Page 48 of A Man of Power

I walk down the hall and turn a corner, waiting until a staffer has passed before I continue. “My security cameras were hacked. We’ve been being watched. At least, I have been.”

“Fuck,” Conner groans.

“Yeah, fuck. I’m going to have Bryce check my home security as well.”

“Have him check mine and Aiden’s too.”

“I will. I just…there’s clearly something more going on here.”

My cell phone pings with a text. I pull it out of my pocket and look down at it. I don’t recognize the number.

Unknown: Hey, it’s Erin, Alexis’s roommate. Have you seen her or talked to her?

“Conner, I need to go. I’ll call you later.”

“Seriously?” he huffs as I hang up on him.

I press call on the number and Erin answers.

“Erin. It’s Congres—Sebastian. Why are you asking if I’ve seen Alexis? And the answer is no. I haven’t spoken to her in almost two weeks.”

“She went for a run yesterday and didn’t come back,” Erin says, her voice filled with panic.

“Did you call the police?”

“Yes, but it hasn’t been twenty-four hours. They said to keep checking with friends and then call them back this afternoon if we still haven’t heard from her.”

I feel my blood run cold. Something is wrong. Something is so very wrong.

“Erin, I’m coming over now. Are you at home?”

“Yes. Whitney and I called off this morning. We’ve been calling everyone we know. Her phone shows she’s still on the trail, but we went out there. We couldn’t find her or the phone.”

“Stay there, I’m coming.”

I rush back to my office and grab my car keys.

“Where are you going?” Harriet asks as I practically run back through the office.

“Something happened. I’ll be back. Move my two o’clock to Thursday.”

“OK,” she says in confusion as I sprint past her.

I reach my car in record time. A million horrible thoughts pass through my mind as I drive the short distance to Alexis’s apartment. I park illegally and rush inside. The front desk guy waves me through and I feel my teeth clench at how unsafe this building is. Just because I’ve been here before doesn’t mean I should be a welcomed guest. I stew on this as I take the elevator up and run down the hall, pounding on the door when I arrive.

The door flies open mid-knock, and a very disheveled Erin stands in front of me. Her eyes are rimmed in red.

“Where was she going?” I ask.

“Running.” Erin pulls out her phone and shows me the map with a blue dot. It’s in the park not far from here. Damn it. Why did she go there? And alone!

“Why was she running alone?” I growl as I push my way past her.

“We told her not to, but she thought it was safe,” Erin explains.

“And did she say anything? Was she upset?” I ask.

Erin shakes her head.

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