I shoot a text to Panther letting him know what happened before I get to the booth. When I look up, I frown.
Aspen isn’t there.
I wonder if she went to the bathroom and look toward the closest porta-potties.
Looking down at my phone, I notice my text didn’t go through.
I try to call Aspen. The call fails. My stomach tightens.
Something isn’t right.
I run over to the porta-potties and start knocking. There are a few angry people, but no Aspen.
I take off at a run, looking left and right for her. I run into Caterpillar as I look.
“What’s wrong?” he asks.
“Aspen is missing. Phones are down. Spread the word,” I yell at him before I keep up with my search.
I run into Ridge next. He is watching Rain as she gets on a ride.
“Aspen is missing. Spread the word. Phones are down.”
He curses, pulling out a second phone. He flips it open, and I realize it’s a satellite phone. He dials a number before handing it to me.
“What’s wrong?” Panther says.
“Aspen is missing,” I tell him.
He growls. “What do you mean she’s missing? Maggie went to help her at the booth thirty minutes ago.”
I frown. “Maggie hasn’t been there. I only left about fifteen minutes ago to help out with the unruly men causing an issue.”
“Asher, Maggie was with your sister. It’s why I let them go. They were together, and Meek was watching.”
“Fuck. Call Meek. I’m going searching.”
When I hang up, I look at Ridge.
“Keep it. He will need to contact you back. I want to help you, but…” He looks to Rain.
“Get her to safety,” I tell him as I take off.
A few minutes later, the phone rings. I answer it.
“Meek had eyes on them. They were on their way to the booth last he saw. A group of people got in the way, so he couldn’t see the booth to confirm they had made it there, but he saw them before you left. We had no idea they never made it.”
“I don’t like this,” I tell him.
“Me either. We know who it is. I’m headed to the entrance. They won’t still be here. We need to find where he is holding them,” he says.
“I’ll be there in a second.”
I run across the carnival grounds, dodging people without a care for how they feel about it. It takes me several minutes to get to the entrance, but when I do, I see everyone there except Caterpillar.
“Where’s Caterpillar?” I ask.
Panther frowns. “He wasn’t here.”
