Page 137 of Every Broken Piece
“Rogue? What the hell does that mean?”
“If Carter took her, it wasn’t sanctioned by the O’Malley’s. He’s doing this on his own.”
I pull into the Denver PD parking lot and cut the engine. Snowflakes still flirt with the stiff breeze. Is she cold? Is she hurt? Is she crying? I dig my fingers into my eyes and take a few deep breaths.
Is she alive?
“I’m going to call the lead detective in Denver and tell him what I know,” Hardwick is saying. “I’ll send over a picture of Carter. Gabe, I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
“I tracked her computer.” I know I’m not making much sense. I know I should acknowledge what she said, but my brain is running in a thousand different directions.
I picture Tess cold, shivering, crying. I close my eyes and all I see are those terrified tiger eyes begging me to find her. I can’t allow myself to go down that dark path, to think that she’s dead. I can’t.
“I have to go.” I stab at the dashboard to end the call. Exhaustion weighs my steps as I walk into the PD. Is she tired too? Does she want to give up?
Don’t give up on me, Tess. I’m coming.
A detective meets me at the door. I hand over my phone for them to study while I pace. Now that we have a direction I wantto move quickly. I want action. I want my girl back in my arms because the alternative is not an option.
“Sir?”
A detective holds my phone out to me with an incoming call from an unknown number.
“It might be the kidnapper,” he says.
I hit the button, then immediately click the speaker icon.
“This is Gabriel Strong.”
“Mr. Strong. I have your girl.”
The detective motions the chief and another detective over.
“What do you want?” I ask, anger making my voice strong.
“She owes us money, Mr. Strong. I’m here to collect.”
This is my element. Negotiating is my strong suit. And now that we’re finally getting somewhere, calm takes over. I settle against a desk, holding the phone so everyone can hear.
“Tess owes you nothing. The debt is her mother’s,” I say.
“Her mother promised that Miss James would pay her debt and I’m holding her to it.”
“Let’s be truthful, Mr. Carter. You’re not here on orders from the O’Malley family. You’re not here to collect Sandra Jansen’s debt. So, tell me, whatareyou here for?”
By the length of the silence on the other end I can tell I’ve surprised him. I don’t want to push too hard, because I don’t know what he’ll do to Tess. But I do want to rattle him enough that he slips up.
“You’ve done your research,” he says.
“You took my girl, Carter. You’re fucking dead when I find you.”
He chuckles. “Ifyou find me, Mr. Strong.”
“I will.”
“I’ll tell you what. Meet me in twelve hours. I’ll have your girl. You bring one million dollars. I think that’s a fair trade.”
“You’re delusional if you think I can get my hands on a million dollars in twelve hours.”
