Lost Hart, page 12
He really shouldn’t have watched that documentary on Henry VIII while in Georgia. It was only giving him more creative and gruesome ideas on how best to punish those who hurt innocents, who hurt the people he cared about.
“Chopper is ready to leave in an hour,” Brock said, returning to where they all remained in the dining room.
“I’ll take Stacey home to grab some clothes,” Heath said. “Her house is on the way to mine.”
Chase heard Stacey murmur, “Thank you.”
Chase needed to run to his place and grab the rest of his supplies, too.
They wouldn’t be able to take the weapons they needed, which was why Heath was touching base with his contacts in Seattle.
“Rex and I will stay here for now,” Brock said, earning a grunt of disagreement from Rex. “We’re a flight away if you need us. But you’ve got men on the ground in Washington who can help.”
Once he knew everyone had stepped away from his computer, he gave one more glance behind him to double-check Stacey wasn’t looking over his shoulder. She was speaking softly with Krista in the kitchen, each of them cradling a mug of tea, worried expressions creasing their features.
His brothers were making various arrangements, and his mother was doing what she always did when she was worried—cleaning. When his father was alive and a police officer, their house had been the cleanest home on the block. It always smelled like lemon Pledge, and his mother’s hands were often raw from so much scrubbing.
“The hutch is dust-free, Mum,” he said gently, grabbing her elbow.
She glanced back at him, nostrils flaring, blue eyes filled with worry. “Don’t you think I know that?”
Yeah, he knew she knew that. He also knew how helpless she felt. Nearly as helpless as he did, and there was a lot more that he could do than his mother could.
Taking a deep breath, he cracked his knuckles and tilted his neck side to side.
He hated doing what he was about to do.
Hated it more than he hated small spaces or closing his eyes to sleep.
This was where the real evil lurked. Where the true plague of humankind hung out and did their dirty work.
He logged onto the dark web and went in search of people.
People who bought and sold children.
People without souls.
People who would pay dearly for what they’d done.
Chapter 13
By the time the chopper set down in Seattle, it was well past midnight. Aaron had booked them all a suite at The Windward Pacific, and as luck would have it, the co-owners of the hotel—Aaron’s buddy Roberto “Rob” Cahill and his wife, Skyler McAllister Cahill, were down in San Diego and planned to fly up to Seattle later that day.
The hotel had a helicopter pad, so they just landed there, and Aaron met them in the hotel lobby, his dark red hair, muscular build and icy-blue eyes telling anyone within twenty yards he was a death machine and not to be messed with. Colton was no slouch either, with short-cropped military-style hair and alert hazel eyes that had an intense, almost alarming focus to them.
Chase and Heath shook hands with Aaron and Colton.
“Thanks for meeting us,” Chase said, taking in the tired and worried expression on Stacey’s face as she scanned the lobby. He’d kept her tight against him on the flight over and hadn’t released her hand until just that moment to shake the other men’s hands.
“Absolutely,” Colton said. “Even if we didn’t have kids of our own, we’d be here.”
“That’s right,” Heath said. “How are the families?”
“Mercedes has her hands full with Portia and baby Ford,” Colton said on a deep exhale, rubbing his hand over his dark hair.
“Iz, Soph and Weston are good, too,” Aaron said with far less enthusiasm than his friend.
“Should we leave you guys to get some sleep, and we can debrief and set up a plan first thing in the morning?” Colton asked, his gaze settling on Stacey.
“I won’t be able to sleep,” she muttered, her eyes continuing to dart around the lobby. Tears stained her face, and beneath her eyes were dark, deep circles.
Heath’s phone buzzed in his pocket, and he stepped away for a moment to answer it.
“Fair enough,” Colton said. “I wouldn’t be able to sleep, either.”
“Rob said to order whatever you want from room service. It’s covered,” Aaron said, jerking his chin toward the elevator to indicate they should all head up to their room.
Heath joined them again, stowing his phone in his back pocket. “That was Brock. Highway patrol found the SUV from the surveillance footage abandoned in a parking lot in Silverdale. It’s safe to assume they switched vehicles and are on their way to Seattle. We just don’t know what they’re driving.”
Chase hadn’t told them what he’d uncovered on the dark web. He wasn’t ready to share that information with Stacey, so he wanted to wait until she was out of earshot before he divulged the information to Heath, Aaron, Colton and his brothers.
They stepped onto the elevator, and when the door closed, the panic hit him instantly. Fuck, he hated elevators. He should have taken the stairs.
But Aaron said they were on the eighth floor, and even though he could climb those without breaking a sweat, he was reluctant to leave Stacey for even a second.
His mother told him to close his eyes and take deep breaths when the claustrophobia got overwhelming, but what she didn’t know was what he saw when he closed his eyes. That was worse.
So instead, he stared straight ahead at the seam where the two doors met, counting in his head.
One … two … three … four … five …
He didn’t blink. He didn’t breathe.
Six … seven … eight … nine … ten … eleven …
Spots started to cloud his vision. His stomach was a tight knot, and bile began to rise up his throat.
Twelve … thirteen … fourteen … fifteen …
Stacey’s fingers laced with his.
