61
While waitingfor Detective Schuler to get back to her on whether a 911 call had been placed from the Rogers’s house, Liv and Zeke worked in quiet unison to secure Alan in her vehicle. Despite what happened after the water park, sitting idly by and doing nothing wasn’t in her DNA.
Liv’s phone vibrated. “What do you have, Marissa?” she said by way of greeting, while peering around the back of her SUV at the blue ranch across the street, two doors down.
“No callouts, emergency or otherwise, for 1421 Englewood Drive.”
“Okay, thanks for checking.”
“Olivia, don’t go in there. Wait for my uniforms.”
Her sister was inside with a man who liked to beat and subjugate women. Callie could hold her own with him, at least, for a while, but Liv couldn’t stand the thought of her little sister’s catalog of terror growing while she stood outside waiting for backup.
“Will do.” She disconnected, then jerked her head toward the house. “Give me thirty seconds to get in place.”
Zeke pulled her in for a swift, hard kiss. “Be careful.”
She squeezed his hand. “You too.” Then she took off.
Half a minute later, Liv stood pressed against the house, near the door, watching Zeke stride up the walkway, a forced smile on his face. A towel from her workout bag hung over his right shoulder, doing a pretty good job of covering his blood-soaked shirt.
Hastily hatched, their plan was simple. Get Sam to open the screen door.
Once he opened the door, Liv would cram the muzzle of her weapon into the man’s throat long enough for Zeke to knock him down. It should be her facing the threat head-on, but they couldn’t take the chance that Sam might recognize her.
The whole thing was damn risky. Sam might sniff out a setup and never answer the door. He might shoot first, ask questions later.
Or he might not even know his son was holding a woman captive in his basement. How many people walked by their basement doors without a glance, especially if their adult child had claimed the space?
But every instinct in Liv’s body rebelled against the latter. Alan might not have let his dad in on the kidnapping scheme, but he was comfortable enough to bring Callie here. A telling decision.
And Callie was trapped in this house. She could all but feel her sister’s fear.
Zeke reached for the doorbell.