16. Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

T en minutes after leaving the church, Will and the others had pulled into Zara's parking lot. Her car was there. He'd feel stupid bringing four extra people if she'd just overslept. But AJ had said Zara hadn't answered her phone. And if it rang, that meant it was on. So if she overslept, the call should have woken her up.

He had started with a gentle knock and called her name. But when she didn't answer, he knocked harder. "Zara?"

Logan tapped Will's arm. "I'll keep knocking, you go see if you can look in her windows."

He agreed, and AJ went with him. Jared and Becca looked around the parking lot and surrounding area for any indication something was amiss.

Nothing seemed strange around the building. When they reached the back, Will noted that the air conditioning unit wasn't running. The blinds were all closed. But he and AJ tried to look anyway.

AJ moved to the side and tried at the bedroom window. "Will!"

He darted around to join her.

She pointed at the window. "Look."

The blinds were slanted down, and he couldn't see much, but there on the floor, Zara's lamp lay broken.

There had been a struggle of some sort.

Will met AJ's eyes.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket. "I'll call the fire station unless you have a crowbar. I could get the door open with a crowbar."

"I should have one."

They ran to the front. Will went straight to his truck and retrieved the tool. He met AJ at the door, where she was telling Logan what they'd seen. She took the crowbar from him.

He felt stupid letting the woman do the work, but she was the firefighter.

She slammed the end of the crowbar against the door at strategic spots, then wedged the end into the slight opening. She couldn't get it in far enough. "I need something to help smash this in or I need a smaller wedge."

Logan spun around and picked up a large stone from the landscaping. "Here. Hold it. I'll hammer."

Working together like Will hadn't seen them do in years, Logan gave the end of the crowbar a few good whacks. Then together, Logan and AJ pulled the crowbar until they broke the lock and the jamb.

They repositioned the crowbar and pulled again. The door opened farther.

Will moved around them and pushed the door open the rest of the way.

The alarm only beeped. It was set to "at home."

He switched on the hallway light. Nothing appeared out of place here, but the apartment was hot and stuffy. As far as he could guess, the air conditioning hadn't been running all night.

"Zara?" Where was she? Was she here? Was she okay?

No response.

Will walked down the hall and spotted Zara's sweater on the kitchen counter. "Zara?"

Nothing else noteworthy stood out until he turned the corner into the bedroom.

Her purse lay on the floor beside the broken lamp. Next, he spotted her dress, ripped.

His heart plummeted to the floor. Where was she? Was she hurt? "Zara?"

The bathroom door. It was boarded up. Six 2x4s were screwed into the door in a latticed pattern. Three ran vertical against the door, and the other three crossed them screwed into each board as well as the door frame.

"Zara?" Was she inside?

"Will?" Her voice was weak and hoarse.

She was alive! "Zara! Are you okay?" He grabbed a board and pulled, but nothing happened. It wouldn't budge.

She coughed. "Not dead."

"We'll get you out of there." He needed to get her out of there. Memories of the fears she'd shared with him the other day slammed into the forefront of his mind. They couldn't waste any time getting her out.

AJ and Logan had followed him. AJ immediately jumped to prying the boards from the door. But it was going to take forever.

"Are you hurt?" Will called through the door.

He couldn't hear an answer, but she coughed.

Becca came up behind Will. "I'll call it in."

He turned to her. "Thanks. We need an electric screwdriver."

Jared said, "I'll go get mine."

AJ bumped Logan's arm. "You live closer."

"I'll go." Logan darted out the door.

Will helped AJ. It took them nearly five minutes to get the first horizontal board pried free. They started into the second. Before they got the second one off, Logan reappeared with two electric screwdrivers.

Will and AJ continued to pry at the middle board while Jared and Logan worked on the top.

The top board came off, so AJ and Will stepped back and let the screwdrivers do the work.

Will twisted his hands.

AJ grabbed his arm. "We're getting her out of there."

He nodded.

Two firefighters and an EMT entered Zara's little bedroom. Jared looked at them. "We've got it. Only a few more."

