Scene of the Crime: Return to Bachelor Moon Read Online Free PDF Page B

personal or business finances. The email accounts showed no threats or unusual activity. So far he and his team hadn’t spoken to anybody who didn’t admire or like the family.
    Granted, they were still in the beginning stages of the investigation, but he knew that, in many disappearances, within the first couple of hours, the taken were killed.
    What he didn’t know yet was who had been the intended target. Was it Sam, and his wife and stepdaughter were merely collateral damage? Was there something in Daniella’s past that might have brought this on?
    He turned off the light in his room and got beneath the lavender top sheet, his mind whirling a million miles an hour. There had to have been more than one person involved; otherwise how was it possible for a single individual to neutralize three people and get them out of their home? And Marlena had heard nothing, which meant either she was lying or whoever had come in and taken the three people had done so relatively silently. How was that possible with a seven-year-old little girl in the mix?
    The sound of a splash came from outside the window—a loud splash. Must be a fish the size of a minitorpedo, he thought. A thrashing noise followed, and then a faint cry.
    Definitely a female cry. Marlena had told him she was going out to get some fresh air. Who had made that splash? Had it been a fish, or her?
    Gabriel bolted up from the bed and flew out of his room. He stumbled down the stairs two at a time, his heart surging with adrenaline as he remembered she couldn’t swim.
    As he flew through the lower level of the house and into the kitchen, he noted that Marlena’s door to her rooms was open, as was the back door.
    He burst out into the hot night air and again heard a splashing and a frantic cry from the pond. By the time he reached a vantage point where he could see the water, the moon glittered down on the smooth surface.
    He frowned. Had he only imagined the cries? Had he fallen asleep in bed and not realized it, dreaming that Marlena, who couldn’t swim, was somewhere in the pond?
    As he stared at the water, it bubbled and rippled and then Marlena’s pale face broke the surface. Panic etched her features as she managed a single cry before sinking beneath the surface once again.
    He raced to a place where he could dive from the short wooden dock into the pond. He hit the water, grateful that it was as warm as a bath, and swam quickly to the place where he had seen Marlena go down.
    Diving underwater and opening his eyes, he realized the murky water made it impossible for him to see anything. So he used his hands and legs to search for her, hoping he wasn’t already too late.
    How long had she been in the water? He surfaced, drew a deep breath and then went under a second time, his heart pounding frantically.
    He swam all around the area where he’d last seen her, his arms outstretched before him. Where was she? Had she already succumbed to the water?
    Sharp relief soared through him as he managed to snag an arm. The relief was short-lived as she grabbed hold and frantically wrapped around him like a leech, sinking them both deeper into the water.
    Her arms clung around his neck, and in her panic he knew that, if he didn’t break her hold on him in some way, they would both drown.
    He fought with her, fought for both of their lives and finally managed to wrangle her around the neck and pull her up. They broke the surface of the water, gasping for air, and she immediately tried to crawl onto him to escape a watery grave.
    “Marlena.” He spewed her name along with a mouthful of water. “You need to calm down. I’ve got you. Just relax and let me get us to shore.”
    Still she clung to him, attempting to climb his body with hers as her eyes glowed the iridescent green of a wild animal in the moonlight.
    “Marlena!” He managed to dog paddle and grab her by the shoulders, thankful that he was a strong swimmer and a much bigger man.
    “Relax, I’ve got you.”