Her Mistletoe Protector by Laura Scott Page A

exchange for his freedom.
    Please, Lord, please keep Joey safe!
    The calm she’d felt before after praying seemed to have deserted her now. Maybe because her prayers betrayed the depth of her desperation. Despite Nick’s reassurances that she was worthy, she couldn’t help feeling that maybe God thought she was a big fraud. But she hoped He wouldn’t punish her son for her previous lack of faith. She took another deep breath.
    Nick backed up the dirt road so that the car was facing outward toward the road. The minute he shut off the car, he and Jonah jumped out to see what they had to work with.
    She was still trying to pull herself together. But when she stared down at the duffel bag, she realized she couldn’t sit here. She had to be in the driver’s seat, as if she’d just driven here by herself. Swallowing hard, she shoved open the door, hauled the duffel bag up so that it was on the seat, and then slammed the door.
    Nick had Jonah’s car keys, so she went to find him. She needed the kidnappers to believe she’d followed their instructions to the letter.
    The barn door was open only about a foot, so she turned sideways to slide inside. The interior was surprisingly dim. She’s expected it to be brighter considering there were several missing boards and glassless windows. The place reeked of fertilizer mixed with musty old hay, thanks to the piles that looked as if they’d been there untouched for years.
    Nick stood, looking up at the loft. She followed his gaze and gasped when she saw Jonah carefully going up a rickety old ladder that didn’t look strong enough to hold his weight.
    “Are you sure that’s safe?” she whispered.
    “Not really, but he insisted on giving it a try.”
    There was a loud noise as Jonah’s foot broke through one of the rungs of the ladder. Her heart lodged in her throat as he hung there for a moment before he regained his balance. In a few minutes, Jonah was safely on the loft.
    “Wouldn’t he be better off down here?” She couldn’t imagine the rotted wood that made up the loft floor would be any sturdier than the ladder.
    “I’ll be down on the ground level, and he’s going to try and get some leverage from up above. See that window up there?” He indicated the open space in the wall of the barn located above the loft. “It overlooks the front of the barn, and that’s our best option.”
    She felt dizzy watching Jonah ease his way into position, so she lowered her gaze and tried not to sneeze. Despite the cold December air, the moldy hay was making her eyes water. “Where are you planning to be?”
    “Outside, as close to you as I can manage,” he said grimly. “There are several stacks of hay outside along the north side of the barn. If I drag a few more out there, I should be fairly well hidden.”
    She helped Nick carry a couple of stacks of smelly, musty hay outside. They had to open the barn door wider and it groaned loudly in protest. She froze, hoping it wouldn’t fall off.
    After two trips, they had a decent-size stack of hay along the side of the barn. Nick carefully closed the barn door and then used a bunch of hay like a broom to brush the dirt, covering up their footprints.
    The north side of the barn seemed too far away for her piece of mind, but she bit her lip so that she wouldn’t complain. After all, she couldn’t very well expect Nick to hide in the backseat of Jonah’s car. Truthfully, she was lucky to have any backup at all.
    “You might want to give me the car keys, just in case they want me to go someplace else,” she said.
    Nick scowled and dug them out of the front pocket of his jeans. “Here you go. But don’t follow those guys someplace else, Rachel. There would be nothing to prevent them from killing both you and Joey, while still taking off with the cash. Your best option is to stay right here, where Jonah and I can protect you.”
    “I know,” she said, taking the keys from Nick. As much as she knew he was right, she wasn’t