“No, no, that won’t be necessary.” He pulls out a master key and opens the door. Cole barges through first, weapon drawn. His stomach sinks when he sees the bed.
“Oh, shit, shit, shit!” Cole hisses, turning to Mark and feeling helpless.
Mark picks up the note resting on Savannah’s cell phone.
I expected more from the U.S. Army.
The girl has been bought and paid for.
She’s long gone.
“They just gained an hour and twenty on us,” John says quietly behind them. “After talking with the manager, I got a description. It was a Hispanic man who rented the room alone. He did say he was in and out in a matter of minutes. He’s sending me the surveillance footage as we speak.”
“All right.” Keith nods at him then looks at Cole. “Let’s focus on the fact that they need Savannah alive.”
They make their way back to their truck and head south on the interstate. Cole’s stomach is a ball of fire in his gut. This is a far cry from when he rescued Savannah the first time, as his heart wasn’tasinvested. Yes, the moment he saw her picture in that file, he was drawn to her…but now, she is his life, the air he breathes, the reason to come home from a mission. Life isn’t worth living if she isn’t in it.
John speaks up. “I have a location on their vehicle. Fuck, they’re at a private airport.”
“I’m on it,” Mark says, pulling out his cell phone.
Savannah
I feel something warm caress my face, drawing me up and away from the darkness that is consuming me. My head hurts, and my mouth is dry. I start to moan. Everything feels terrible, like I was out drinking the night before, but I know that isn’t true. My eyes flutter open, and I focus on a green wall in front of me.
“Huh?” I mutter. “Wh-where am I?”
“Shhhh, Savannah, you’re right where you should be.” Her voice rings through my ears.
Lynn.
The last god-knows-how-many hours come flooding back to me. I try to move away, but her hands keep me on the bed.
“It’s okay, sweetie, take a few moments to let the drug wear off.”
It takes all my effort, but I pull away and roll off the bed, hitting the floor like a wet rag. Ouch! With every passing second, I can feel the drug leaving my system. I tug my heavy body off the floor and shift to lean against the opposite wall.
We sit staring at one another for a long time. I finally clear my throat, wanting some fucking answers.
“Your bracelet.” I point and watch her quickly cover it with her free hand. “Is that new?”
“Sort of.” She forces a smile. She’s lying or avoiding the truth.
I pull my leaden legs up to my chest. “Lynn, I’ve known you forever. You wouldn’t have bought that for yourself, so who bought it for you?”
Her face goes from friendly to angry. “A friend.”
I shake my head, feeling tears pool in my eyes. “I know you took my picture the night I was taken, Lynn. But I want to know why.”
Her face hardens. “I did it for proof.”
“Proof of what?”
She leans forward. “Proof that you were out drinking again, and proof that you were with Joe Might.”
I skip the comment about the drinking and focus in on what really confuses me. “Joe Might? The new client?”
“Yes.”