Page 255 of Promise Not to Fall for the Rich & Famous

"I’ve been kind of coming up with a plan of what to do when they move us out of here,” he said, “but now that you’re up, I’m sure we can think of something more. We need to buy ourselves enough time to escape, which means taking down the guy—or guys—who let us out.”

Ellie sucked in another gasp, seeming to remember something. She gripped Nash’s shirt once more. "Wyatt and Wade—where are they?"

Nash’s pulse spiked as that question hit him anew. He shook his head. "I don't know. I have no idea what went down with them or how these guys managed to get us in the back of this truck. But Idoknow that Wyatt and Wade are capable and strong, and they'd do anything to get us out of this.”

The truth of that struck him with new veracity. Hedidknow that; they were in the armed forces, after all, noble men willing to put their lives on the line. Nash only hoped that hadn’t already been put to the test.

CHAPTER 26

Ellie had been acting for most of her life. Some roles were harder to play than others, but as she took in the new details regarding Wyatt and Wade, Ellie knew this would be her toughest performance yet.

She didn't want to admit it, but she couldn't imagine a scenario where she and Nash were abducted, and Wyatt and Wade were set free. That’s where the performance came in; she couldn’t let Nash know how she felt. Even if he was thinking the very same thing.

Still, Ellie felt a breakdown coming, like a thousand tiny shards ready to crash in on her.

She wanted desperately for Nash to have the chance to fully mend his relationship with Wyatt and enjoy the years that would follow once Wyatt and Wade moved back home.

She wanted Uncle Lloyd to be able to throw his arms around Wade once more in a loving embrace.

She wanted Nash to have the future he so openly talked about—becoming a father one day, teaching his kids to love God, family, and the land, as he’d said.

Ellie wanted these things so badly she'd be willing to go back in time and undo all of the beautiful things that had happened—even the love that had bloomed between her and Nash—if it meant that his family was safe.

She couldn’t fathom being the cause of yet another loss in Nash’s family.

Ellie imagined the sharp, shattered pieces of regret and despair, held precariously in place by a delicate pane of glass, so thin it was malleable and waning with each devastating thought.

But Ellie couldn't afford to crumble. Couldn't afford to break down at a time like this.

Now was the time to stay strong. Now was the time to grasp hope. She prayed that the glass would hold firm until all of this was through. Prayed for enlightenment on how a Hollywood actress and a Montana cowboy could escape their dangerous abductors.

"Okay," Ellie said, "let's figure out how to take these guys down. We can do it."

And they could. She was sure of it. And she’d keep being sure of it against all odds.

With Nash’s help, Ellie came to a stand and circled the trailer, proving that her legs did, indeed, still work. But the pair was quick to get back on their knees since the truck was still in motion.

Nash described the garbage bin he’d found and the jug of concentrated chemicals inside. Ellie was impressed to hear about how he'd already widened the top so he could splash it on the guards as they opened the door.

“There was a broom in there, too,” Nash said. “I unscrewed the attachment to keep the stick. It's kind of got this metal part on the end now. I could jab or whack someone with it.”

Ellie thought back on the way they’d whittled their sticks into a sharp point on the campground. "It would be better if we could make the end sharp." She gave that some thought before an ideacame to mind. "Remember that movie I did with the vampires? And how they didn't have wooden stakes, but…"

Nash nodded. "But theydidhave a broomstick.”

“Right, they just broke it in half. That’d probably be hard to do in real life, not to mention loud.”

"Hmm, unless I use my pocketknife to carve into the center. If I make it snap sort of diagonally, we’ll have two poles with sharp tips.” Nash went to work on the broomstick, sawing a diagonal line through the center.

Ellie racked her brain. "Okay, so we have the chemicals; we’ll each have a super sharp stick. What else did you say was in there?"

“A spray bottle, scrub brush, dustpan, vacuum."

Ellie pictured all parts of the vacuum, wondering if any of them could be useful. Most had some attachments, but none were as weapon-like as the sharp-ended broomstick halves would be.

Then something occurred to her. Nash had seriously impressive skills with a rope; he was used to lassoing running calves from his horse while riding quickly alongside them. If he could lasso whoever opened the door for them, they might be able to get away.

"Did the vacuum have a long cord?”