The spots in his vision receded.
The knot in his belly loosened.
Sixteen … seventeen … eighteen … nineteen … twenty.
Ding.
Thank fuck.
The doors slid open, and when he took that luscious gulp of fresh air and finally let himself blink, it was nearly as good as a fucking orgasm.
“Just down here,” Aaron said, leading them down the hallway. He pulled a key card from his pocket and waved it in front of the pad until it clicked and turned green.
It was a nice suite. Complete with a kitchenette, dining space, two bedrooms and a living room.
“This was all Skyler could arrange on short notice,” Aaron said. “The couch pulls out though.”
“I can take that,” Chase said quickly, preferring the wide-open space of the entire suite than a small bedroom where he’d have to shut the door. Heath gave him a strange look but then shrugged.
Setting his bags down on the coffee table, he glanced around the cold, dark suite. There was even a gas fireplace beneath the flat-screen television. If the situation were different, he could see himself enjoying staying here.
Turning around, he found Heath and Stacey speaking in low voices in front of one of the bedrooms. His brother’s hand rested on her shoulder and she was nodding.
She nodded again before disappearing into one of the bedrooms.
Heath joined Chase in the living room, where Aaron and Colton had grabbed spots on opposite ends of one of the couches. “Figured you wanted her out of the room when you told us what you found when you went ‘hunting.’”
Chase grunted and took a seat at the dining room table, booting up his laptop and glancing at the door Stacey had retreated through.
“She’s going to have a shower,” Heath said. “You got some time.”
“You went onto the dark web?” Aaron asked.
Chase nodded. “There’s a ‘buyer’ here in Seattle. Goes by the handle Impervious.”
That name earned him the eye rolls and “for fuck’s sake” he figured he would get.
What a fucking ego. To call yourself Impervious was reason enough to get your head smashed in by a cinder block.
“He has clients in Asia, South America, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Mainly deals in little boys. Caters to that clientele.”
All three men turned stone-faced, and he could feel the atmosphere in the room shift. They were all feeling what Chase had been feeling since he entered the dark web, since he heard Stacey screaming on the phone that someone had taken Connor—pure, unadulterated, white-hot rage. The need to hunt was rampant and feral inside of him. He had the scent of blood, and it made him crazy.
“I’m posing as an interested ‘buyer’ here in Seattle, saying I just moved to the area and haven’t been able to get my ‘cravings’ met. Impervious said he’s getting a new shipment of—” He had to push the bile down as it started to rise up his throat. A hard swallow barely helped. “A new shipment of dolls.”
“Jesus Christ.” Colton glanced away, his face pale, a thick muscle in his jaw jiggling.
Aaron made a predatory noise in his throat. “Fuck me.”
Heath was quiet, but Chase knew that look on his brother’s face well. They’d been on a lot of missions together, and when Heath was reaching the point of bubbling over with fury, he went dead quiet. He was as silent as a void now.
“Won’t believe you’re a buyer though, man,” Colton said, facing Chase again. He stood up and located the remote for the fireplace by the television and turned it on. Orange flames danced behind the glass. “You scream military and undercover.”
“Need someone who looks like a perv,” Heath said.
“Or someone who’s willing to pretend to look like a pedophile pervert,” Aaron said. “We can make them look the part.” He glanced at Heath and then Colton. “Think Liam would do it?”
Colton shrugged. “Never hurts to ask. I’m sure he’ll take offense to being likened to a pedophile pervert, but the man is always willing to help. Plus, he and Richelle went through something similar with Mallory, so …”
Aaron dug his phone out of his back pocket, stood up and wandered into the kitchen.
“Did Impervious say when the new shipment was coming in?” Heath asked.
Chase’s head shook. “Next few days was all I got. He also said the window to find my doll was small, as he was sending them to buyers abroad by the end of next week.”
“These organizations are slick. They know how to keep the kids hidden and move them around from place to place until they’re shipped out to keep off the authorities’ radar.” Colton tugged at his chin. “Did a few busts of child brothels and trafficking rings in South America. They keep ’em in slums. Dirty pay-by-the-hour hotels, cold warehouses, dark, dank basements and back rooms of sketchy businesses. Anywhere they can hide ’em, they will. Barely feed the kids. A lot of them don’t have bathroom facilities, just a bucket in the corner they’re all expected to use.”
Heath pushed his fingers through his hair. “Christ almighty.”
“They could also be keeping him here in the States and not shipping him abroad. There are some sick fuckers right here in our own backyard, too. Keep kids as pets for their own twisted pleasures.” Colton’s nostrils flared. “Thought about starting up a bit of an underground hunting party, if you get my meaning. Take ’em out, quick and quiet like.”
Colton could count Chase in on that party.
Chase felt the bile begin to lift up toward his mouth again. If there was a hair out of place on Connor’s body, if that kid so much as had the sniffles or a grumbling, hungry belly, Chase wouldn’t stop until every last person involved in this ring of evil was dead. Sure, prison a second time around would probably kill him—or make him go insane—but knowing Connor was safe would be worth it.
