Leaving Kade. Leaving the ranch house. Going into the barn to look for Billy. An image appeared of the man in the ski mask holding a gun against the boy’s head. Her whole body tightened as Rick Egan’s face swam into focus, and suddenly Ellie knew exactly where she was.

Her breath stalled. The darkness pressed in on her, and fear gripped her, a terror far worse than the pain throbbing through her body.

Where are you taking me?

You can’t guess? You’re the detective. You figure it out.

Oh, God, he had brought her to the mine!

Panic surged through her, and the fear deepened, threatening to swallow her whole. Her breath came in sharp, ragged gasps, and her heart thundered. The panic attack grew more fierce, shutting her body down until her lungs seized and she couldn’t drag in enough air.

Dear God, help me. Ellie closed her eyes and fought to stay calm, to remember the lessons Mrs. Scarsdale, her school nurse, had taught her all those years ago.

Quiet your mind. Breathe in and hold it. Count to five as you release it. Breathe out and hold it. Count to five as you release it. She did the breathing exercise over and over until her body began to relax and the tightness in her chest began to ease.

She could do this, she told herself. If she wanted to live, she had no choice.

It took longer than she’d hoped to steady her nerves, calm her mind, and regain control. It was past time to take action. Groping in the darkness, she touched the dirt wall beside her. A wooden barrier closed off a portion of the tunnel, forming some sort of room. She pictured it in her mind, realized the mattress lay on the ground in the corner.

She continued to move around in the darkness, feeling her way along the walls, searching for the tunnel entrance, the way back out of the mine.

She came to a turn and, now that her eyes had adjusted to the pitch-black interior, saw a thin ray of light in the distance. As she approached, she realized the light seeped in through another wooden barricade. The tunnel was abandoned, boarded up to keep people from wandering into the dangerous interior.

She hurried toward the light, feeling the first ray of hope since she had awakened in the pit of Egan’s hell. She could hear the steady patter of rain and remembered it had been raining when they had walked along the trail leading away from the ranch. Her clothes were damp but a little drier than they had been. She figured she had been here a couple of hours.

A second wave of fear struck her. Billy! Had Billy survived the fierce blow to his head? Dear God, she hoped he had. And what about the freezing cold? He could die before morning.