I needed to get myself together so I could pick Bella up. Maybe a shower would bring me back enough so that I could face my mom. My knees felt weak as I followed the scattered rose petals. Each petal taunted me as they led the way to my bedroom.
At one point, I thought that losing my job was the worst thing that could happen to me. Now in the face of losing one of the most important things in the world to me, my career felt trivial. What else would I have to lose in honor of my career?
17
Jameela
Sleep never found me. I picked Bella up from my mom, bathed her, and laid in bed with her while she slept until it was time to start over and do it all again. As much as I dreaded, I had to do the inevitable and let Lieutenant Hale know that I had been compromised.
Since I wouldn’t be gone long, I dropped Bella with Miss Ramirez while I went to meet my fate. I felt weak after not eating for close to twenty-four hours, but I didn’t have an appetite. All I wanted to do was get this over with. I was surprised to see Officer Christopher in Hale’s office. My steps slowed when I heard Nicholas’s name.
“She’s been missing for at least two hours, but he hasn’t reported it yet.”
“How did you find out if he hasn’t reported it? Is your girl wired up?”
“I have an inside informant. He says that the cartel has the little girl. King is trying to handle it on his own.”
“How reliable is this source?”
“It’s his cousin,” Lieutenant Hale disclosed.
Little girl? Were they talking about Amira? Turning on my heels, I sprinted out of the building. My fingers trembled as I pulled my phone out of the armrest and dial Nicholas’s number. He sent me to voicemail twice.
Of course, he didn’t want to talk to me, but I might have been able to help. I couldn’t wait for Nicholas. Instead, I scrolled through the apps on my phone until I came to the locator app. Two pink lights flashed, indicating the location of the earrings.
One light flashed right over Miss Ramirez’s house. The other pinged miles away in an unfamiliar location. There was no telling what was going through Nicholas’s head right now. Not that I didn’t trust that he could handle this on his own, but I cared about Amira too much to sit around and hope for the best when it was possible that I could save her.
Twenty minutes later, I pulled up to a cul-de-sac in a suburban neighborhood on the outskirts of town. The locator app turned green, indicating that I was less than a hundred yards away from my target. When I’d given Amria earrings like the ones Bella wore, I never imagined that I would have to activate the location feature. Now I was grateful that she had asked for them.
I parked a few doors down from where the indicator pinged the earrings. I wanted to find a way into the house without making a scene. Just in case a scene was necessary, I took my gun out of the glove compartment and tucked it in my waistband. I undid a few of the buttons on my shirt and spritzed on some of the body spray I’d left in my armrest.
Once I was out of the car, I straightened my clothes and made sure that the gun was still concealed. I crossed the grass and walked up to the front door of the target house. I didn’t see or hear anything out of the ordinary. It was a quiet neighborhood.Who would ever think that someone was holding a kidnapped little girl around here?
I knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. It didn’t take long for a lanky man in a wife beater to open the door. His eyes fell to my cleavage as he stood there waiting to see what I wanted.
“My car is running hot. I pulled over to let it cool off, but I have to pee really bad. Can I please use your bathroom?”
His eyes moved from my titties over my shoulder.
“I parked a few doors down. You’re the first person I could get to come to the door.”
“Your man coming to help you?” he asked, smirking a little too much at my misfortune.
“I don’t have one. My cousin is coming.”
“Gone head to the bathroom. It’s straight back. You want something to drink? It’s hot out here.”
“Um, let me empty my bladder first. Then we will go from there.”
“Hold on one minute,” he said, rushing past me and closing the door right next to the bathroom. Motioning with his hand, he pointed me toward the bathroom.
“Thank you.”
I closed the door behind me, looking at my reflection in the mirror as I worked on the next step to my plan. I pulled my phone out again and sent Nicholas another text. The sound of a child whimpering came faintly through the wall. I stuffed my phone back in my pocket and drew my gun. Slowly, I crept out of the bathroom and slipped over to the door that the man had closed.
Thankfully, it wasn’t locked. As soon as the door opened, I spotted Amira sitting on the bed, holding a doll. After stepping into the room, I swept the door closed behind me.
“Miss Jameela!” she squealed.
