He turned the page and read over her injuries. Broken ribs. Concussion. Internal fucking bleeding.
He slammed the folder shut. “I have to know where he is.”
He wasn’t sure if the words were for Claudia or himself. There was nothing Claudia could do…nothing legal anyway. They needed legal recourse to access things like his vehicle or his phone number, both of which could be used to track him.
Claudia glanced over her shoulder before closing the door. “I know someone.”
Jesse frowned. “Someone?”
“Don’t ask me how, but I might be able to get you the information you need.”
His frown deepened. “I don’t want you getting into trouble for me.”
“Maybe I like living in the gray area. I’ll let you know when I get something.”
She left his office and Jesse packed up his stuff. His muscles were tense the entire way home, his fingers curled too tightly around the wheel. He drove over the speed limit, and it still didn’t feel fast enough.
The second he stepped inside his house, he was greeted by an eerie silence and not a single light on. Was she not home? It was almost dark, and she didn’t have a car.
“Aspen?”
Nothing.
He checked the kitchen and living room, then went down the hall to her bedroom. He wanted to walk straight in but forced himself to stop and knock.
Again, no response.
He stepped inside and, just like the rest of the house, the room was cloaked in darkness and empty.
She wasn’t home. Where was she?
He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. Straight to voicemail.
Goddammit.
He marched over to the door and yanked it open—only to stop at the sight of her standing on the porch, key raised.
She frowned. “Jesse…is everything okay?”
Aspen felt light.And cautiously happy. She’d had a good day with her mother. A really good day. They hadn’t fought once. There’d been no big mood changes. Her mother had been kind and funny and had taken an interest in her life. A real interest.
One good day didn’t erase the lifetime of trouble her mother had caused. But they hadn’t had a day like today in…heck, ever.
She climbed up the front steps and had just lifted her key when the door opened and Jesse stood in front of her. Only he wasn’t wearing his usual smile.
She frowned. “Jesse…is everything okay?”
He studied her face before sweeping his gaze down her body and back up.
A shiver ran down her spine.
“You’reokay?” he asked.
“I’m fine.” What was going on? She slipped past him and dropped her bag onto the hall table before facing him. “What’s wrong?”
“I was worried. It’s late.”
Her brows shot up. “You were worried about me because it’s late?”
