Save Me by Abigail Stone Read Free Book Online Page A

was no use. 
    He was in full control.
    –

    Past

    Layla was five the first time she ever felt her safety was in danger. Her mother had left her to fend for herself in their tiny Toyota while she went inside the Post Office to mail a few packages. She cracked the window, reaching back over the front seat to kiss her daughter on the cheek before exiting the vehicle. The problem was that in the midst of gathering up the packages she had to mail, Emily had failed to engage the child safety locks in the vehicle.
    Young Layla watched her mother disappear into the large strip mall where the Post Office was located, a mischievous smile surfacing on her lips as she unbuckled herself from her car seat, wiggling at the door handle until it swung open. Layla was a curious child. At one point, her mother had even referred to her as a trouble maker, a fact that was only proven as tiny Layla clutched her favorite stuffed animal to her chest, her brown eyes wide and intrigued as she wandered through the packed parking lot, weaving through the rows upon rows of multi-colored cars and trucks.
    She had been walking for no longer than five minutes when an unfamiliar feeling surfaced in her stomach. She turned around in a circle, feeling dizzy and frightened by the realization that she had lost track of which direction she had walked in.
    Emily’s red Toyota was nowhere to be seen and Layla began to panic. She loved a good expedition, but even at five years old, she seemed to have a pretty good understanding of her boundaries. Enough to know that she had crossed them. Suddenly, Layla looked up. A scary looking man towered in front of her, an unsettling smile etched across his face.
    "You lost little girl?” he asked her, his gray mustache bobbing up and down against his nose.
    Layla had learned about stranger danger at an early age and this man had pedophile written all over him.
    "No,” she said, her voice small as she attempted to back away.
    Her mother told her once that if she was ever lost in a public setting, to just look for a woman like her. Someone normal and approachable. A mom. Layla raced towards the first woman she could find that fit the description, tugging at her hand.
    She was beautiful, with kind eyes and a smile that could stop traffic.
    "Hi sweetie,” she said, bending down on one knee in front of Layla.
    "Where's your mommy?” she asked, her voice soft as honey, "are you lost?”
    Layla nodded her head, tears surfacing in her eyes.
    "Don't worry sweetheart," the woman said, grabbing Layla's hand and giving it a squeeze as she stood up, shielding her green eyes from the sun as she searched the parking lot for a woman that looked like she could be Layla's mom. Layla looked up, hearing her mother’s voice calling her name from somewhere in the distance. Relief washed through her body as she spotted Emily racing towards her frantically. When you're a little kid lost in a public place, it starts to feel like you'll never get found.
    The woman smiled down at Layla as she waved at Emily, who approached them with a frazzled look on her face. She was the spitting image of her daughter.
    "Is that her?” the woman asked Layla. She nodded, her honey red curls bouncing around her face.
    Emily, however, did not appear happy.
    "Layla!” she exclaimed angrily, "what the hell were you thinking young lady?"
    Layla braced herself. It was rare for Emily to spank her, especially in public, but this time seemed like an exception.
    "Hi there!” she suddenly heard the woman above her say, a Texan accent surfacing in her voice. She extended her hand to Emily, who was visibly distraught by her daughters escape act. Regardless, she took the woman’s hand, shaking it curtly.
    "Thank you so much,” Emily said gratefully, pulling herself together,  "there are a lot of creepy people in the world, if you know what I mean."
    The woman smiled. "No problem,” she said with a laugh, "I'm Kara."
    Emily shook her hand before letting go.
    "I'm Emily