Chapter 371
“I want him found,” I say immediately.
“I’ve got Blaze working on it. We’re waiting on tracking information p>
As if on cue, his phone pings. He glances at it and then looks back at me. “That’s him p>
“Where?” Gunner asks.
The address is quickly entered into the GPS, and Jack adjusts course without hesitation. The rest of the drive is silent, heavy with tension as my mind runs through every possible scenario, none of them ending well.
When we finally pull up to the property, something feels off immediately. The place is too quiet, with no movement and no sign that anyone is home.
“Is this his house?” Gunner asks.
“No,” Jack replies, “He hasn’t been to his home since he took the baby p>
We step out of the car, the gravel crunching beneath our shoes as we approach the house. While we approach the house, the rest of my men begin searching the property.
Killian knocks, but there’s no answer. He knocks again, harder this time, but still nothing.
One of my men comes around the side of the house, his expression tense. “Boss, you need to see this p>
I follow him with Gunner right behind me, and when we turn the corner, I immediately spot the same van from the footage parked there like it’s been abandoned.
For a moment, everything in me stills.
“Surround the property,” I order sharply.
If the van is here, either they’re also here or the van was abandoned… I’m better on the former.
My men move at once, spreading out as Gunner reaches for the van door and pulls it open. We both look inside, but there’s nothing. No incubator, no equipment, no sign that a baby was ever there.
“They moved her,” Gunner mutters.
I stay silent, still hoping that she’s inside. Of course they wouldn’t leave her in the van after all the trouble they went to kidnap her.
We head back to the front of the house, and this time I don’t hesitate. “Break it down p>
The door gives way under force, splintering open, and the moment it does, a foul smell hits us. I instinctively cover my nose as we step inside, the air wrong in a way that immediately sets me on edge.
“Fuck,” Gunner mutters.
I follow his gaze and that’s when I see the doctor.
He’s lying on the floor, his body twisted unnaturally with dried blood beneath him. The stab wounds are obvious, the scene looking like something out of a horror movie.
For a moment, I just stare before realization settles in.
“Damn it,” I mutter under my breath, anger washing over me as I stare at the only fucking lead we had, and now he’s gone.
I step back out of the house, dragging in a breath of fresh air as I force myself to refocus. “Search the grounds p>
My men move immediately and while they do, I pull out my phone and call the officer from yesterday.
“We found the doctor,” I say when he answers. “Send a unit p>
There’s a pause. “Status p>
“He’s dead p>
Another pause follows before he responds, “We’re on our way p>
I hang up just as one of my men approaches, holding out a phone. “We think this is his p>
“Where did you find it?” I ask,
“On the couch p>
I take it from him and the fact that there’s no password immediately tells me something is off. I unlock it and go through everything: messages, contacts, and call logs, but there’s nothing. Everything has been wiped clean.
Whoever did this made sure there was nothing left behind. They made sure there wasn’t a single piece of evidence.
“Fuck!” I curse, my grip tightening around the device.
“Brook probably killed him.” Killian steps next to me. “To get a doctor to kidnap a baby knowing very well he’s risking his entire career and life, she must have promised him a large sum. She must have killed him to silence him and to keep the money p>
Gunner shakes his head slightly. “She’s tiny and that guy’s twice her size… You’re telling me she did this alone p>
I glance at him. “Have you forgotten she killed one of my dad’s bodyguards? Brutally, might I add… This shouldn’t surprise you p>
That immediately shuts him up.
The sound of sirens cuts through the tension moments later as the police arrive and take over the scene. They move quickly, asking questions, marking off areas, and beginning their investigation. I answer what I can, hand over the phone, and give them everything they need, but my mind is elsewhere.
When it’s done, we step away from the property, and Gunner looks at me.
“Our only lead is dead. What now?” he asks.
I glance back at the house one last time, at the place where whatever happened erased the only trail we had.
I don’t answer him, because it doesn’t matter if we have a lead or not… I won’t stop until my daughter is home, safe and sound.