Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 27242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 91(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 27242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 136(@200wpm)___ 109(@250wpm)___ 91(@300wpm)
My phone rings as the panic continues to claw at me.
“The system came back online about thirty minutes ago.” Brody’s voice is grim. “It captured everything that happened. I’m sending it your way now. Can you identify the man in the video?”
“How the fuck did you let this happen?” I shouldn’t turn on my friend. Right now, I’m filled with rage. Rage at him. Rage at Brooke’s father. But most of that rage is directed at myself. I got too comfortable and slipped up. I started to relax and believe she was safe.
My phone beeps and I pull it away. Watching the video makes me sick to my stomach. Ian is dragging her away. He’s taking her from my home, the one place on earth where she should be safe and protected.
Luna lunges for him as soon as he’s on the front porch. She sinks her teeth deep into his forearm. He retaliates by hitting her and raising his gun. If Brooke hadn’t intervened, hadn’t thrown herself in front of Luna, Ian would have shot her. What kind of monster hurts animals? What kind of sick freak kidnaps a defenseless woman?
“Ryke?” Brody calls over the phone, his voice bringing me back to the present. “I’ve got software running but if you recognize him, it’ll cut down our search by about four hours and—”
“The man in the video is my son.”
Now I understand what she said. The streets will run red. Because today, there’s a good chance that someone is going to die. Whatever happens, I won’t let it be my beautiful angel.
9
RYKER
“You’re sure you’ve scanned every bus, plane, and train station within a hundred-mile radius?” I demand of Brody. He’s sitting at my kitchen table and looking almost as frazzled as I feel. We haven’t found anything. I’m going out of my fuckin’ mind.
“If he’s taken her, it’s not by public transport,” Colt says as he finishes sweeping up the glass on my floor. Like I really give a damn about that right now. Beside him, Sierra is helping with clean up while Charlie is making coffee.
I drum my fingers on the side of my table. I’m a man of action and sitting around isn’t my style. But this is Brooke. Our odds of getting her out alive go up if we have a game plan for how to do it. First, I have to figure out where the hell she is. “He had to have taken her to Atlanta.”
“There’s no chatter about that,” Brody insists.
Charlie turns to Brody. She pins him with one of her inquisitive stares. Her mind is always working. She’s a channel person. She makes videos and posts them online. “If I had someone valuable, I’d take her somewhere off the beaten path before I tried to strike a deal. Kind of like…”
The cabin. She doesn’t have to finish the statement. We all know that she was kidnapped and held in an old hunting cabin. We saved her life, but the resulting trauma is a heavy thing for her to carry. Brody does his best to support her. I think they’re even in therapy together though I haven’t asked too many questions. They know I’m here for them if they need it.
I snap my fingers. “Adam has access to a lot of properties. Are there any that Ian frequents? Especially ones that are abandoned or isolated.”
Sierra nods. “What about private transport? There’s an airport nearby, right?”
As soon as Sierra says it, I think of Howard. I’ve always suspected the guy is transporting things he shouldn’t be. But I figured it was drugs or weapons. “Get me everything you can on a pilot by the name of Howard Brown. Ian might have paid him to fly them under the radar.”
Charlie hands me a cup of coffee, and I stare into the dark liquid. Hang in there, Brooke. I’m coming for you.
Brooke
My worst fear has been realized. I’m back in my old bedroom. Everything still looks the same, but nothing feels the same. I don’t even think I’m the same woman who left this room.
Ian stuck me in here while he works out a deal with my stepbrothers. They’re going to be pissed when they realize his mistake. He may have taken me, but he didn’t take my laptop. That’s still in Ryker’s bedroom. Even better, my machine is air-gapped. It’s never been connected to the internet or any other network. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to hack, just that it would take more skill than most people have.
Patience is key now. Even if they do happen to realize the mistake, they won’t know where the laptop is which means Ryker is safe. That’s all that matters to me now. He’s become the most important person in my life. Now that mine is ending, I have good memories with him to look back on.