Page 84 of Montana Justice

“Neighborhood. Smaller, older houses, lower rent, but not very close together. Sort of place where people mind their own business. Which I’m sure would be just what Ray was looking for.”

“That’s where she is,” Piper said, still facing the sink. “That’s where he’s keeping Sadie.”

“Most likely,” Travis agreed. “By tomorrow night, I’ll have an exact house.”

“Good.” This was all coming together. “We locate Sadie, extract her while Ray’s at the warehouse, then hit the warehouse before anyone can warn him. Clean sweep.”

It sounded simple when I said it like that. But nothing about this was simple. Too many variables, too many things that could go wrong.

“I’ll coordinate with Hunter,” I said. “Get the teams ready for tomorrow night. We’ll have to divide and conquer.”

“Lachlan.” Travis’s voice carried unusual emotion. “We only get one shot at this. If Ray suspects anything?—”

“He won’t,” I said firmly. “We’re going to get my daughter back. And then we’re going to put that bastard away forever.”

After Travis hung up, I watched Piper mechanically remove dinner from the oven. Her movements were precise, controlled, but I could see the tremor in her hands.

“I’m scared,” she said without looking at me.

“Me too.”

She nodded, portioning out the meal with careful precision. We sat across from each other at the table, Caleb between us in his bouncer, and ate in silence. The plan was in motion. Tomorrow night, everything would change. Either we’d have both our children safe, or…

I couldn’t think about the alternative.

Chapter 29

Piper

The green glowfrom Caleb’s night-light cast strange shadows across the walls. I stood over his crib, my hands gripping the rail hard enough to leave indentations in my palms. It was 3:17 a.m. I’d been standing here for twenty minutes, maybe thirty, watching the gentle rise and fall of his chest.

Twenty-four hours. That’s all that separated me from either getting Sadie back or losing her forever.

My legs trembled from exhaustion, but I couldn’t make myself move. Couldn’t risk missing a single breath, a single twitch of his tiny fingers. What if this was the last night I got to watch him sleep? What if tomorrow everything went wrong and I never?—

“Can’t sleep either?”

Lachlan’s voice came from the doorway, soft enough not to wake Caleb. I didn’t turn around. Didn’t trust my face not to betray the spiral of terror that had been building since dinner.

“I keep thinking about all the ways this could go wrong.” The words came out raw, scraped from a throat tight with suppressed tears. “What if Ray figures it out? What if he runs with her before your team can stop him? What if?—”

“Hey.” His hand settled on my shoulder, warm and solid. “Look at me.”

I shook my head. If I looked at him, if I saw the determination in his eyes, I might actually believe this could work. And hope was dangerous. Hope was what got you killed in my world.

“Piper.” His other hand found my waist, gently turning me to face him. “We’ve gone over the plan a dozen times. Travis has Ray’s location narrowed down. Hunter’s team is ready. We know where Ray will be tomorrow night, and we know Sadie won’t be with him.”

“You don’t know him like I do.” My voice cracked. “He’s paranoid. Smart. He’s survived this long because he always has a backup plan. What if he takes her with him to the warehouse? What if he has someone watching her who’ll hurt her if he doesn’t check in?”

The possibilities had been eating at me all day, each scenario worse than the last. Ray with a gun to Sadie’s head. Ray’s car careening off a mountain road rather than be taken alive. Ray disappearing into the night with my daughter, and me never knowing if she was alive or dead or?—

“Stop.” Lachlan cupped my face, thumbs brushing away tears I hadn’t realized were falling. “You’re torturing yourself with what-ifs.”

“I can’t help it. She’s so little, Lachlan. She won’t understand what’s happening. She’ll be scared and crying and—” A sob tore from my chest, loud enough that we both froze, watching Caleb for signs of stirring.

He slept on, one tiny fist pressed against his cheek.

Lachlan moved to the crib, lifting our son with practiced ease. Caleb made a soft sound of protest before settling against his father’s chest, still deeply asleep. Then Lachlan took my hand, leading me to the rocking chair in the corner.

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