Chapter 162: The helicopter at the cabin

At the mountain cabin, Mia glanced out the kitchen window at the setting sun, she then put down the knife she was using to cut potatoes and went into the living room to turn on the television. A satellite dish somewhere on the mountain enabled them to bring on the entertainment and news channel, and she hadn’t heard the news since this morning when she’d woken up nestled in Neil’s arms.

When they woke up this morning after their all night love making last night, Mia had felt sore all over her body, not to mention the hickeys she’d discovered on her body when she was taking a shower, he’d marked all her body last night. Never in a million years did she expect she’d allow a man, who she wasn’t married to mark her the way Neil had done every night. And for some reasons, she felt no guilt for that because without Neil, then she’d rather be single forever, her love for him went deeper than anyone could ever imagine.

Neil had spent the entire day clearing the road all the way down to the frozen river, using a huge tractor he drove out from the back of the cabin and now he was taking a shower in their room. This morning, when he first told her that he planned to clear the snow out of the road, she had thought he intended for them to leave today or tomorrow, and she’d been seized with a sudden panic that nearly strangled her.

But as if he read her thoughts, he assured her with a quick kiss on the forehead, "I’ll tell you the day before it’s time to leave."

When she tried to get him to say if he already knew what day that was going to be, he replied vaguely that he wasn’t certain, which gave Mia the impression he was waiting for something to happen...or for the man who’d been helping him to contact him. Neil was right when he told her that the less she knew, the better off they both were.

And he was equally right to insist they simply enjoy each moment of the time they had together and not think beyond that moment. He was right about everything, but it was impossible not to wonder and worry what was going to happen to him next. She couldn’t imagine how he could hope to find out who committed the murder when his face was so well known that he would be recognized immediately wherever he went.

However, he had been skilled with disguises, so makeup and disguises would be his only choice. She was counting on that to keep him safe when they would step out of this mountain. And she was terrified it wouldn’t be enough.

Mia sighed and turned on the television and it’s screen lit up, she then listened absently to some psychologist who was evidently a guest on the news channel as she headed back to the kitchen. She was nearly there when she realized the psychologist was talking about her, and she whirled around.

Eyes wide with disbelief, she walked toward the television, staring at the subtitle on the screen that identified the speaker as Edward Andrew, Ph.D, who had been invited to explain the psychology behind Mia Harrison’s behavior and emotions. With absolute confidence, Dr. Andrew was now explaining on what Mia was going through emotionally as a result of being Neil’s hostage.

"A great deal of research has been done with hostages like Miss Harrison," he was saying. "I myself wrote a book on this subject, and I can tell you with all certainty, that the young lady is living through a highly stressful, but very predictable series of emotions."

Mia tipped her head to the side, fascinated to learn what was going on in her mind from the point of view of this unknown expert on television. She didn’t know what was going on and who sent him, but she stood there listening to what he was saying.

"During the first and second day, fear is the primary emotion—and a very paralyzing one, I might add. The hostage feels helpless, too terrified to think or act, but they hold out hope that they’ll be rescued. Later, usually on the third day, rage sets in. Rage at the injustice being done to them and at the victim role they’re forced to endure."

With amused disdain, Mia held up her fingers and began to count off the days and her emotions through out everything, comparing her reality with his so called expert knowledge. On the first day, she had gone from fear to fury within hours and tried to slip a note to the attendant in the fast-food restaurant. On the second day, she had tried to escape from him at the rest stop—and nearly succeeded. On the third day, she had succeeded in escaping.

Although she had been a little afraid and extremely nervous, but she was certainly not paralyzed. This so called expert was a liar! Mia thought, shaking her head in disgust, and continued to concentrate on his next remarks.

