Page 110 of Love is Angry

I spent all night trying to figure out where Madison would have been taken. I spoke to Rita and Lindsey and Cameron just to cover my bases, to make sure that this wasn’t some kind of cruel practical joke—now they’re all trying to figure out how to find her.

I guess that’s helpful—but frankly I don’t see what they can do.

The cop looks up at me and sighs. “Contreras?” He asks, his forehead wrinkling.

“Yes.”

“Hold on.” He turns in his chair to pick up the phone, but I’m through waiting. Contreras will get a head’s up, that’s all he needs. I take the stairs two at a time, ignoring the shout coming from the desk below, and burst onto the second floor. A few heads turn my way, but not many. I sprint for Contreras’s office and barely stop myself in time.

Dad’s in there. He’s leaning over Contreras’s desk, waving a finger in his face. Contreras is holding the same posture, staring Julian down. It’s a stand-off, but I can’t hear what they’re saying. Dad slams his fist on the desk. In the split second that his head’s down, Contreras locks eyes with me and jerks his head toward the stairs. Fuck!

I book it back down the stairs and out the door, past another frustrated shout. Fuck. I hurry to my car, wanting to be well out of sight before Dad comes back down. As I slide into the driver’s seat, my phone rings. “Yes?” I snap.

“Cool it, tiger, it’s Rita. Look, you said the kidnappers sent a picture, right?”

“Yes.”

“’Kay, cool. Forward that to me. Not a screen shot, forward the whole damn message to me. I’m at the police station in Ithaca.”

“Rita, I don’t think—”

“Obviously. Forward me the damn message and stop trying to play cowboy, Duke. In case you didn’t know, kidnapping and blackmail is against the law. You’re on the right side of it for once in your life. Stop fucking it up.”

I grind my teeth. I want to tell her she’s wrong, that this is bigger than the police, but she’s not going to listen. God, I hate the thought of anyone else seeing Maddie like that—but to hell with it. I pull Maddie’s phone out and forward the message to Rita.

“Sent,” I tell her. “Did you get it?”

Silence for a beat. Then, “Oh, my god. Maddie!”

“Yeah. So. There you go. There’s no help for me here—I’m on my way back.”

“What about Maddie’s step-girlfriend or whatever?”

“Noelle is—” I’m about to say she’s a last resort, but then it occurs to me that she might actually know more about myfather’s specific assets than I do. “My next call. Hit me up if anything changes.”

“Ditto to you. And Rhue? We’re gonna find our girl.”

I call Noelle from Maddie’s phone.

“Hey, girlfriend!” She answers. “You got some more dirt for me? Election’s right around the corner!”

“I have dirt,” I tell her. “But I have to meet you in person. Where are you?”

“Who is this?” She demands.

“Let’s just say I’m someone who knows more about the Echeverias than virtually anyone on this planet.”

There’s a long, tense pause. “I’m heading out to Beach Avenue. You know where it is?”

Beach Avenue, why does that ring a—Sibel.

“Yep. I’m on my way.”

I meet Noelle a block from Sibel’s house. It’s a cold, grey day, with strong and howling winds. Lake Ontario trembles beneath it, its icy waters lapping at the rocky shore. Above us, a red-tailed hawk circles the area. These birds stay in flight for eons before they swoop in on their prey. I should learn something from them. Patience. Patience and the ruthlessness to take down my enemy.

Noelle gets out of her car—a sleek, understated grey sedan. She’s perfectly poised and hungry for a story, but also piqued with worry. At least that’s my impression.

There are too many cars parked out here for the time of year, I’m sure of it. Then again, I’m permanently on edge, torn between despair and fury while Madison is being held against her will--or worse. I shake my head. No. Not worse. She can’t be worse. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to her.

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