She was going to have to take matters into her own hands and start contacting traffickers. The first one would be Axe’s Uncle Roberto.
* * *
When Axe heard Leanna’s plan, his blood boiled. “Absolutely not. No, I won’t let you call Roberto. We go to the police.”
He dumped his suitcase in the guest room and pulled out his phone.
“Who are you calling?” Leanna asked. “I got enough information to search out this Collector guy. If Carmelita is headed that direction, we can intercept them.”
“You’re going to traipse out there and put a neon sign on yourself to be trafficked? I can’t let you do that, and neither will your father.” He punched in the number for Sam.
“I have to do something.” Leanna plopped on the guest room bed and kicked her feet. “This is driving me crazy. The police have no update. There’s nothing on the news.”
“The police are investigating. Sometimes, they don’t say anything to not tip off the perps,” Axe said.
Sam picked up the call. “I was about to call you.”
“How’s the search?” Axe put the phone on speaker. “Leanna’s here.”
“Good,” Sam said. “We used Soledad’s phone to text Carmelita, and she finally replied.”
“I thought her phone was off,” Axe said.
“We suspect the guy who took her left her alone, and she couldn’t help going on social media,” Sam said.
“Can you track them?” Leanna asked. Her fingers clutched Axe’s arm so hard it hurt.
“As long as her phone is on,” Sam said. “They’re in Reno. I’ll let you know as soon as the police nab them.”
“Is she okay? What does her text message say?” Leanna’s voice was shaky.
“She seems fine, chatting away. She even sent photos of Ivan sleeping,” Sam said. “As far as we can tell, she isn’t hurt.”
“Ask her to send a selfie,” Leanna said. “She loves taking selfies.”
“Okay, will do. Try not to worry. We’ll have her home by dawn.” Sam’s voice was firm and confident. “Any other questions?”
Leanna told Sam all about the Collector and the clues Reuben gave her, and he promised to look into it.
While she spoke, Axe unpacked his suitcase and went upstairs to peek into Soledad’s room. His precious daughter was asleep, so he went into the kitchen to wait for Leanna. She was so wired that she wouldn’t be getting any sleep.
He was brewing a pot of coffee when Leanna barged into the kitchen.
“Here’s your phone,” she said, setting it down. “I’m going to drive to Reno.”
“What good will that do?” Axe took her by the shoulders. “You have to calm down. I bet the police are taking them into custody right now.”
“What if there’s a shootout and Carmelita is caught in the crossfire? Ivan’s a mean bastard. He tried to kill me. He didn’t help Maria, either.” Leanna sounded hysterical. Her chest heaved, and she could barely catch her breath. “Please, you have to let me go.”
“It won’t help if you get into an accident. You haven’t slept. You’ve been anxious and worried.”
“I’d feel better if I went. Did they remind her to check her blood sugar? How about her insulin?” Leanna’s hands fluttered, and sweat popped over her face. She was going to hyperventilate if she didn’t stop.
“What if you missed them, and they’re on their way back?” Axe had to drill sense into her.
His phone rang, and he grabbed it to answer. It was Sam.
“Yeah? Any news?” Axe put the call on speaker so Leanna could listen in.
