Chapter 36

HE CAME back to himself slowly, ephemeral voices misting in and out of his awareness, and a distinctly unpleasant swirling sensation in the pit of his belly to go with the now pounding headache. But there was a solid grip around his middle that made it all right for now.

"... really kidnapped?" he heard Laurie say, and then Laurie laughed. Laughed! As though Lucas hadn't just gone through hours and hours and *hours* of pure, torturous hell because of a kidnapping that apparently wasn't. "That's so brilliant! Too bad Mother didn't put the word out. People would be--ooh! Maybe there would have been candlelight vigils and the like." Laurie sighed. "I feel very special."

He was "special," all right.