Fuming with frustration, Reed gritted his teeth and peered through the driving rain. He wanted to floor the gas pedal and rip a pathway through the cars up ahead. Of course, he couldn’t. Seething, he settled in to wait.
As he’d expected it was close to an hour before he was able to exit the motorway and merge onto a local road but by then it was drawing close to six o’clock in the evening, a whole two hours after the time that had been set for his marriage ceremony and over six hours since he had last spoken to Golden. God, he just hoped she was all right.
Now Reed was on a road where the traffic was moving, albeit at a pace that was much slower than he wanted, but at least he was getting somewhere. The weather was no help, though. Instead of easing up, the sudden summer storm seemed to be intensifying, thunder rumbling in the distance, lightning tearing up the sky and billowing winds buffeting the vehicles on the road. Some drivers began to pull over into parking lots and gas stations, probably to sit out the storm. Not Reed. He was going to Golden’s house if it killed him.
When Reed finally made it onto the country road leading out to the house the rain-weakened daylight had long passed and the night, with its sky still covered by rain clouds, was dark as pitch. Even with the headlights on high beam, more than once Reed had to slam on the brakes to avoid plowing into a pool of water that had settled in a sink in the road. Once, he’d had to leave the road altogether and climb the grassy bank at the side. And he kept on going.
Finally, he turned onto the lane he sought and then headed up the driveway of Golden’s home. What he saw made his heart go still. The house was in total darkness. There was no way Golden would be here.
Oh, God. Had his journey been in vain? Reed slowed to a stop in front of the house and peered through the sheets of rain. There were no signs of life, not even the flicker of a candle through the window. Nothing.
He slumped forward, resting his forehead against the steering wheel, suddenly feeling drained, knowing that under the circumstances the rational thing to do was to turn right around and head back the way he’d come.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
But right then Reed was feeling anything but rational. He was going insane. He hadn’t come this far to then not find Golden. He had to.
He switched off the engine and threw the car door open then ran through the pounding rain to the front door. Banging the knocker like he was about to break it he shouted through the deluge. “Hello? Anybody home? Anybody in there?”
The only answer was the sound of raindrops slapping the earth and the deafening crack of thunder. Meanwhile, tucked under the eaves, Reed was getting drenched by the showers.
“Hello,” he yelled, and began banging again but he already knew it was useless. If there was anyone in the house he would have a better chance of attracting attention if he banged on a window or maybe the back door. Ducking his head, he ran through the curtain of water and when he got to the side of the house he peered through the first window. All he saw was darkness but that didn’t deter him from rapping at the glass and yelling his head off. When that didn’t work he ran to another window and then another, rapping and yelling like a madman. By the time he got to the back of the house he was exhausted.
Panting, rainwater streaming down his face, Reed staggered back to the front of the house for one last try. He lifted his hand to the knocker just as his foot slipped on the front step, making him grab the knob to keep from falling.
Immediately, the door swung open. Shit. It had been open the whole damn time.
Without hesitation Reed stepped into the entranceway, the hall so dark he could hardly see a foot in front of his face. He flipped the light switch by the door. Nothing. The storm must have knocked out the power. He took one step then another then came to a complete halt. He couldn’t see a thing.
Digging into his right pocket he pulled out his cell phone and held it up, the dim light lifting the thick curtain of darkness just enough that he could make his way deeper into the room.
“Hello,” he called out as he slowly made his way farther into the unfamiliar house. “Anybody here? Golden?”
Silence. Was he trespassing in vain? No. He would not accept defeat. Golden had to be here.
Determined, he made his way up the stairs to the landing and knocked on every door. He even pushed them open and peered in. “Golden? Are you here?” He found not a soul.
Shoulders slumped, Reed turned and went back down the stairs, hope seeping out of him with every step. What now?
He was heading back to the front door when his footsteps slowed and he came to a stop. He couldn’t leave. Not without one last try. Maybe there was a den or a library he had missed. What if Golden had been scared by the lightning and thunder and had hidden herself away somewhere where she couldn’t see the flashes of lightning? He’d heard that some people actually had phobias to thunderstorms.
Reed turned and headed back down the hallway. “Golden, are you here?” His shout was louder this time, reverberating in the otherwise silent house. If Golden was anywhere in this house she would have to hear him. “Golden,” he bellowed.
And then he heard it. A banging in the distance, all the way at the end of the hall. “Golden. It’s Reed. Is that you?” He was yelling as he ran, determined not to lose her. He had to follow the sound. “Keep banging. I hear you. I’m coming.” His shouts echoing down the hallway ahead of him, Reed ran half-blind into the darkness and as the banging grew louder his heart soared.
When he finally got to the source of the noise he heard her. “Get me out of here. Please. Let me out.” Her voice, muffled by the heavy door, broke off on a sob.
“I’m here, honey. You’re okay now. I’ll get you out.” Quickly, Reed shoved the phone back into his pocket and grabbed the handle of the door. As he had expected, it was locked. He would have to find some way to pry it open or, better yet, to pick the lock. “Hang on, sweetheart. I’ll get you out. I promise. Just hang in there.”
Chewing on his bottom lip, he frowned, deep in thought. What could he use to pick the lock? There had to be something but he would definitely not find that something in this house, not while it was bathed in darkness. He’d head for the car. He had to find something there. “I’ll be right back,” he called out. “I’m just going out to the car but I’ll be back in a minute.”