A Hostage to Delusion by M J Marlow (the reading list book txt) 📖

her knee hit a rock she had not seen. When she got up, she could not put her full weight on her leg. She hobbled on, lost in the darkness and shaking with the pain of the withdrawal.
They’ve addicTed me to that damned drug, she realized as the cramps and the headache grew worse. I am going to collapse here in this dark place and no one will ever find me. She was sobbing as she forced herself to move. She nearly passed out in relief when her eyes began to notice a change in the light. She stumbled out into a large carve and saw the opening.
“What have we here?” a tall lanky teen laughed as he looked up at the sound of her falling into the light as he and his friends had stopped for a drink. He helped Cassie up on her feet and saw all the scrapes and bruises. “Are you all right, kid?”
“I fell,” Cassie whimpered. She gripped his arm tight as the cramps began in earnest. “Please – help – me.”
“Ed!” the boy snapped as he picked Cassie up and carried her over to a shady spot. “Call the Sheriff and tell him we found an injured girl.” He saw his friend stay put. “What’s wrong with you? She needs help!”
“Don’t you know who that is, Ben?” Ed Carson asked, his eyes wide with delight. Ben shook his head. “We’ve found ‘his’ wife; that bastard who nearly shot us because we strayed onto his property.” He saw comprehension dawning. “He was dragging her into the house against her will, Ben!”
“We can’t give her up to him,” Ben nodded. He watched Cassie thrashing and moaning. “She’s sick, Ed. We have to take her somewhere.”
“I’ll tie her to you and we’ll take her to our camp,” Ed decided. “We have first aid supplies there. If she gets any worse, then I’ll go get my sister.”
Ben nodded and Ed picked Cassie up. He set her on the back of the four-wheeler Ben was on and taped her wrists in front of him so she could not fall off. Cassie’s eyes shot open and she looked at them in confusion.
“Please don’t hurt me,” she begged them as she tried to pull free. “Let me go!” She screamed as a pain shot through her and passed out again.
“Ed,” Ben cried in alarm as he felt her shaking. “She’s really sick. We have to get help now!”
“Tomorrow,” Ed replied as he saw the sun. “It’s going to be dark soon. We’ll barely get back to camp as it is.” They drove to their camp and the sun was setting as they got a bedroll down and laid Cassie on it. Ben starTed to prepare dinner and Ed went to get on the portable radio.
“You found her!” Howard said in relief as he stepped into their camp. “Thank God!” He saw the boys eyeing him warily as he crouched down next to Cassie and patTed her cheeks. “Mrs. Garrison? Wake up.” Cassie’s eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him in confusion. Then fear filled her eyes and she tried to get away from him. “I’m not going to hurt you, ma’am.”
“You’re going to take me back,” Cassie cried as she continued to struggle. “I won’t go back to him! I won’t!” She watched as he took something out of his pocket. “What are you doing?”
“Taking off the cuff and the choker, Mrs. Garrison. “He won’t know where you are once those come off.” He saw that she was not convinced he meant to help her and he nearly laughed. Of course he wasn’t going to help her. He had other plans for her. He removed the items and set them down. She relaxed only a bit. He took out a pair of tweezers and she flinched as he caught her and pulled something out of her ear. “He is one devious bastard that husband of yours.”
“What is that?” Ben asked as he and Ed watched the man closely.
“He’s been planning on driving her insane,” Howard told them. “So he put this in her ear to convince her that she was hearing things. Of course, when she asked about them, they would tell her she was imagining things.”
“I knew he was a jerk!” Ed nodded. “We should call the Sheriff…”
“No,” Howard broke in as he handed Cassie a bottle of water. “Garrison has the Sheriff in his pocket.” He looked at the boys. “If you want to help her, kids,” he said as he picked up the cuff and choker, “take these and put them in one of your packs. Run them around the desert for as long as you can while I get Mrs. Garrison to the hospital.”
“That’s not true!” Cassie shook her head. “My husband loves me! He would never do anything to hurt me!” She finished off the water and tried to get on her feet. She cried out in pain as she forgot her damaged knee. “Ow!”
“Let’s get you some help, Mrs. Garrison,” Howard assured her as he picked her up in his arms. He carried her to his jeep and put her in the back on a pile of blankets. “You try to get some rest now. We’ll be at the hospital by the time you wake up.” He pulled is wallet and handed the boys each a hundred. “Thanks, kids.”
Cassie tried to stay awake but the sedative he’d put in the water sent her under quickly. Howard got into the jeep and wondered if he was wrong to let the boys live. They would not see which direction he took once he cresTed the ridge. It was getting dark quickly now and they would be remaining in their camp.
Even if they describe me, he chortled to himself; the authorities will be looking for Howard not me. He pulled off the false face and dumped it in his toolbox. He haTed having to use the girl to get to Jonathan through his son’s wife, but it was time the bastard paid for what he had done to his sister, Howard Grayson had decided. Whether Cassie lived or not was beside the point.
“I think we just did the wrong thing, Ed,” Ben said as he put down his binoculars. They had followed Howard a few minutes after he had left and watched what he did. “Did you see?”
“Him taking off his face?” Ed asked. He nodded and shuddered. “I think we’ve just helped that man kidnap Mrs. Garrison.” He went to the radio. “We have no choice. We’ve got to call the Sheriff now.”

