edge. Down to her
right sat a much larger boathouse, with a shorter staircase rising from the
sand to the back of the beach house where Percy was holding Sabrina.

The house was beautiful. It must
have cost a fortune to build something that size, and right on the edge of
paradise.

Summer stepped out onto the
landing, her hands still clamped to the top posts, reluctant to let go of the
stable platform and trust in the craftsmanship of some stranger. Standing on
the edge, she saw how large the waves were and how far up the shore they were
crashing. The bottom landing of the staircase was already getting soaked from
the constant spray of the crashing waves and they seemed to be growing with
every second she stood there.

Drawing a huge breath and holding
it, Summer let go of the post with one hand and quickly snatched the small
wobbly railing along the exposed side of the cliff. She felt the whole
structure sway with the shift in her weight and couldn’t believe the owners
actually used this contraption to get down to the water.

One foot after the other, she
felt bile rising up her throat until it nearly choked her. When she reached the
first landing, she bent over the railing, holding onto it with a death grip and
hurled the contents of her stomach over the side, down to the soft wet sand
below.

Summer wiped her mouth on her
sleeve and gazed from the landing, up to the top of the staircase. She’d only
travelled down ten steps, with about forty more to go, and even though she
didn’t want to navigate forty more, at least she was descending and not
climbing.

Forcing herself to move, Summer
turned on the landing and started down the next level of stairs. These ones
seemed to be going better. Either she was becoming more comfortable with
descending the wobbly stairs, or she was losing her mind and forgetting how
much she hated heights. Either way it didn’t matter. All that mattered was
getting to the wet sand below, then safely across to where Sabrina was.

One step after another, Summer
contemplated how she would get Sabrina out of the house alive, and everything
came down to two options. One, she’d snatch Sabrina while Percy wasn’t looking
and rush her away to safety. Or two, she’d blow his fucking brains all over the
modern artwork inside the beach house.

Halfway down, a large gust of
wind slammed the staircase against the cliff side, knocking some sand and rocks
loose, sending then falling to the platform below. Summer held tight to the
railing and as soon as the stairs stopped rocking, she hurried down the
remaining flights until her feet were standing on the solid wooden platform at
the base of the stairs. She glanced up the cliff to where the earth met the sky
and marvelled at how she’d conquered her greatest fear.

“Holly shit!” Summer stepped off
the platform and onto the wet sand. “I’m so glad that’s over.” She hurried down
the beach, dodging the waves as they crashed dangerously close to the base of
the cliff.

Her legs felt like rubber as she
half jogged, half limped down the beach, already nervously eyeing the staircase
in the distance.

The wind coming off the lake
dropped the temperature five degrees, bringing a chill deep inside her body and
numbness to her hands and feet. Summer hurried along the stretch of beach,
ignoring the fact that her right foot was getting sorer and sorer with each
step she took. She could feel the cut burning, flaring up and igniting the
entire depth of the wound. Normally a cut like that wouldn’t have bothered her
if she’d gone home and rested it, but there was nothing normal about today.
Nothing to say the least.

Once she reached the base
platform for the stairs, Summer realized just how massive the boathouse was. It
could easily house two twenty-footers and still have room for more. Not only
that, but the front of the building was designed more like a guest house than a
place to launch a boat from.

Summer turned her attention to
the staircase reaching up the side of the cliff. It was built better than the
last one, and the height of the cliff had dropped off considerably as they
neared the valley, but the idea of climbing up it still terrified her.

“With all their money, you’d
think they could afford an elevator,” Summer muttered, stepping onto the lower
platform and grasping the double railing. Each step she took, she breathed a
sigh of relief at how much nicer this staircase was. Maybe it was the fact she
was only climbing half the distance, or maybe she was just getting better at
dealing with her fear of heights, but she was making good time and would soon
be at the top of the stairs, gazing into Percy’s hideout.

She paused, patting her leg and
feeling the security of the pistol strapped there. It was quite a morale
booster, but she knew even without it, she’d still be planning the same thing,
only her chance of success would be near zero.

The wind gusts continued to grow
in strength as she neared the top of the cliff. The air was crashing, surging
up the side and lifting her shirt periodically, bringing an icy chill all the
way up her back.

Climbing the last step to the
final landing before exposing herself above the ridge of the cliff, Summer
paused and withdrew her gun from the holster. She thought many times during the
climb about getting her gun ready in case Percy was waiting at the top of the
stairs, but in her current condition she didn’t dare trust her hands not to
drop the gun down to the sandy pit beneath. Now, holding the gun in her hand,
her finger gripping the trigger tightly, grateful that the safety was on,
Summer slowly climbed the remaining ten stairs, scrunching down as her head
protruded over the top of the cement landing.

She kept low, scouring the
windows for any sign of Percy or Sabrina, but the rooms were empty. Satisfied
she could get safely off the stairs and make a mad dash to the garden shed at
the back corner, Summer scurried up the remaining steps and ran, limping across
the lawn, diving for cover behind the shed.

Squatting behind the shed with
her right leg stretched outward, kneading her ankle with her free hand, Summer
scouted the layout of the house and yard, contemplating what her best move
would be. She’d seen Sabrina in the side window on the right and assumed she’d
still be there waiting while Percy formulated another plan.

