Page 12 of She's Mine

My first instinct was to tell Mom I’d be there to pick her up ASAP, but I knew I couldn’t leave Alyssa. In a situation like this, there was only one person I trusted enough to take care of my mom.

“Don’t worry. I’ll call Jeffrey and have something arranged,” I promised her.

“Thank you, David. And please, make sure you’re looking after yourself.”

“I am,” I said, feeling guilty I’d been so wrapped up with work that I hadn’t had a chance to visit her recently. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

I ended the call to my mom and hit the speed dial for Jeffrey’s number.

“What’s happening?” my boss asked, and I could hear the tension in his voice. No doubt he thought something had happened to Alyssa.

“Don’t worry, the target is secured,” I assured Jeffrey. “I was actually calling for a personal favor. The care worker who is supposed to take Mom to chemotherapy has vanished. Not even the agency knows where she is. I will arrange a new care worker when I get a chance, but I was hoping there was--”

Before I could even make the request, Jeffrey replied, “Don’t worry, I’ll ask Hillary to go and assist your mom. We’ll make sure she’s taken care of.”

“Oh thank God. Thank you so much, Jeffrey. And give my thanks to Hillary, too.”

Hillary was Jeffrey’s wife, and in my eyes, an absolute saint. She put up with her husband’s long work hours and did everything she could to support him and J&J Security. I’d met her a few times at the annual party, and my mom knew her too from times I’d taken her along as my guest.

“You’re welcome. You just make sure your target is secure. I’ve had reports from both Payne and Lincoln that there’s been increased gang activity. Be on your guard.”

“I will.” I glanced at the doorway to the boutique, but it hadn’t opened the entire time I’d been on the phone, so I knew Alyssa was still safely inside. No doubt she was complaining to Claire about how I hadn’t commented on any of her outfits.

I quickly called my mom back to let her know Hillary Garcia would take her to her chemotherapy appointment, and that I would arrange a new care worker ASAP. My mom was thankful I’d sorted out the situation so quickly, and excited about catching up with Hillary. From the way she spoke, you wouldn’t have thought she was about to have medical treatment, you’d have thought she was just meeting up with an old friend for a relaxing afternoon.

I made a mental note to send Hillary some flowers and a bottle of nice wine to thank her for helping out with my mom, and then turned back to the boutique.

As I stepped into the high end fashion store, I saw Claire waiting by the cash register. Alyssa was nowhere in sight.

“Is she still in the fitting room?” I asked, jerking a thumb in the direction of the changing area.

Claire bit her bottom lip. “Actually, Miss Blythe slipped away to try on some shoes.”

My eyes bulged out of my head. “What? How? I didn’t see the door open.”

“We have a back entrance,” Claire admitted, pointing out a second door to the rear of the store.

She hadn’t even mentioned it earlier, and I assumed it was used by their staff only.

“Why did you let her out?”

Claire’s eyes widened in surprise. “I didn’t realize I was supposed to keep her here. You just told me Miss Blythe wanted a private shopping experience.”

I cursed myself from not telling Claire the full details. At the time, I thought keeping the information that Alyssa was in danger from the Bloodline a secret would have made the whole situation safer.

I hadn’t expected her to try and sneak away.

“Don’t worry. It’s not your fault. Alyssa should have known better,” I said, trying to reassure the boutique owner. “How long ago did she leave?”

Claire glanced at her watch. “It can’t have been more than five minutes. There’s a designer shoe store just a couple of buildings down, I’m sure that’s where she is.”

“Thanks,” I called as I raced out of the boutique and hurried down Rodeo Drive. I soon came to the aforementioned shoe store, but no one there had seen Alyssa.

My heart pounded faster. Where the hell was she?

Thankfully, when I’d taken the position as Alyssa’s bodyguard, I’d installed a GPS tracking app on both our phones in case I needed to locate her in an emergency. I pulled out my phone, loaded up the app, and clicked on the icon that represented Alyssa.

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