Pregnesia Read online

  Once again his words were met with a long silence. Lucas could feel his heartbeat not only in his chest, but banging at his temples. Was it possible that she didn’t want to see him? That he’d hurt her by sending her off where she was supposed to belong, even though hurting her was the last thing he’d wanted to happen?

  “There’s nothing wrong with Julie except that she’s stressed and wants some peace and quiet. I see you have an officer with you,” Robert said. “I’ll allow him to come in and speak with Julie. Perhaps he can convince her to come out and talk to you, but I won’t force her to do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

  Wendall looked at Lucas, who in turn looked at Officer Branigan. He shrugged. “I’ll go in and talk to her,” he said. “I don’t have a problem with it.”

  “Okay,” Wendall said into the speaker. “Officer Branigan will come in and speak with Julie.”

  Minutes later a tall, burly man approached the gate from the inside. He offered them a friendly smile, as if it was business as usual to have the chief of police standing at the gate.

  “Officer Branigan? You can come on in.” He opened the gate and allowed the cop inside, then closed and locked the gate once again.

  Branigan turned and offered Wendall and Lucas a thumbs-up signal. Lucas tried to tell himself that surely if anything was wrong the people inside wouldn’t want an armed cop in their midst.

  Lucas looked at Wendall, “Don’t you think it’s damned suspicious that they wouldn’t let us in?”

  “Maybe,” Wendall agreed. “But I have no jurisdiction to just barge in. At least they allowed an officer in to speak with him.”

  Still, Lucas couldn’t get rid of the feeling that Julie was in some kind of terrible danger and needed his help.

  JULIE SAT ON THE EDGE of the bed in an attractive bedroom with an adjoining bath. Under other circumstances she might have appreciated the fine mahogany furniture and the beautiful tapestries that hung on the walls.

  But as beautiful as the bedroom was, it was nothing more than her prison. And it had been her prison for a month before Lucas had found her shivering in the back of that car.

  She remembered everything now, her marriage to David, his unexpected death and the fact that her brother and sister-in-law were monsters.

  Robert was the prophet, the father figure behind the curtain who preached in anonymity on Sundays to a congregation who desperately wanted to believe in something different than what traditional religion offered.

  More than anything, she remembered that they wanted her baby. She wrapped her arms around her belly and looked around the room for the hundredth time since being locked inside.

  The room was located on the third floor. Although there were two windows, there was no way she could chance jumping. She would probably kill herself. But more importantly she could hurt her baby.

  There was nothing to use as a weapon, no way for her to fight the people who held her captive. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly against the tears that threatened to fall. She refused to cry and she refused to think about Lucas, knowing if she did she would start crying and never stop.

  Her husband, David, was dead. That much had been true. He’d been the victim of a mugger who had stabbed him to death. And Robert and Martha had taken her into their home days after the funeral.

  Over the next couple of months, things had been going okay.

  Robert and Martha had embraced her and her unborn child with love and support—or so she’d thought. David had told her when they’d married that Robert couldn’t have children of his own, that a childhood illness had left him sterile. Both Martha and Robert had seemed to have made peace with the fact that they would never have children.

  It had been at the beginning of her seventh month of pregnancy that everything had changed. She’d started talking to Martha about the possibility of moving to a new town. Maybe in another state after the baby was born. She wanted a fresh start. She’d been brought here and held prisoner. Robert had told her his plan for her and her child.

  She jumped to her feet as the door opened and Robert walked in, along with a uniformed police officer. The sight of the officer should have produced a sense of relief in her, but instead it stirred a new fear.

  She’d seen him before. Here, in her prison. He was a member of Robert’s wicked board, a man seeking wealth and power and definitely not on the side of law and order.

  “We have a little problem,” Robert said. “It seems your boyfriend has brought the chief of police to check on your welfare.”