Summer pulled the phone from her
pocket and glanced at the display, making sure it was still working and receiving
a strong signal. The fact Percy hadn’t tried calling since he took the shot at
Nate, unnerved her. Maybe he thought the deal was too risky now that he’d tried
to kill a police officer? If his time behind bars had taught him anything, it
would be that cops don’t take kindly to a cop killer—Or in Percy’s case, an
attempted kill.

Sliding to the edge of the shed,
Summer peered through the patio doors, into the back sitting room which
overlooked the scenic lake view. There was absolutely no movement from inside
that room and by her calculations, Percy wouldn’t be the least bit interested
in watching from behind. He’d have no reason to believe the cops would place
him in this house. The only thing linking him to this home was its vicinity to
his grandmother’s place, but even Percy would know it’d be a long shot for the
cops to connect the places together, so he’d feel very secure sitting, peering
between the blinds, watching the roadway.

Convinced of her theory, Summer
moved quickly from the shed, keeping low as she went, sneaking toward the
house. She kept large objects close in her path in case she saw even the
slightest shadow move inside.

Summer dodged toward the iron
patio furniture then paused, resting her burning legs. This was the most action
she’d seen in many months and realized her previous training habits had fallen
to the wayside for the last while. She cursed, knowing she should never have
let her body deteriorate like she had. She should’ve kept up the regiment even
if her heart and mind were breaking.

Standing tall, Summer felt the
burn in her muscles and realized the feeling was more satisfying than any pill
she’d popped down her throat. She dashed to the rear of the home feeling alive
once again and wedged her back against the stucco wall beside the patio door.
Her heart pounded so loudly in her ears, she swore she wouldn’t be able to hear
if Percy were standing right beside, talking to her.

The patio door was closed, so she
reached out a finger and pushed with everything she had, but the door wouldn’t
budge. It was either locked, or heavier than she thought it should be. After
taking a quick glance in the room, Summer stepped past the door and slid in
behind the tall potted spruce on the other side. It made for good cover,
allowing her to squat and peer through the house while still being hidden from
sight.

From this angle she could see
through this back room, into the large open kitchen and even the two doors on
the far side. She knew Sabrina was located in one of those rooms, but couldn’t
be sure which one it was. She’d seen her sitting inside, and should’ve
remembered which it was, but her emotions were running so high with relief that
she couldn’t be sure.

Summer couldn’t decide what to do
next. Should she round the side of the house and peer into the room where
Sabrina was, then hope she could somehow get her out of the window without her
screaming with joy, or for that fact, without Percy noticing the smashing of
the glass. Maybe if Sabrina were a few years older, her reaction might be more
predictable, but for now she had to assume the worst—that Sabrina would scream
and cry and draw unwanted attention her way. Or, if all else failed, Summer
could break the lock on the patio door, storm inside and gun Percy down on the
ceramic tiled kitchen floor.

Five months ago it would’ve been
no decision. She would’ve done just that without a second thought. She would’ve
loved to see the look of terror in Percy’s eyes when she appeared from nowhere,
holding his pea brain in the sight of her gun until he surrendered.

With the lack of movement inside,
Summer wondered if Percy had vacated the house while she’d been busy navigating
the stairs and beach. Suddenly she had to know. Had to know if she was wasting
precious time. She needed to take matters into her own hands and make things
happen instead of waiting to react to the situation.

Summer ducked down below the
window height and ran along the back of the house to the attached garage. Once
there she stepped to the window and peered inside. The brown Silverado was
there, closest to the window, while a white car occupied the remaining spot.
Breathing a sigh of relief, she bent and plucked an iron garden stake from the
flowerbed then held it before her eyes. The pointed end of the stake was
perfect.

She dug the end of the stake into
the meshing of the window screen, slicing it straight across the bottom of the
window. After grasping the black netting, she yanked it loose from the frame in
one quick motion.

After a sideways push on the
glass, she realized the window was locked. Summer holstered her gun then used
both hands to force the iron stake between the window and the frame. It took a
few tries before she was able to wedge the stake securely between the two. She
pried the window, watching as the plastic frame bowed and stretched. She swore
the glass was about to break and shatter into a thousand pieces, but it held
strong, keeping its tempered ability as the window opened with a light popping
noise.

Pausing and listening for any
sound from within, Summer held her breath and waited for a second longer, then
dropped the stake to the ground and slid the window all the way open. Carefully
she gripped the top of the window sash and lifted herself, throwing her right
leg up and through the window opening. Once she was balanced on the lip of the
window, she pulled her other leg through and dropped softly to the cement floor
in the garage.

Running her hand quickly over the
truck’s hood, she confirmed her suspicion. The engine was still warm. She did
the same thing as she passed the car, but got a different response this time.
She paused at the front of the car then ducked between the two vehicles and
started to unscrew the valve caps. Squatted down, she let the air out of both
front tires at the same time, knowing that it wouldn’t stop him from trying to
get away in either vehicle, but it’d certainly slow him down quite a bit.

Summer stepped softly as she
headed for the door to the house, but swore she could still hear each footfall
echoing through the garage as she went. Over on the far wall was an assortment
of tools and Summer eyed the pry bar, keeping it in mind in case the door was
locked. She held her breath as she climbed the steps to the door, praying that
she wouldn’t need to use the pry bar to force the door open and lose the
element of surprise. With the handle gripped tightly, she felt her hand begin
to shake until the knob twisted slowly to the right.