The Portal ~ Large Print by Christopher Allan Poe Page A

gasped. Cody stood in a spattering of broken glass and soil. He wore a footed pajama suit that she’d never seen before.
    “Oh baby.” She raced over to him and dropped to her knees.
    “Don’t leave me here,” he said with his arms crossed over his chest.
    “Never ever.” She tucked the gun into her jeans and moved him from the broken glass. “Are you hurt?”
    “I bumped my head.” Dried tears streaked his dirty face. How long had he been in the basement? That fucker. If she ever got Jarod alone, he wouldn’t walk away this time.
    Carefully, she moved a ringlet of hair away from the cut on the side of Cody’s forehead. In the phosphorescent moonlight, the wound appeared dark purple. Was it infected? She couldn’t tell. What if he had a concussion? They needed to get to a doctor.
    “Are you alone?” She tried to sound calm, but her voice shook with rage. “Did your father lock you down here?”
    “He doesn’t know.” He put his hands on her cheeks. “I don’t want you to die.”
    “I’m here now, baby. I swear no one will ever take you away from me again.” She squeezed him close and wished for more time. Just a few seconds to hold him, but they had to get to safety. “Everything’s going to be okay. We’re just going to crawl outside.”
    “No.” He stared up at the window. Had he heard something? She listened, but only wind howled through the broken pane.
    “It’s okay. We’ve done this before.” She tried to pick him up, but he jumped back.
    “What’s wrong?” she asked.
    “Not that way.” He shook his head. “Not that way.”
    Did he remember the first time they ran? For several seconds, she’d put him above by himself. Though it had been a warm night, she’d thought that he’d never stop shivering.
    “You have to calm down,” she said.
    “We need Daddy.”
    “What?” she asked. He looked at the ground. There wasn’t time for his confusion. She picked him up. “We’ve got to go.”
    “Not without Daddy.” He pushed away from her chest.
    “Baby, please. You have to be quiet.”
    “He’s out there.”
    She ducked into a shadowy walkway. Wine racks raised to the ceiling on both sides of them. They were concealed in darkness, but the window was still in view.
    “Who’s waiting?” she whispered. “Is your father outside?”
    “Not that way.” He clamped his arms around her neck.
    What were they going to do? Any other exit from the house would sound the alarm. But had Cody really seen someone? He’d been hiding down here. Probably all night. She needed to find out if he actually knew something.
    “Baby,” she said. “Tell me who’s outside.”
    “The bad man.”
    “Did you see him?” she whispered. “What does he look like?” In the darkness, she couldn’t tell if he understood the question, but he didn’t answer her. “What color is his hair?”
    “White,” he whispered.
    Oh God. Stromsky was waiting outside for them. But why? The basement seemed to grow colder as she realized the truth. The Carmichaels had never planned to let her raise Cody. They wanted her dead. Or to set her up. Well, whatever twisted plans they had for her, it wasn’t going to work.
    A flashlight shined through the window. The beam shimmied closer. She heard voices over the wind.
    “We have a break-in,” a man’s voice said.
    “Call it in,” somebody else answered. “She’s inside the house.”
    They were trapped. In seconds, the entire estate would be swarming with security. No matter what, they couldn’t stay here. She picked up Cody and pressed his head against her shoulder. There was only one option. The mansion was huge, with hundreds of hiding places. Hopefully, Jarod would think she’d already escaped. Somehow, she’d have to get word to Erika. One problem at a time.
    Something slammed against the wall outside. The guard must have dropped flat on his stomach, because his face filled the tiny window. Did he notice them? At least he didn’t shine the light in her