Week 180 – Her kidnapper walked into her hospital room, determined to take back what was his

The door opened.

Her kidnapper walked into her hospital room, determined to take back what was his.

Macey screamed.

She wasn’t going back.

She’d rather be dead.

Just as he reached for her Tyler burst into the room, shooting the man dead.

The bang of the gunshot startled her and Macey bolted upright, struggling to catch her breath as the remnants of the dream slowly faded, someone stepped towards the bed.

Tyler.

He’d promised her he wouldn’t leave her and he hadn’t. He’d ridden in the ambulance with her, he’d stayed by her bed in the ER while she was examined and treated, and he’d been sitting in a chair in her room when she had drifted off to sleep.

Reaching for him was automatic but it also felt right. The reasons for their break up suddenly seemed so unimportant. He’d wanted kids, she hadn’t been ready as she was still building her career, and before either of them knew what had happened they were arguing about it every time they were together.

Now none of that mattered.

She’d never stopped loving him, never could stop loving him, and all she wanted was to spend the rest of her life with him.

Tyler’s hand clasped hers and then she was wrapped in his arms. He was rocking her side to side and crooning in her ear, and slowly her thumping heart began to slow.

“I love you, Tyler,” Macey said, she needed him to know that. If they’d stayed together then she never would have gone on that blind date and she never would have been kidnapped. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry for everything that happened between us.”

“Not your fault, baby.” Tyler moved so he was sitting on the bed beside he and carefully pulled her onto his lap, mindful of the tubes and wires connected to her body. “I should have listened to you, waited until you were ready. I’m sorry, Macey.”

“If I had of tried to compromise then this never would have happened.” She buried her face against his chest as her tears began to flow again.

“No, baby, that’s not true. Honey,” he said gently and grasped her shoulders easing her back then touching his fingertip to her cheek to catch her tears. “There were photos of you all over his house, thousands of them, he was obsessed with you, he would have come after you at some point regardless of if we’d broken up or not. Macey, the photos went all the way back to when you started high school, is there anyone you can think of from that time in your life who might have done this?”

A no was on the tip of her tongue but then a snippet of a memory resurfaced.

Her eyes grew wide and she gasped.

It couldn’t be, and yet it seemed like it was.

“I think I know who it is,” she said with a shaky voice.