“Loyalty goes a long way. She’s proven herself to those around her that she would give her life to those whom she protects. We’ve done the same for her. Even if this club and the girls are only a sliver of the businesses she owns and deals with, she treats us all the same. We became family as soon as we walked through that door. I’ve been around a long time, before she even took over this club from her father. She’s worked hard to earn the respect, fear, and loyalty in a male-dominated world. She entrusted me so I can make sure the girls are safe and away from prying claws. That’s why I kept pieces of the truth out of my statement. I knew who would be coming for her and the badge wouldn’t get to her in time if things went wrong.” There’s no regret in her statement, only love as she speaks not only of her boss but friend.
We sit in silence for a few minutes as I reflect on what she just said. I was here to see if there was any evidence that would suddenly appear but instead learned of the kind heart Celeste has, even if it’s unnerving. Finishing off my glass, I slide it over pulling a twenty out of my wallet. Melodie waves me off but I place it on the bar anyway before I make my way through theclub. I move to the seatshehad been occupying and dig in the cushions for anything he may have dropped, but come up empty handed. My phone dings making me pause my search.
Unknown number: Sending you a link to meet. Bring Beckett, no one else. We may have found something.
My body stiffens for a brief moment trying to figure out who this is but then it dawns on me that it’s one of Celeste’s men. I rush out the door to my car without acknowledging Melodie as she’s calling after me asking if everything is okay. I wonder how they obtained my number but then again, it doesn’t surprise me with their tech guy who can hack into things better than the FBI, so I heard.
I quickly send Beckett the link to the location advising to get there asap. I made sure to advise him to come alone as requested. Shifting my car into gear, I peel off from the curb and weave in and out of traffic earning blaring horns and vulgar signs. Whatever they have found will be the first lead we have been able to get since the kidnapping. We’ve been hitting dead end after dead end and he’s been very precise with covering every single damn track.
The road led me out of the city limits, twisting and turning around mountains until descending down the hill. I follow the GPS, making a right, instantly surrounded by trees, giving a secluded feel. At the end of the long road, the trees open up to a gigantic, mesmerizing house. It gives a homey feel from the outside but also the size of four or more houses. Where the hell am I? There’re several black SUVs parked at the front and I take my place next to them.
Cutting the engine, I sit for a moment trying to calm my racing heart. I should go in, but I just need a second to collect myself. This could be a key component tofinding the girls and bringing them home safe. The sound of tires on gravel pulls my attention to the rear-view mirror noticing Beckett’s car arriving and taking up a spot next to mine. Taking a deep breath, I open my door and step out at the same time he does.
“Solace, you look like shit.” Beckett raises his eyebrows. “What is this about and why did I have to keep this discreet?”
Well, he’s such a gem this afternoon. His face says it all; he was about to have a good time with whomever was at his house before he got my text, and it was cut short.
“Thanks, dick. They said they found something and they probably don’t want to have the agency around. The Mafia doesn’t take kindly to sharing info with the law, especially if they can take care of it themselves. Whatever it is, it’s important for us to come over.” We walk up to the door and I lean over pressing the doorbell.
“But why here? This place is huge! Maybe this is their lair where they work. Makes sense with how huge and excluded it is. The things I would do to have money like this.” He looks around with such awe.
The door opens with an older woman standing in the door frame. She gives us a soft smile and gestures to us to come in. There’s a grand open space with an elegant staircase and a gorgeous chandelier in the entrance way. Art lines the walls and it smells like cookies. There’s a den to the right and another entrance way to the right.
“Gentlemen, this way.” The woman nods her head for us to follow. We make our way down a hall and to a lounge area with leather couches and a fireplace. “Antonio will be with you momentarily. Help yourself to some snacks on the table and a drink.”
She gives us a kind smile before turning and leaving the room. There’s no way this is where they work. This place is a home. I notice a photo on the wall and make my way over to it.Striking green eyes catch my attention and low and behold, Celeste is sitting next to a woman with a man standing above them. From how relaxed she appears in the photo, these have to be her parents. They look identical. She has her father’s dark hair and her mother’s striking eyes and lips.
