Makita seemed to be getting sleepy. He yawned widely as Amarok returned Lewis’s call. Amarok wasn’t expecting the detective to pick up; he merely wanted to leave a message.

Before he could do that, however, he got a call himself.

Pulling the phone away from his ear to see who was trying to reach him, he cursed. This was a call he’d been dreading.

It was Brianne, Evelyn’s sister. Evelyn’s entire family was frantic. Evelyn had been missing for over a week. Her mother hadn’t even been functional since receiving the news.

And now he had to tell them that he wasn’t really much closer to finding her.

Between Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK—Thursday, 2:05 a.m. AKDT

Evelyn tried not to hold her breath as Bishop brushed the hair off her face. He’d left the back doors open when he climbed into the van with her, so, thanks to the cabin light, she knew he could see her quite well despite the darkness of the woods around them.

She had to make it appear as though she were sleeping peacefully. He would find it strange if her chest weren’t rising and falling—or if her eyes were scrunched too tightly closed. But it was so difficult not to try to peek at what he was doing.

She longed to use the screwdriver she had hidden behind her back right away. She was in full fight-or-flight mode. But she could hear him and guessed he was positioned too close to the open doors. If she tried to stab him now, he’d just rear up in surprise and fall out, and then he’d be on her again before she could crawl into the front of the van and drive off.

No. She had to wait until he was fully committed to the rape he obviously had in mind. Only once he dropped his pants along with his defenses, was overcome with lust, would she have the opportunity to do enough damage to possibly save herself.

When she didn’t move, didn’t react to his touch or his voice, he said, “You are so elegant. I’ve never seen a more beautiful woman. I think I’ve loved you from first sight.”

Love? The only person Bishop loved was himself, but he did crave attention, admiration and, of course, physical gratification.

Evelyn was so stiff she was afraid she’d give herself away before she could make a concerted effort to stab him.

“Let me touch you,” he whispered. “What are you saying? You want me, too? Really? I never knew.”

The fantasy he was playing out was so confusing for a rape. He was approaching her gently, kindly. Luckily for her, Bishop didn’t have a taste for violence unless he felt threatened or he was angry. She and her baby had that going for them. But she also knew he’d switch the second she offered any resistance. She’d seen him turn into Mr. Hyde with Edna. And she’d heard about his encounters with Beth.

Right now, he was enjoying pretending that this was consensual, as though they were lovers, which fit with the odd things he’d said about becoming the father of her baby.