  Lucas was here? Oh, thank God, he’d come for her. Her heart swelled with hope. “Just let me go, Robert. I won’t say anything to anyone. I won’t press any charges against you. Just let me go and you’ll never hear from me again.”

  Robert smiled at her indulgently. “I’ve worked too hard, too long to do that, Julie. The child you carry will be mine. He will herald in a new world for the Church of Enlightenment. He will be the new Prophet and offer hope to all.”

  “Why don’t you tell the truth, Robert?” she said angrily. “This isn’t about the church and hope. It’s about money and power.”

  Robert’s smile grew. “There is that,” he agreed. “It’s amazing how much money people will cough up if they think it means their salvation. For the new prophet they’ll give up their property, their retirement funds. We’ll build our own little community here with people working for the church and we’ll all get wealthy. Right, Ben?”

  The police officer nodded. “Can’t get wealthy working for the man,” he replied.

  “You’ll burn in hell,” Julie exclaimed.

  “Perhaps,” Robert agreed easily. “But what a life I’m planning before I die. The best of everything for the new prophet’s father on earth.” His smile fell and his blue eyes grew icy. “But before any of this can happen we have the little problem of your Romeo and his friend at our gates.”

  “I have a feeling they aren’t going away until they see that she’s okay in person,” Ben said. “She needs to tell them everything is all right.”

  “And I’m not about to do that,” Julie replied fervently. Lucas, her heart cried. Please save me from this nightmare.

  “I think you will,” Robert countered confidently. “I think you’re going to go down to the gate and tell them that you have all your memories back and this is where you want to be.”

  “And why would I do that?” she demanded.

  Robert reached into his pocket and pulled out a photo and held it out to her. Reluctantly she took it from him and gasped in alarm.

  It was a picture of Loretta, taken as she was entering the hospital where she worked. “We can get her anywhere, anytime we want. Same with your boyfriend. Neither of them will know who to fear. They’ll never see us coming. If you don’t cooperate with us, Loretta Washington is a dead woman. And after we kill her, we’ll get Lucas. We would have taken you sooner from Loretta’s apartment, but as we made our plans, you disappeared. Besides, it’s much better this way. We don’t need any police problems.”

  A dull roar resounded in Julie’s head. She believed him. She believed every word he said. They would find Loretta and they would kill her, and eventually they’d get to Lucas, too.

  She held both Loretta’s and Lucas’s lives in her hands and there was no way she could sacrifice them for herself. They had both been so kind to her, a stranger in need and she wouldn’t reward their kindness by placing them at risk.

  “All right,” she finally said, then grimaced. “I’ll do whatever you tell me to do, just leave them alone.”

  Robert took the picture of Loretta from her and tucked it back in his shirt pocket. “I thought you’d see things my way.” He grabbed her by the arm, making her skin crawl with his touch. “Just keep in mind, if you screw up, you’re putting a bullet in their heads. Make this problem go away, Julie.”

  As he led her out of the room, Julie’s heartbeat was a dull throb in her chest. There would be no magical rescue for her. She was g
oing to have her baby here and she had no doubt that Robert would see to it that she didn’t survive the birth.

  As they walked down the long hallway that led to the stairs, she remembered the hall from her nightmares. She’d run this way on the night she’d escaped.

  As she slowly walked between Robert and Ben, she remembered that night. She’d been told of Robert’s plot for her baby, and when Gemma Walker, the old woman who brought her meals, had come in to serve her dinner that night, she’d shoved past her.

  Gemma had hit her on the head with the serving tray, resulting in the wound on her forehead, but Julie had managed to slip by her. That night she’d gotten out of the house, and through some amazing good luck had found the security gate unlocked.

  She wouldn’t get a chance for escape again. They reached the front door of the house, but before they walked outside Robert provided a coat for her and himself.

  It didn’t matter to her whether she wore a coat out into the cold afternoon or not. No cotton or nylon fabric could warm the icy core inside her.

