He heaved in a deep breath, hanging onto that fact like a rope around a cleat.
“If this works, we just have to wait for Adam to show up in the hospital parking lot looking for the wheels Celine promised him. If Jessie isn’t with him, we’ll follow him.”
“Or arrest him.” And by “arrest,” he meant “pummel.” His hands itched to get around the throat of this bastard. He wasn’t used to feeling this level of violence percolating inside him; it unnerved him.
“We have no probable cause to arrest him for anything. Yet.” She flashed an encouraging grin at him. “But we’ll get him. One way or another. He needs a car, right?”
“I wonder why he needs one? Doesn’t he already have one?”
“He probably needs one that isn’t registered to him or to a rental agency. He knows that Celine is with the South African security firm billionaire. They can probably find an untraceable car for him.”
That made sense. Jack hauled in another breath to calm his racing heart. They had a plan. The car would be the bait. If Adam/Seth went for it, they’d be one huge step closer to finding Jessie.
“What if it’s a trap?” he said slowly.
“I thought about that. We’ll be careful. We’ll leave a car for him, but keep our distance.”
In Rutland, they rented a silver Toyota Camry and caravanned to the hospital. Tina parked it at the edge of the lot, where no one would be paying much attention—except for them, from their vantage point in the innocuous beige Sentra they’d rented after his Audi burned to a crisp.
Hopefully they’d acted quickly enough so that Celine wouldn’t have gotten word to her brother that her phone was missing. That was where the possibility of a trap came in. But they had to take the chance. They both agreed on that.
Jack kept watch, scanning every car in the lot, and scrutinizing the face of every visitor strolling in or out of the hospital. It felt strange to be here in the last resting place of his Audi. Right over there, that’s where it had burst into flames, where he and Tina had very nearly gotten blown to bits.
He didn’t relax until Tina slid into the passenger seat of the Sentra.
“Time to turn on the phone,” she murmured.
Tina pulled up the number of L and texted, Silver Camry.
Be there in an hour, he texted back right away. Thx L
“Okay, we’re on,” Tina murmured. She set the phone on the dashboard in case he texted again. “So listen. When he shows up, just stay in the car, okay? If Jessie is with him, I’ll engage him. You can try to communicate with Jessie.”
“Shouldn’t we call for backup?” he asked.
“Possibly. I’ll make that call once I see what we’re dealing with. Right now, he’s just a guy picking up a car. From the sound of it, he might be willing to talk about what he’s gotten into. If he feels like he’s in over his head, I might look like a lifeline.”
“Or he could drag you down with him,” he muttered. It went against the grain to let her take all the risks.
She patted the holster hidden under her jacket. “I’m prepared for anything. It’s sweet that you’re worried about me.”
He set his teeth. “Of course I’m worried. The guy kidnapped my sister.”
“We don’t yet know what happened?—”
“He said he was in over his head.” Those words had been branded into his brain ever since he’d heard them. “That’s enough for me.”
“How about we go through Celine’s phone while we’re waiting?”
She was probably trying to calm him down, but it worked. They cruised through her photo library, which mostly showed scenic shots of sparkling water and selfies of Celine with a cocktail in hand.
“No shots of Hendrik de Vries,” he noticed.
“I guess they aren’t Instagram official yet.” Tina shook her head. “I gotta tell you, the life of a trophy girlfriend looks boring as hell to me.”
He laughed. “It’s like the life of a TV actor. Looks glamorous but it’s long hours and a lot of waiting around.
The phone buzzed. They both froze.
