Her frantic eyes meet mine. “I lost Bella.”
I curse under my breath. “Where did you see her last?”
“Here. I think. I’m not sure. She took off after you.” Maya looks at me, then to the left, then the right, then back again.
She’s going to give herself a headache, or a heart attack. That little girl is trouble.
“Okay,” I say, trying to formulate a quick plan. “Get to the stage, take the microphone, and tell everyone what’s going on. I’m going to search the crowd and keep an eye on the door to make sure she doesn’t leave.”
“Okay,” Maya squeaks, and I not only hear her fear—I can feel it. It’s the same one currently constricting my chest. What if the thief found Bella?
I give Maya a nudge toward the stage and then push my way to the back of the room. What if Bella leaves on her own? Maybe I can lock down the building.
I punch Rosie’s name on my phone and bring it to my ear.
“Soren?” she answers on the first ring. “Soren, can you hear me?”
“Rosie,” I shout, grateful to hear her voice. “I need your help.”
“I’ve been trying to call you back but have terrible service. It’s a long story bu—”
Beep.
The call drops.
I hit her name again while continuing to keep my gaze on the crowd, searching for Bella. This time the call goes straight to voicemail.
Dang it, Rosie.I need you.
I used to think it was the other way around—she needed me, so I had to protect her. But somehow in the last couple of years, the roles reversed. I dragged her into this job, this life, with me so I could keep an eye on her, but also because I need someone. I’ve always been alone, but I’ve had her. And I’ve been using her as a crutch to not need anyone else. My eyes lock on Maya as she steps onto the stage. I’m tired of being a man-and-one-sister island. Maya is my person. She always has been. The one who both set me free and balanced me out.
The music screeches to a stop, followed by a loud groan from everyone in attendance.
“H-hello.” Maya’s shaky voice echoes through the room. She immediately gets booed by some drunk idiots. “I’m looking for a little girl. She’s got blonde hair and is wearing aTexas Chainsaw Massacreshirt.”
“You’re a psycho!” someone hollers.
The singer takes the mic back. “She’s serious, y’all; she lost a kid. Be gracious and look around, please.”
People finally turn, searching their immediate vicinity. I anxiously watch the shifting crowd.
“Is that her?” someone yells.
My eyes fly to the corner of the room, but I don’t see Bella. What I do see is a man with a stripe of flour on the back of his pants.
He ditched the mask and is wearing a red shirt now, but that’s the thief, tagged by Bella’s mess. Judging by his build and the color of his hair, I’d say he’s also the delivery man from last night.
I wade through the crowd, watching from the corner of my eye as Maya leaps from the stage, yelling Bella’s name. There’s a cheer and applause, which I assume means Maya and Bella have been reunited, and the music starts up again.
The girls are safe, which means I need to keep them that way by eliminating the threat. I’m not going to kill him. I’ll simply make sure he’s… indisposed for a time.
I’m twenty feet away when he spots me and takes off down the hall.
A dancing couple gets in my way, and I shove through them, breaking them apart as I chase after him.
He turns down another hall, but I’m not losing him this time. I pick up speed, my feet eating up the seemingly endless hallway. I reach out and snatch the back of his shirt and yank open the nearest door. The bedroom is empty, and I shove the man against the wall, frisking his person until I find the items he stole.
“Let me go,” he grunts.
