Page 11 of Capone
“Need any help?”
“It wouldn’t hurt,” Cara said as she pulled the file from her briefcase. She placed it on the table and slid it over to him. “Tech, this is Giovanna. She’s the mother of the missing child.”
He pushed his glasses up his nose before sticking his hand out for me to shake. “I’m sorry to hear about your daughter, but if anyone can find her, it’ll be these two.”
“That’s what I been hearing. If there’s anything I can do to help, please let me know.”
After briefing Tech on the case, they all took a seat at their stations. Sara rolled a chair beside her desk for me to take a seat. They worked in silence. I was tempted to ask questions, but I didn’t want to slow them down, so I just sat back and observed.
Hours had passed and they were still in the zone. Dinner had been brought to the room since Cara and Sara didn’t want to stop working. I was watching Sara’s screen as she was going over the parking lot footage when I heard Cara curse under her breath. Sara stopped what she was doing and turned to her. “What is it?” she questioned.
“Giovanna, did you notice you were being followed that day?”
I sat up in my seat. My heart beat wildly in my chest. “What? No.”
Cara pointed to one of the screens and started playing footage. “I went back to every single location you told us you Gabi visited that day to see if I could find anything strange. That car had been following you from the time you left your house.”
My stomach churned. Bile rose in my throat. Someone had been following us, and I hadn’t even realized it. How did something like that go unnoticed? I already felt guilty for not protecting my daughter. This could have possibly been avoided had I paid attention to my surroundings. The guilt was eating me alive.
My eyes filled with tears. “Do you know who the person is?”
“No. The windows are blacked out and the only time the suspect got out of the vehicle was to snatch Gabi.”
A knock sounded on the door. Cara got up to open the door and in came every woman’s walking fantasy. Capone. He too was now out of his suit and in a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt that hugged his muscular torso. I could see the outline of his six-pack.
“What are you doing here, Capone?” Sara asked him.
“I wanted to help. I couldn’t get that little girl off my mind, so here I am.” He approached the table and picked up the file and began scanning it. “What have you found out so far?”
“We know they were followed that entire day, but that’s about it,” Cara informed him. Capone seemed deep in thoughtas he flipped through the pages of the file. Something must have caught his attention because his face instantly turned into a scowl. “What is it?” Cara pressed.
“This says Gabrielle was taken the day before the anniversary of Derek’s death.”
“What? Let me see that,” Cara demanded as she grabbed the file. She looked it over and turned to Tech. “I need you to?—”
“Already on it.” He began to type. His fingers moved rapidly as he began his task.
“W-what’s happening?” I asked no one in particular.
Before anyone could answer me, Tech shot to his feet. “Got it!” He pointed to one of the screens. The same car I remember so vividly from the day Gabi was taken was on the screen. “I pulled this footage from a local gas station that’s four blocks from the bar where Derek was shot.”
“What’s that time stamp, Tech?” Sara asked as she picked up her laptop.
“Three minutes after Derek was shot.”
The room began to spin.
Were they saying what I think they were?
It couldn’t be. I didn’t want to believe it. Could the same person who took Derek from me also taken Gabrielle?
My thoughts shifted to my father. I knew he hated Derek. He was never supportive of our relationship. I wouldn’t put it past him to hurt Derek, but he couldn’t possibly be capable of kidnapping his own grandchild.
My chest rose and fell rapidly, like I was about to pass out. My hands trembled as I fought to catch my breath. Black spots danced in my vision. I felt like I was drowning.
Capone squatted down in front of me and grabbed my hands. “Breathe, Giovanna.”
I released a sob as my tears flowed endlessly. “I-I’m t-tr-trying,” I cried.
