“No, I haven’t talked to her since this morning.” For a moment, there was silence on the line. “Is something wrong, Jonas?”
His hopes took a nosedive. Even as he talked, his eyes scanned the sidewalks on both sides of the street. As if she would really go for a walk or a jog in twenty-degree weather. Great idea, dickhead.
“Jonas?”
“When you talked to her, did she say anything about where she was going today?”
“Just that she had a few errands. She didn’t say what they were.”
He checked his watch. Nearly two o’clock in the afternoon. “She’s not home and I can’t reach her on her cell.”
“Did you two argue?” she asked. “Sometimes Deanna goes to work out when she’s stressed or upset about something.”
“No, everything was fine. Better than fine,” he answered as he recalled Deanna sitting on his table professing her love right before he’d had to leave for the hospital. Please, God, don’t let that be the last time I see her.
“This isn’t like Deanna. I’m worried, Jonas.”
“I’ll find her,” he promised.
“Hold on, that’s Dean on the other line. Maybe he’s talked to her.”
“I’ll hold,” Jonas growled. Twins. Dean and Deanna were twins. A sense of unease skated up and down his spine as he recalled the story Deanna had shared with him about Dean falling and breaking his leg. She’d known before anyone else.
A few minutes later, Deanna’s mom came back on the line. “She’s in trouble,” she said, her voice quivering. “Dean said he can feel it.”
Jonas started the engine and put the car in gear. “Has he talked to her?”
“No. He just knows something’s wrong.” She moaned and Jonas knew the woman was crying. “Oh, Jonas, not my baby girl. Not my sweet Deanna.”
“Shhh,” he soothed as he took off down the street. “It’s going to be okay. I’m going to find her and she’s going to be fine.”
“I’ll call the police.” She paused, then in a sturdier voice, she ordered, “Find her, Jonas.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
After they ended the call, Jonas called Wade again. “I’m heading over to Valdez’s.”
“I was about to call you. I just got off the phone with Dean. We’re both headed there now.”
Jonas cursed and hit the steering wheel. “That bastard hurts her and I’ll kill him with my bare hands, Wade. One hair out of place and Valdez dies.”
“Chill out and think, Jonas,” he demanded. “Valdez is a drug-dealing piece of shit, but he’s small-time and he’s no killer.”
Would she have gone to see the man willingly? “I can’t figure it. She wanted nothing to do with him, Wade.”
“Deanna’s smart and she’s damned resourceful.”
“She’s also too damn trusting for her own good. I can see Valdez luring her there for some reason or another. Maybe he was pissed when she turned down the project.”
“Don’t start speculating. And she’s tougher than you think. Have a little faith in your girl, Jonas.”
He clenched a fist around the phone just thinking of what Valdez might do to Deanna. Wade was right; for Deanna’s sake, Jonas needed to keep a clear head. “Your mom is calling in a missing person’s report.”
“How far away are you?”
Jonas made a left-hand turn, then looked at the clock on the instrument panel. “I’m ten minutes out.” He sped up. “Possibly closer to five.”
“I’m at least fifteen and Dean is farther than that. You’ll get there before either of us.” He paused, then asked, “You have the monitor?”