  As they left the house and walked across the long expanse of concrete toward the security gate, Robert squeezed her arm. “It’s in everyone’s best interest for you to look happy.”

  She gave an imperceptible nod. He didn’t have to tell her what needed to be done, she knew. Still, the minute she saw Lucas at the gate, it took every ounce of her self-control to keep herself from crying out for him, to keep from launching herself over the gate and into his arms.

  Instead, as Robert released his hold on her arm she summoned all the inner strength she could find to get through the next few minutes.

  “Julie.” Lucas’s voice was filled with raw concern as he took a step toward her. The tall, dark-haired man standing beside him held him back.

  “Julie, I’m Chief of Police Wendall Kincaid,” he said. “Lucas here seems to think you’re in some sort of trouble.”

  Her heart was a sick thud in her chest as she pasted on a bright smile. “In trouble?” She looked at Lucas. “No, I’m not in trouble. In fact, everything is better than it’s been in days. Lucas, I’ve got my memories back. It was amazing. The minute we pulled through the gates here, they all came tumbling back to me.”

  Lucas’s eyes were filled with doubt as he stared at her intently. “And you want to be here?”

  “I’m safe here, Lucas,” she replied, relieved that her voice didn’t tremble, didn’t waver, but sounded strong and normal. “Martha and Robert brought me here to keep me safe from the men who are after me because of David’s debts.”

  “Really, Mr. Washington, you’re looking for drama where there is none,” Robert said smoothly.

  “Lucas, I really appreciate everything you did for me,” Julie said. “But I’m fine now.” She hoped the smile that curved her lips didn’t look as plastic as it felt.

  Wendall looked at Lucas, who still stared at her with an intensity that made her heart ache. “And this is where you want to be?” Lucas asked.

  “Absolutely,” she replied; then she reached a hand up and deliberately tugged on the end of her hair.

  “Are we done here?” Robert asked with a touch of impatience. “It’s cold and Julie is weary.” He placed an arm around her shoulder and she fought the shiver of revulsion that tried to take hold of her at his touch.

  “I guess we’re done,” Lucas said flatly. “Sorry to bother you all. Julie, I hope things go well for you.” He turned and headed back to his car, followed by Wendall and Ben.

  “You did very well, my dear,” Robert said as he guided her back toward the house.

  Julie barely heard him as she felt the last of her hope flutter away. She’d tried to tell Lucas that she was lying by the tug of her hair, but obviously he hadn’t gotten it.

  She glanced backward just before she went back into the house and saw Lucas’s car driving away. It was over, done, and she was helpless to fight Robert and his minions.

  She hadn’t been able to save herself, but at least she’d saved Lucas and his sister. Still, as Robert led her back up the stairs to her room, she began to weep for Lucas, for her baby and for herself.

  Chapter Twelve

  She’d lied.

  When she had said she was fine and where she wanted to be, she’d been lying. She’d definitely pulled on the ends of her hair when she’d said those words.

  “My mother said she could always tell when I was fibbing because I’d tug on the end of my hair.” Julie’s words reverberated around and around in his head. She’d been trying to signal him, to let him know that she was in trouble.

  Lucas hadn’t even gone half a block from the church when he pulled out his cell phone and punched in a number. “Meet me at my place in fifteen minutes,” he said to Micah.

  “What’s going on?”

  “I’ll tell you when you get there. And call Troy. I want him there, too.”

  Lucas hung up, tossed the phone on the seat next to him and stepped on the gas pedal, eager to get to his apartment and plan a course of action.

  He knew there was no point in talking to Wendall. Julie was a consenting adult. She’d told them all that she wanted to be in the compound behind the church. Without any more evidence to the contrary, Wendall’s hands would be tied.

  Besides, going through legal channels for help could take days, and even then he’d have to convince Wendall that a pull on the hair had been a signal instead of a simple gesture.

  But Lucas wasn’t bound by law. He’d seen all the evidence he needed to see in the simple tug of her hair. Rage balled up in his chest as he thought of Julie afraid and alone with people who meant her and her unborn baby harm.

