TAKEN!
Pinned inside her wrecked car, Rachel Simon is powerless to stop her sonâs abduction. Unless she can come up with one million dollars, Joey wonât survive until Christmas. With her sonâs life hanging in the balance, Rachel turns to the one lawman who can help her. His own painful past still shadowing him, Detective Nick Butler is determined not to fail. Racing against a ticking clock, Nick will have to put all his investigative skills to the test if mother and son are to be reunitedâand then perhaps he might have a chance at the redeeming power of love.
Her greatest weakness was her sonâs safety. If the kidnappers threatened to hurt him, she knew sheâd go along with whatever they asked of her.
Rachel turned to walk away, but suddenly Nick grabbed her hand to stop her. Glancing over her shoulder, she found him staring at her intently. âWhatâs wrong?â she asked.
âNothing. Justâbe careful, okay?â he said gruffly. Then, before she could respond, he pulled her close and gave her a quick kiss.
The kiss was over before she had a chance to register what had happened. But she longed to throw herself into his arms, absorbing some of his strength. This wasnât the time or the place, though, so she said the first thing that came to mind. âRemember your promise,â she blurted. âNo matter what happens, save my son.â
LAURA SCOTT
grew up reading faith-based romance books by Grace Livingston Hill, but as much as she loved the stories, she longed for a bit more mystery and suspense. She is honored to write for the Love Inspired Suspense line, where a reader can find a heartwarming journey of faith amid the thrilling danger.
Laura lives with her husband of twenty-five years and has two children, a daughter and a son, who are both in college. She works as a critical-care nurse during the day at a large level-one trauma center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and spends her spare time writing romance.
Please visit Laura at www.laurascottbooks.com, as she loves to hear from her readers.
ONE
âMs. Simon, wait! I have a letter for you.â
Rachel Simon, CEO of Simon Inc., froze, despite the fact that she was running late for her nine-oâclock meeting. The sick feeling in her stomach swelled with dread as she forced herself to turn and face the receptionist.
âHere you go,â Carrie Freeman said with a wide smile.
Rachel stared at the thin envelope with her name typed neatly on the front, the dread congealing into a mass of fear. The letter looked exactly like the one sheâd received in her mailbox at home last night, and she instinctively knew there was another threat inside. She swallowed hard and took the envelope from the receptionist, being careful to hold it along the edges. Then she cleared her throat. âWho dropped this off for me, Carrie?â
âI donât know... It was sitting on my desk chair when I came back from the restroom. There was a sticky note, telling me to deliver it to you first thing.â
Rachel tried hard to keep her fear from showing as she cast a worried gaze around the lobby. Was the person who had left the note watching her right now? âDo you still have the sticky note?â she asked.
Carrieâs expression turned perplexed. âI tossed it in the trash bin.â Rachel glanced over the receptionistâs shoulder at the large stainless-steel trash container standing near the lobby door. âDo you want me to go through the garbage to find it?â Carrieâs tone indicated she wasnât thrilled with the idea of pawing in the trash although Rachel knew she would if asked.
As much as she wanted to see the note, she shook her head. Asking Carrie to search through the bin would only bring unwanted attention to herself. She wasnât ready to go public with the weird phone calls and the threatening letter sheâd received. The last thing she needed was some sort of leak to the media, as if her company hadnât been through the wringer already.
âNo thanks, just curious to see if I recognized the handwriting, thatâs all. Thanks again, Carrie.â
Rachel turned back toward the elevators, her mind focused on the contents of the letter rather than on her upcoming meeting with the two top research scientists in her pharmaceutical company.
The ride to the tenth floor, where her office suite was located, seemed to take forever. She smiled and chatted with various employees as if the envelope in her hand didnât matter.
âGood morning, Rachel,â her senior administrative assistant, Edith Goodman, said as she entered through the glass doors. âDr. Gardener and Dr. Errol are waiting for you in the conference room.â