Realization hits me. This is her family home where she was raised. The interior seems to be a little out of her style but also gives such a comforting feel. I thought she lived in the city. I haven’t been to her apartment but this seems like a place she would come to especially since her father has passed away. Somewhere to ground herself and feel closer to him.
“Special Agents, thank you for coming.” A male voice startles me, breaking my attention away from the photo. “Come this way.”
Beckett and I share a glance before we follow behind. Antonio leads us to yet another hall heading deeper into the house. His shoulders are tense and his steps are hurried. We stop in front of a shut door and he gives a quick knock before opening the door. We follow him in and the first thing we notice is a wall full of screens. There’s a table in the middle with documents everywhere and another desk in front of the screens with Samson sitting in front of it typing away. Codes fly across one of the screens as if he’s trying to hack into a system.
“We were able to find a video of the kidnapping of both Celeste and Agent Monroe. We went back to the scene and noticed a camera on one of the buildings. We didn’t expect there to be any considering the neighborhood, but also not surprising as a lot of drug handlings are done there. I was able to figure out the serial number on the camera and checked to see if it was live or not in service. To our luck, it was live,” Samson explains as he starts pulling up different windows and spreading them out onto different screens.
One window is a feed with the view of the alley outside the club. He plays it and there’s nothing at first except the busy street and people walking back and forth in front of the club. About a minute later, the door opens with a female stepping out looking around. She starts walking in the opposite direction, holding her bag against her giving off a nervous vibe.
A few moments later, the door opens again and Monroe steps out carefully and follows her down the alley, sticking close to the wall and shadows. The feed pauses and rewinds.
“I’m going to play it slower, pay attention to the right side of the screen by the street,” Samson advises before pressing play again.
There’s some sort of black vehicle idling on the other side of the road. I glance back at the two females on the other side of the screen and once they approach the end of the alley, the vehicle moves from the side of the street and slowly makes its way down the busy road. We rewind it several times, zooming in to see if we can get a face through the windows but it’s no use since they’re illegally tinted.
“Keep this vehicle in mind when we watch the next clip. We lost some time in between as there weren't any other cameras until the one where we found the clothes.” His mouse moves over to the next screen and presses play.
Celeste stands in front of the camera but doesn’t seem to notice it’s there. She looks around as if she’s looking for something or someone. Just outside the alley, a black van pulls in, slowly coming to a halt. Someone comes out of the driver side, leaving the door open and moves silently as a snake catching up to her. He pulls something out of his pocket. As he’s crowding up behind her, she stops to turn around and he pricks her in the neck causing her to collapse to the ground.
“Motherfucker!” My blood begins to boil, causing my bodyto vibrate with rage. Knowing she was taken and seeing it happen are two different feelings. “I’m going to kill him.”
He leaves her for a few moments as if he heard something and slips back to the side of the car, grabbing something out of the front seat. He creeps over to the other side and we lose sight of what happens behind that van. I glance back at Celeste to see if she gets up to move but I already knew she won’t. She lies there as if she’s lifeless. God, I hope that’s not the case.
Movement catches my attention back to the van and he’s dragging a body to the side of it and leaves it before going to the back doors. He comes back with some sort of detector and swipes it across the body as if searching for a tracker. Once finished, he strips the body of the clothes and replaces them with a white gown before making quick work of tying up the hands. It dawns on me that the body is Monroe, who’s also lying deadly still. He hauls her up and puts her in the back of the van.
He comes back over to where Celeste is with the pile of clothes and wand and does the same with her, however he stops short at her arm. Shaking his head, he pulls something out from his pants and flips it open. He starts to carve into her arm and retrieves the tracker. Blood coats the knife and runs down her arm, making me stiffen.
He tosses the clothing he had to the side of the alley and moves back to the van, retrieving some sort of kit. Quickly cleaning up her wound, he dresses it and removes her clothes and items, replacing them with the same white gown and ties her up. She's hauled into the back of the van before he closes the doors and makes his departure. Not even ten minutes later, we arrived at the same spot.
“We were right there. Right fucking there and we would have caught him. Now we have no idea where they are,” I growl, moving away from them to pace back and forth. “Tellme again, how the fuck you thought this was a good idea? He was clearly steps ahead and found the only thing that could tell us where they are.”