In less than a minute, the outside vertical boards that were screwed, not only into the door but also into the frame, were off.

Will rushed forward and opened the door. He wanted to be the first face Zara saw.

He reached for the knob, but it didn't turn. The lock was on the outside. What on earth? He unlocked it, turned the knob, and opened the door into the bathroom.

Zara sat on the edge of the tub with a beach towel loosely wrapped around her arms and body. Cuts on her shoulders showed where the dress had been ripped right off her.

What had the person who locked her in here done to her?

He approached cautiously.

Her eyes beckoned to him. He didn't hold back and opened his arms.

She stood. "You found me." With slow, weak steps, she came to him and fell against his chest.

He held her close. "Of course." Did she really think he wouldn't? "Are you hurt?"

"No." She coughed a tight, wheezy cough. "Inhaler." She pointed out of the bathroom.

He guided her into the bedroom, not taking his hand off her back until he was at her purse. He picked it up. It was much heavier than he had anticipated.

She'd had her firearm. Whoever did this caught her off guard. Of course he had. She was at home; she was supposed to be safe.

Will vowed to himself to never let her enter an empty apartment by herself again.

Zara used her inhaler.

AJ said, "Guys, get out for a moment and let Zara put some clothes on."

Will went to step away, but Zara grabbed his arm. He said, "It's okay. I'll be right outside the door."

She nodded and reluctantly let go of him.

A female EMT stayed in the bedroom as well to check Zara for injuries.

Will followed the rest of the men out of the room. The firefighters left the apartment.

Will stayed close to the door. He wanted to be within reach as soon as Zara came out of the room. Waiting to hold her was torturous. Had she actually been surprised that he came? Did she not realize that people cared about her?

How much damage had being trapped in that bathroom done to her mental state? For someone with a fear so strong that they removed the doors from all their closets, this experience could break them. Would she be okay?

Zara pulled on a T-shirt and a pair of cotton shorts and hugged herself. Her head was a jumbled mess. Not only from the trauma but also from the lack of sleep.

The EMT said, "I think you'll be okay. Your inhaler seems to have done the trick for your breathing, but if it continues to be a problem, go to the ER to get some oxygen or possibly a breathing treatment."

Zara nodded.

AJ thanked the EMT as she left and turned to Zara. "What do you need?"

Zara shrugged. She put her fingers together and touched them to her lips.

"Food? Okay, come on." AJ led Zara out of the bedroom and into Will's waiting arms.

Will pulled her close. "I gotcha." He led her to the couch.

A group of crime-scene techs came into the apartment and began their job.

A couple of people were talking to AJ in the kitchen. So much was going on around the room.

Logan stood over by the air conditioner.

Will said, "Logan, the breaker box is in the bedroom closet."

"On it." Logan disappeared into the bedroom.

She sat on the couch beside Will. He kept his arms around her, and she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"How are you doing?"

Not knowing how to respond, she half shrugged.

Will tucked his head close to hers, and with a voice that was only loud enough for her ears, he prayed. "Father in heaven, please come and settle Zara's heart and mind. Help her. Give her peace and comfort. Remind her that You are always with her."

That was it. She needed Jesus. Why didn't I pray? All that time in the bathroom, she should have been calling out to her heavenly Father, but she hadn't. She'd forgotten. Please Father, change me. I need You. I need to remember that You aren't like my earthly dad. Help me to learn to call out to You all the time.

"Thank you." Her voice was rough and barely audible.

"Anytime."

AJ came around the end of the couch. "Here you go." She set a container of vanilla Greek yogurt, a bowl of blueberries, and a mug of steaming tea on the coffee table in front of Zara.

Will laughed. "Isn't it hot enough in here already?"

AJ shook her head. "The hot liquid will help her throat and voice."

"Thank you." Zara sounded awful even to her own ears. "Clearly my voice needs it."

She leaned forward and picked up the mug and breathed in the steam. It was entirely too hot to drink, so she set it back down. She emptied the yogurt into the bowl with the blueberries and stirred it all together before devouring it as if she hadn't eaten in days.