Cassie woke up and she was in darkness again. She tried to reach out and found out that she was in a very small place. Panic flooded into her mind as memories of a closet came to her. She felt around and found the door. She pulled herself up on the knob and shuddered as her knee reminded her that she had been injured.
“Hello?” she called out as she tried to open the door and found it locked. She knocked on it. “Is anyone out there?” There was no answer and she sank back in the corner, shaking. “Please,” she whimpered. “Tell me what’s happening.” She heard a scraping noise and saw light appear at the base of the door as a slot was opened. A tray came in with a sandwich, an apple, and a bottle of water on it. “No, please,” Cassie cried as the slot closed. “Let me out!”
“Eat your dinner,” Justine’s voice sounded from over a speaker. Cassie looked around in shock and then up and saw it in the corner.
“Who are you?” Cassie demanded as she pounded on the door again. There was only silence in response. “Why are you doing this to me?” There was no answer. Cassie sank back into the corner and brought her legs up to her chest so she could rest her chin on her knees. She winced as her body protesTed. “Please.”
“Eat your dinner, Cassandra.”
“You’re not my Grandmother!” Cassie protesTed. “She’s dead!”
“I admit you did hurt me, dear,” Justine laughed, “but it was not as dire as you imagined it. You always were an over-imaginative child.” There was a silence. “Eat your dinner. We’ll talk in the morning.”
“You can’t leave me in here all night,” Cassie gasped. “Let me out!”
“You did a bad thing, Cassandra,” Justine replied evenly. “You must be punished. Now be a good girl and eat your dinner. If I have to tell you again, you will remain in the closet for another day.”
Cassie felt for the tray and unwrapped the sandwich. She bit back a sob as she ate and struggled to control the old fears that had been her constant companion as she was growing up. Justine had never made an idle threat. If Cassie did not do as she was told, she would remain in this closet. She finished the meal and the drug in the water took effect.
“Worked like a charm,” Howard Grayson smiled as he saw the sleeping girl. He covered her with an afghan and removed the tray. “Pleasant dreams, child.”
He closed and locked the door and went to the office where he could watch her sleep. Such a pretty girl, he found himself thinking. He could see she was having a nightmare but he let her be. If she screamed, they were the only ones who were going to hear her. He recorded her as she begged and pleaded before finally settling deeper and falling silent.
“Thank you, Cassie,” he nodded as his partner made a phone call. “That was just what we needed.”
“Mr. Garrison, please,” Justine said as her partner sent the anti-tracking program going. “I have something that belongs to you,” she said. Howard played the tape he’d just made. “Your father paid for only one night, Mr. Garrison,” Justine laughed coldly. “You owe payment for the five months you kept her from me.” She laughed as Adam cursed. “I’m thinking $15 million should just about cover it. I’ll call with the drop off location tomorrow at noon.”
“Well done, love,” Grayson smiled as he stroked Justine’s cheek. “That should get the wheels rolling.”
“They hurt my granddaughter, Howard,” Justine nodded. “I am not going to rest until Garrison and his bastard son are dead!” She looked at Cassie and her expression softened. “She is such a beautiful child. I’ve really missed her.”

Adam hung up the phone and looked at the FBI officers who had set up the trace. The man on the monitor shook his head. Whoever had taken Cassie was not stupid. He listened to the man talk about the call bouncing from location to location while the trace had been working and shut him out. All he could think of was Cassie being held by someone who was not above torturing her as her grandmother had.
“Someone is impersonating her grandmother to keep her docile,” Henry Evans spoke his thoughts aloud. “It has to be someone who knew her and knew about the bargain between her and Jonathan Garrison.” He looked at Adam. “Can you think of anyone who hates you enough to do this?”
“Anyone who knows our family,” Jonathan spoke up as he watched Adam sit down in shock, “would not dare make such a move!” He met Eric’s hard eyes. “I wouldn’t put it past a member of the family,” he said snidely. “Is this your doing, son? You can’t have her yourself, so you hire someone to steal her for you?”
“I would never do anything to harm Cassie,” Eric said tightly. “Besides,” he said as he put his arm around Delia’s waist; “I have a wife now.”
“Delia Grant?” Jonathan sniffed. “She is no more your wife