They heard the water for the shower turn off at the same time Aaron rejoined them. “Wasn’t happy about being woken up after midnight, but Liam is in. Said whatever we need, he’s available. Richelle wants to meet Stacey, too. Since Mallory was kidnapped, too, she feels she’s got a bit more of an understanding of what Stacey’s going through than most women.”
All the men nodded.
“Okay, so what we need from you, Chase, is a time and location for the meetup. Push for sooner rather than later. My guess is, they’re driving through the night to get to Seattle and hide the kid. The sooner they’re off the road and the kid is out of sight, the better off they are. Will be harder to find him since the AMBER Alerts will be seen mostly later this morning.” Aaron didn’t bother to sit down again and stood next to Chase at the dining room table. “Colton and I will head home now, and we’ll meet back here at eight tomorrow morning.”
Stacey emerged from the bedroom, all bundled up in a fluffy white bathrobe. Her hair was damp, her face flushed, eyes red-rimmed like she’d spent the entire shower crying.
Understandable.
Aaron’s face turned gentle. “We’ll be back in the morning with reinforcements, okay?”
At that, Colton stood up, too, and he and Aaron headed toward the door. Heath and Chase stood up, as well, and followed them. Stacey hung back but followed.
“Might be a good idea to bring in all our manpower on this one,” Aaron said. “Your brothers busy?”
Heath shook his head. “They’re on standby. Can be here by morning.”
“Probably best,” Aaron said. “We don’t know what we’re going into, and being overprepared, overmanned is better than being under.”
“Assuming you’re going to need weapons?” Colton asked with a small but wicked smile.
“Brought what we have,” Heath said, earning a surprised glance from Chase. “But more is always better.”
Colton nodded. “I’ll bring what I got.”
They said their goodbyes and closed the door behind the two retired SEALs.
“You brought weapons?” Chase asked Heath as they reentered the living room.
“Never leave home without at least something. But yeah, you think I need a duffle bag that big full of clothes?” He went to the big black bag he’d brought with him that was sitting on the kitchen counter and unzipped it.
Chase leaned forward and saw knives, automatic rifles, handguns, grenades, enough explosives to blow up a city block.
“Jesus, how’d you get that past customs?”
“Customs?” He shrugged, a devious twinkle in his eye. “Not sure what you’re talking about.”
Chase just rolled his eyes. “Zip that back up. You don’t want housekeeping finding it.” He pivoted in the room to find Stacey standing in front of the big picture window that lent them a view of the entire city. She looked so small and fragile in the enormous robe.
“Gonna have a shower and try to sleep,” Heath said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. “Is it wrong that I want to spoon this bag?”
Chase gave his youngest brother a disturbed look. “Yes.”
Heath shrugged again. “Too bad, I’m gonna.”
And then it was just them.
Chapter 14
She saw him approach behind her in the reflection of the window. He stopped before they could touch, but that didn’t mean she didn’t feel him there, didn’t take comfort from his heat, his scent, his presence.
The ache in her chest was beyond overflowing.
Her son was missing.
No, not missing.
Her son had been abducted.
He’d been taken right from under her nose. Hauled away in a van by people he didn’t know, who saw him as no more than a commodity.
She’d failed him.
A mother was supposed to protect her child, and she hadn’t.
She failed to do the most basic thing a parent can do for their child, and that is keep them safe.
Now, Connor was only God knew where, probably scared, hungry and crying out for her, and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to help him.
She’d never felt so helpless, so utterly useless in all her life.
She didn’t think she had any more tears left, but somehow more fell, and her throat grew tight as the sobs clutched her body and she began to tremble uncontrollably.
“Shh.” Chase’s arms wrapped around her, and he spun her around. She clung to him, buried her face in his chest and gripped the front of his shirt like the lifeline she desperately needed.
Right now, she wanted to die.
She wanted to crumple into a ball on the floor and not eat or sleep ever again until she withered away to nothing.
“We’ll find him,” Chase said, running his hand over her back. “I will bring him back to you.”
“You can’t make that promise,” she said, lifting her head to look at him. “He could be anywhere.” That last bit was forced out like someone was giving her the Heimlich, but she said it. It needed to be said. They all knew it to be true. Even if they thought they had a lead, it could just as easily be a dead end or a trap.
Connor could be halfway to San Francisco for all they knew.
“You eaten?” he asked, taking a step toward her.
She hadn’t had anything since breakfast, but she also wasn’t hungry. She shook her head, and tightened the cord on her robe. “I can’t eat right now. I’m going to lie down for a bit.” She already knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but maybe if she closed her eyes, she could connect on another level with her son.
In their dreams.
Maybe if they were both sleeping, or had their eyes closed and thought hard about the other person, they could meet in another world, in the spirit world. She could tell him she loved him and they were going to find him. She could let her baby know that his mama was coming and wouldn’t stop looking until he was back in her arms.
Her entire body was just a throbbing, dull ache. She made to pull away, to go to her room, but he didn’t relinquish his hold.
His finger came up beneath her chin. “I can’t stay in the bedroom with you, but you can stay out here with me.”
Her brows pinched.
She wanted to ask why he couldn’t stay in the bedroom with her but was also too tired and had too many other things on her mind to start digging.
