Logan raised his eyebrows. “How long were you and her together?”
“Six years too long,” Xander murmured. “I thought she was the slave I needed.”
“She whined,” Ares bit out. “Didn’t communicate what she needed.”
“I thought she was happy,” Xander said. He ran his hands through the long strands of his hair and shook his head. “Until the night I came home with a prenup agreement. She shrieked at me that I didn’t trust her. Ran out of the house in the rain.”
“Xander went after her. She wasn’t wearing a jacket or shoes,” Ares said.
“And she ended up crashing her car right into a streetlight pole, swerving to miss an oncoming vehicle.”
“Theo showed up shortly after, accusing Xander of abuse,” Ares shook his head. “Xander gave her that car the year before. Anyways, she spent months in a private rehab, which Xander paid for.”
“Theo was livid,” Xander said. “But maybe he was right. I demanded a lot from Olivia.”
“And she gave it. But there was little communication between you two,” Ares said.
Xander glanced away from his brother. Ares had always tried to assuage his guilt about the accident.
“I brought Harper home just two months after Olivia’s accident. And Ian and Nadia broke up that spring. I blamed myself for Olivia’s accident. I still do. If I hadn’t chased her out of the house...” His voice broke. The past didn’t matter. The sky had darkened,they needed to find Harper.
“You didnotcause that accident, Xander. Olivia and her reckless driving did,” Ares said.
“I haven’t had a relationship since. Telling myself what I need in a slave is too much.”
“But you never gave Harper a chance,” Logan said.
“No, I didn’t. As I had Harper to take care of, the pain Olivia caused started to fade. She’s my redemption, Logan, and I will not risk her.”
“But you’re a different man now, than you were then,” Ares pointed out.
“What you’ve done to Harper isn’t fair.”
Xander’s phone beeped, and he hit the speakerphone. “Quinn?”
“We tracked the van to the old Starlight Hotel’s parking lot. Witnesses saw it enter the parking lot, but nobody saw the van come out of the parking lot. We figure they changed cars. We searched inside the hotel and asked the staff, but no sign of Harper. We’re going to circle the area again to talk to anyone who has seen her.” Quinn’s voice was sure and steady.
“Good work, Quinn,” Ares said. “We have full confidence in you.”
“Going to send through a list of properties that I want you to search,” Xander said.
“Yes, boss.” Quinn clicked off.
“So, it’s not Harper’s family searching for her, it’s Theo Densen?” Logan asked, pacing in front of Xander’s desk.
“It’s a big family.”
“You’re sure the aunt and uncle were dealt with, the one who set fire to her childhood house?” “Yes, her aunt was dealt with,” Xander said, exchanging a look with his brother. He wasn’t going to divulge how, but the Ambassador’s daughter to Turkey was also a victim of hers and in exchange for Axis Management rescuing her, he had assumed she was either buried or in a Turkish prison somewhere. It was the rescuing of the girls that had prompted Xander to create a Team Stealth. “But this operation is huge, reaching across many continents. She has more uncles and cousins all up to their necks in this business.”
Xander reached over and hit the button for Meg.
“Yes, boss?”
“Run a search for all properties owned by Theo Densen and send it down to us.”
“You got it,” Meg said.
Damn, his heart was about to explode. He needed to find Harper. He needed to hold her, if only for a moment.
