Page 5 of Taken
He was too tired to figure it all out now. He needed a clear head, and that wasn't going to happen until the effects of the drugs wore off. Unable to fight it anymore, he gave in and drifted back to sleep, wondering how long it would be before anyone noticed him missing.
CHAPTER THREE
Xander walked into the team house, ready to go to work. He'd been restless all day, but unsure why. He missed Faith now that she was away at school, and Matt had been working long hours, leaving him on his own. He never did good on his own.
He'd tried to pass the time playing video games and working out, but nothing eased his mind. After the sting tonight, he was going to try to talk Matt into taking a few days off work. Maybe they could head up to Tahoe or some other place for a week and find a way to regroup. He loved the team, but lately, Matt had been putting in so many hours that he found himself jealous of the fucking computer that got more of Matt's attention than he did.
"Hey, you." Becca smiled as he walked into the kitchen.
"Hi." He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. Becca was the team leader, Bryon's girlfriend, and also the team's insider at the courthouse. She kept them up to date on any cases going on concerning pedophiles. They had a database of men and women to watch thanks to her work. "What are you baking? It smells amazing."
"My sister sent me my grandmother's recipe for this cream-cheese cake she used to make for us all the time. I thought I'd give it a try."
"You're going to share, right?" He grinned, his mouth already watering.
"If it turns out right," she promised.
"Hey, have you seen Trenton?" Bryon walked into the kitchen.
"He's not here?" Xander turned to his friend and team leader. "He's always here."
"Not today, and he's not answering his phone. It goes straight to voicemail. I've sent Kasey over to his apartment to see if he's there." Bryon glanced at his phone. "We've got a sting in a few hours. He's always in early on sting days."
Xander frowned. "Last I saw him was yesterday. He said he was going to head over to Manny's for a beer. Asked if I wanted to go. Said he'd be back earlier today to get the thumb drive ready for the police. He left a few hours before Matt and I headed home last night."
"Maybe he met someone and is too preoccupied to answer his phone." Becca smiled.
Xander leaned against the counter. "That's not like Trenton. He seldom hooks up, but even if he did, nothing distracts him from work." He pulled out his phone and dialed Trenton's number, shaking his head as it went directly to voicemail.
"Matt's handling the thumb drive, but I don't have a good feeling about this. Trenton's either sick or something has happened. I'm going to go check hospital records and see if he maybe ended up in the emergency room last night." Bryon walked out.
Xander wrapped his hand around his beard and gripped it tightly. "Fuck, this isn't good." The team was like family. If Trenton was hurt, they needed to be with him. He cast a worried look at Becca before following Bryon out of the room.
Once in the computer room, he went straight to his husband, Matt, who was working on the computers. He gripped his shoulders as he bent and kissed the top of his head. "You should have called me."
"There's nothing you can do. Kasey's gone looking for him. There's no point in worrying until we know something is really wrong." Matt glanced up at him for a moment, then went back to typing.
"I told him not to bother you. I need you fresh for tonight. As odd as this is for Trenton, we don't know that anything is wrong. Until we do, we go on as planned." Bryon was in front of another computer, hacking into hospital records.
Xander sighed and slumped into the chair beside Matt. "Trenton is never late for work. He's the first to arrive most days."
"How was he last night? He doesn't go out drinking often." Bryon asked as he continued to type away on the keyboard.
"He seemed okay. Maybe a bit tired. I didn't get a feeling that anything was wrong. He just wanted a drink before going home. We all get that way from time to time."
Bryon huffed.
"He might have just overslept. Let's wait until Kasey gets back to us." Matt glanced at Xander. "I've got everything ready for tonight. Should be an easy in and out. The guy is old. Uses a cane to get around. His wife is out of town until next week."
"This is the guy that's faced charges four times, right?" Bryon glanced over at them.
"Yeah. First his own grandkids, then neighborhood kids. Due to his age, the courts keep giving him chances. His most recent arrest is from being caught in the bathroom at church with a young girl. Once we hacked into his email, we found photos he'd shared with another pedophile of several other girls from the church. This asshole has had more than enough chances to reform. It's time to stop him. He's out on bail right now. Becca said the district attorney is offering a plea bargain of house arrest if he'll plead guilty on the latest arrest. I've connected twelve victims to this man, and I'm sure that's not all of them."
Xander nodded. "I'll take care of him tonight. Maybe this time his wife will be smart enough to leave him." He hated it when spouses supported these pedophiles. It made him want to go after them as well.
Bryon pushed back from the computer. "Well, there're no signs that Trenton went to any of the local hospitals. No police reports with his name. He either got drunk and passed out all day or he went home with someone and has decided to fuck off work today."
"He wouldn't do either of those things," Xander argued.
