Rachael announced the musicians in third and second place. Then the audience quieted to hear the winner.
“Our first-place winner is…Brianna Taylor on the fiddle!”
Alex stood with his friends to cheer Brianna, who covered her mouth in shock as the other musicians hugged her. Alex hated that Brock wasn’t there to see Brianna in all her glory and hoped that the information Gina had was worth it.
Brianna and the other contestants left the stage. His cell phone buzzed a few minutes later and this time it was for real. His eyes widened and he was already pushing his way out of the row and running toward the stage before his brain had entirely engaged with Kyle’s message:
ALL POINTS GET TO BRIANNA BACKSTAGE NOW!
* * *
The next hourwas sheer and utter chaos.
Alex flashed his ID and went around the stage to find Mack, one of his teammates, looking around wildly.
“She was right fuckinghere,” Mack shouted when he saw Alex. He turned and they both sprinted for the private parking lot.
Someone grabbed Brianna. The words pounded through his head in time with his feet as they reached the parking lot.
No one was there. No Brianna, no witnesses who may have seen her.
“Sitrep!” he shouted as they turned to run back.
“Pup says the cops are crooked and Brianna’s in danger.”
Alex almost staggered. “We have a list?”
“Of cops here? Fuck, of course not! Boulder doesn’t trust us.”
They met up with Shane and Charlie, who had scoured the crowd backstage. Why were there so many damn people just wandering around like a bunch of morons?
“One of the other musicians saw her go off with a cop,” Charlie said. “She didn’t know his name, but she can give a description.”
“Fuck!” Alex swore.
“Can you get ahold of Sylvie?” Charlie asked him. “Maybe she knows something.”
He almost told them he hadn’t been able to get her on the horn all day. Instead, he took out his phone as Rachael and another woman, one of the singers from the contest, jogged up to them.
Sylvie. Something’s happened at the festivalhe texted.Baby, please get back to me.
Nothing.
Rachael placed her hand on the other woman’s shoulder. “This is Twila,” she said. “She saw Brianna with a police officer.”
“Give me a description,” Alex said. He half-expected her to describe Frank, so when she told him the guy had blond hair and a bigger physique, it threw him until he realized her description matched the other officer who had arrested Glass.
Tom Hicks.
“I know who it is,” he said grimly.
Just then, Rachael looked up toward the parking lot behind them and her face brightened. He turned to see Jake racing toward them with Brock ahead and Kyle and Wolf just behind.
“Angel!” Jake shouted. And she ran to him. He picked her up and held her tight.
“I’m all right,” she said. “But Brianna’s gone.”
Brock bent at the waist and grabbed his hair in two handfuls.