  He still didn’t understand what they wanted with her, why they would take her to the compound and hold her there against her will, but he didn’t need a reason to go in and get her out.

  He also didn’t know if she’d lied about having her memories back or not. But it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except getting her out of that place and away from those people. Guilt ripped through him. He’d handed her over to them. He’d sent her back into danger.

  It was almost two in the afternoon by the time he reached his apartment. Micah and Troy were already in the parking lot awaiting his arrival.

  They didn’t speak until they were in the apartment and then Lucas told them what had transpired at the church compound.

  “I don’t know what’s going on there. I don’t know why they’re holding her, but we have to get her out,” he said. “I know she’s in danger.” He thumped his chest with his fist. “I feel it here.”

  He was grateful that neither of his friends tried to dissuade him from his belief. In any case it would have been a waste of time. With or without them, Lucas intended to get Julie out.

  “What do you have in mind?” Micah asked as he leaned forward in his chair at the kitchen table. His eyes glittered with the call to war. There was nothing Micah and Troy enjoyed more than action.

  “A covert operation,” Lucas replied. “We go in under the cover of night and we don’t come out unless we have her with us.”

  Micah sat back and frowned thoughtfully. “What do you know about the house where she’s being held?”

  “Not much. It’s a three-story mansion. I don’t know how many people are inside. I don’t know if she’s being held under armed guard. I’m not sure what we’d be walking into.”

  Troy smiled. “Wouldn’t be the first time,” he replied.

  “I’ll see if I can get a copy of permits and maybe a floor plan of the place this afternoon,” Micah said.

  “And I’ll do a little reconnaissance work and see if I can tell how many people might be inside and whether they’re armed or not,” Troy added.

  Lucas nodded, gratitude swelling in his chest. “Why don’t we coordinate back here at seven tonight and make final plans?”

  Troy and Micah left immediately, and Lucas paced the confines of his kitchen, his thoughts filled with Julie. It was only now that he recognized
the depths of his feelings for her.

  He loved her.

  He’d never allowed himself to fall in love with any woman, but somehow Julie had gotten under his defenses, touched places in his heart that had never been touched before.

  He had no illusions. There was no happily ever after for them. His loving Julie didn’t magically absolve him of the issues that would forever keep him a solitary man.

  But he wanted her safe. He wanted her healthy. And eventually he hoped she’d be happy. He knew in his gut that none of those things were going to happen as long as she was in that house. He had to get her out and then he could walk away from her with no regrets.

  The late afternoon and early evening hours crept by with agonizing slowness. Lucas got on his computer and tried to find out everything he could about the Church of Enlightenment, seeking answers to questions he didn’t even know how to pose.

  He did a Google search of the names of the few people he knew from the church—Charles Blankenship, Robert Montgomery, Martha Montgomery and of course, Julie. Charles Blankenship had a Web site devoted to his family with nothing inflammatory or unusual about it. He could find nothing on Robert and Martha except a special interest article in a local newspaper about Robert’s gift shop.

  He found the article about David’s murder. It had occurred as the man had left an ATM. The case was never solved. His obituary mentioned that he was survived by his older brother, Robert, and his wife, Julie, but Lucas already knew that.

  All in all, the computer time was a bust and once again Lucas took to pacing the kitchen, his head whirling with crazy thoughts and emotions he’d never felt before.

  By the time seven o’clock arrived, Lucas was like a cat on a hot tin roof, filled with a nervous energy that begged to be directed into action.

  He changed his clothes, opting for a pair of black jeans and a long-sleeved black turtleneck that would allow him to blend into the night.

  When Troy and Micah arrived they were dressed similarly, and they didn’t come empty-handed. They brought stun guns, rope and grappling hooks for rappelling. More importantly, they brought their stealth and clandestine methods and expertise as ex–navy SEALs at getting in and out without detection.