Extraits

Just when Abigail thought she would pass out from lack of air, and probably follow that up by dying, the hold on her throat eased. In the next moment his hand fell away altogether and the man slumped weakly back against the bars of his cage. His body appeared at rest, but his eyes were alive and now focused on her like lasers.

Gasping in great gulps of air, Abigail eyed him warily and began to shift backward toward the cage door.

“Who are you?”

She stopped at that question. His voice was husky and so deep and gravelly it was like hearing the earth move. Breathing under control now, Abigail swallowed and whispered, “Abs.”

His eyebrows rose at that and he glanced down at his stomach and frowned. “What about them?”

Realizing he thought she was talking about his abs, she shook her head and smiled crookedly. “My name,” she explained and then babbled, “It’s really Abigail, but my friends call me Abs, or Abbey, but mostly Abs. At least Jethro does. I haven’t seen much of my friends lately. He’s the first one I’ve had the chance to meet up with since Mom died so I—”

“Who is this Jethro?”

Abigail blinked at the interruption. “He’s my friend,” she answered simply, glancing toward the door to the cockpit and suddenly worried that they might be heard. She couldn’t hear voices from the front though, so hoped that meant they couldn’t be heard from up there either.

“A boyfriend?” he asked, drawing her attention back again.

“Hell no,” she said, surprise making her response more emphatic. Wrinkling her nose, she added, “Ewww. He’s been my best friend since we were kids. He’s like a brother to me. I could never think of him like that. It would be—”

“You are with the kidnappers?”

Abigail’s eyebrows rose at the pained sound to the question. His expression matched it. He was obviously upset that she might be with the men who had put him in this cage, but then she couldn’t blame him. He must be furious to find himself in this situation. She supposed she was lucky he hadn’t choked her to death.

“No,” she assured him quickly. “I’m rescuing you.”