"At this point, Miss Harrison has entered what I like to refer to as the gratitude-dependent syndrome. She perceives her captor as a protector, almost an accomplice, merely because he has not harmed her yet. Well—we are assuming that Wayner has no grounds to harm her considering their shared past. Nonetheless, she is now infuriated with the authorities for failing to rescue her. She is beginning to view them as incompetent, while her captor, who is evidently outsmarting them, is reluctantly earning her admiration. Alongside that admiration, there is a deep sense of gratitude that he has not inflicted harm upon her. Wayner is an intelligent man with some degree of questionable charm, from what I gather, which implies that she is very much under his control, both physically and emotionally."

Mia raised her brows at the man’s bearded face on the screen, she couldn’t believe he dared made up all these lies about her emotions on national news television. Placing her hands on her hips she advised Dr. Andrew aloud, "You are lucky you aren’t on one of my shows! I’d never let you get away with such silly assumption!"

The only thing he had gotten right so far was that Neil was intelligent and charming and that they had some history together. She couldn’t believe the man hadn’t stopped to consider that, since she hadn’t been taken hostage by crazed terrorists in a foreign country, she probably wouldn’t be going through those things he was making everyone believe, at this point, she didn’t care if they took her as an accomplice as long as Neil’s crimes wouldn’t be mounting up by some silly assumption made by a so called expert on television!

With all this being said, it might have cleared her name but not Neil’s!

"She is going to need intensive psychological counseling in order to fully recover from this ordeal when she’s released, and it will take considerable time, but the prognosis is good if she will seek help."

Mia could not believe the nerve of the man—now he was telling the world she was going to be a mental case when released! She ought to have him sued and destroyed! Who on earth even hired such a waste of space on a national television?!

"Of course," the news host interjected smoothly, "this is all true if Mia Harrison was actually taken hostage rather than being Wayner’s accomplice, as some people believe she is."

Dr. Andrew pondered that, stroking his beard. "In my opinion, based on what I’ve been able to learn about the young woman from the people close to her, I do not accept that theory of her being an accomplice."

"Nobody cares about what you think," Mia told him aloud. "I don’t need you to prove my innocence alone without my lover’s!"

Mia was so engrossed on the television that she didn’t register the unmistakable loud sound of helicopter blades until they were hovering directly over the house. Even when she heard the sound, it was so out of place in this quiet, mountain wilderness that she looked out of the window with surprise, not fear because she believed there was no reason for a helicopter to be here, and then it hit her.

"Oh my goodness, Neil!" she screamed, turning and running upstairs. "There’s a helicopter out there! It’s low—" she cried out in panic, nearly hitting him down when they clashed into each other on the staircase as he ran down from the bedroom. "It’s hovering!" She stopped dead at the sight of the gun in his hand and the alarmed look on his face.

"Go outside and stay in the woods, Mia!" he commanded, pushing her urgently down the hall toward the back door, and yanking a coat out of it’s hanger as he passed it and handed it to her. "Don’t come near this house until I tell you to or until they take me out of here!"

Neil loaded some bullets into the gun’s chamber, moving down the hall with her, holding the weapon high, muzzle up, with the deadly skill of someone who knew how to handle it and was prepared to use it on the Intruders outside.

When Mia started to open the door, he quickly pulled her aside and stepped into the doorway alone to see the situation outside, then noticing the hovering helicopter, he pulled her forward and said, "Run!"

"For goodness sake, Neil!" Mia cried stopping just outside the door. "You can’t mean to stay back here alone, what if it’s the military and__"

"GO MIA!" he thundered.

Mia obeyed without question, her heart hammering with fear of what was going to happen if the helicopter was sent by the authorities as she raced around the side of the house, stumbling in the deep snow, stopping beneath the trees in the woods, then moving through them, working her way around the house until she could see Neil inside the front windows.

The helicopter was flying low circling the house, staring up the snow on the ground then it flew over again, and for one terror-filled moment, she thought Neil was raising his gun, intending to shoot through the window at the helicopter. If he did that, he’d be bringing attention on himself if they hadn’t spotted him yet. But then she saw he was holding binoculars, watching the helicopter fly overhead and slowly disappear.

Mia’s knees gave out and she slid to the ground in relief that nothing worst had happened, yet.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read