Glancing at the clock on the TV stand, she couldn't believe it wasn't even noon. Had Will and AJ noticed she wasn't at church and come right away? She couldn't quite get her mind to accept that, but it had to be true.

She took the last bite of yogurt and turned to Will. "When did you realize something was wrong?"

"The third song. You're never that late."

"You really didn't think I ditched?"

"Why would I think that? You said you'd be there. And AJ was expecting to give you the books."

AJ smiled. "They're in Will's truck."

Zara sat back against the couch. She'd completely underestimated these people and, ultimately, God. After all, He was the One Who'd put them in her life.

A knock sounded on the front door.

Someone in the kitchen said they'd get it.

Who else was going to invade her space? She wasn't even sure who else was already here.

The woman detective she'd seen a week ago, whose name she was pretty sure was Becca, came into the room, followed by Detective Doug Ramirez.

Doug said, "Hey, Zara."

She waved, then picked up her tea. Made sense that he would investigate this too since he was the one already on the break-in case. "He was back."

"So it would seem. Okay if we bring the chairs around from the table?"

She nodded.

AJ came around and sat beside her.

Logan came up behind the couch, and reaching across the back, laid his hand on Zara's shoulder. "Jared and I are going to get stuff to fix your door. Do you need anything while we're out?"

She put her hand on his. "I can't think of anything."

"Okay. Let me know." Logan and the tall detective left.

The woman and Doug pulled chairs into the living room and sat across from Zara.

Doug said, "Are you ready to walk through what happened?"

She looked down at the tea. Was she ready to talk about the third-worst thing that had happened to her? "I can try."

Will wrapped his arm across the back of the couch. "We're here for you. Take your time."

She smiled. There he went sounding like a detective again. She began telling them what had happened, starting with coming from her date with Will and noticing the alarm. "I can't believe I was so stupid to forget to turn the alarm on."

"I should have reminded you," Will said.

She blew on the tea and took a sip. The warmth soothed her throat. The inhaler was doing its job too, and breathing was much easier. She went on to recount noticing the AC and lights. As she told them about being grabbed, a shudder shook her body.

Will's hand settled on her shoulder, anchoring her in the present. With a few more sips of tea, she was able to recount the rest of the details.

A crime scene tech interrupted and asked if she had scratched her attacker.

"I didn't, but even if I had, I washed my hands. That was stupid of me."

Doug said, "If you had scratched him, you might have thought not to. Don't worry about it."

Zara set her mug down. "For being so hot in here, he was covered head to toe anyway. There was nowhere to scratch."

Another tech came over. "Ramirez. We examined the door. Based on the scratch marks on the lock, looks like it was picked."

"Thank you." Doug turned back to Zara. "We will figure this out. Do you still believe this was Ernie Nelson?"

"I have no reason to believe it was anyone else. This guy's build matches Ernie's. The voice was familiar." Another shudder rocked her body.

Doug asked a few more questions, then stood. "Hang in there, Zara. We'll find whoever did this, Ernie or not. But you can guarantee I'm going to have a little talk with our buddy Ernie."

Doug and CSU left.

Becca scooted her chair closer. "Zara, do you have a place to stay? I really don't think it's safe to stay here."

Zara shrugged.

Becca said, "You are more than welcome to stay with us if you need a place, but our house isn't huge."

AJ put her hand on Zara's. "Mi casa es tu casa."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. I may not be a cop, but Harry puts a mean hole in a paper target."

Zara chuckled. "Thank you."

AJ squeezed her hand. "Get some rest. I'll clean up some. Make sure CSU got everything. Come over whenever." AJ stood and Becca went with her.

Zara curled into Will, whose arms tightened around her.

"Are you doing okay?"

"Better. Please just hold me."

"Absolutely. You're safe. I got you."

She laid her head on Will's chest and thanked God for the people she didn't deserve. Within a few minutes, she drifted off into much-needed sleep.