Carter’s voice finally pierced his rage. “This isn’t helping anything. You need to go to her. Let us handlehim.”
Tomi. She was hurting. He’d caused her pain. He’d broken hispromise.
“Let mego.”
“No way,” Clint said, “not until you calmdown.”
Like he could fucking calm down right now? He shot Clint an angry glare. “I don’t give two shits about him. Carter’s right. I need to check onher.”
Clint glanced up at Carter, who gave an imperceptible nod. His brothers released him slowly, staying close so they could tackle him if he went after Stahl again. But Cole was through with the agent for now. He could deal with him later. Right now he had to make Tomi realize the truth before it was too late. Without another glance in the agent’s direction, Cole ran from the room and down the hall. He’d normally go in without asking, but he respected Tomi too much to barge in on her like that now. He knocked gently. “Tomi, can I comein?”
She didn’t answer…she didn’t even make a sound. Cole knew she was punishing him. He clenched his fist at his sides. “Please, baby, we have to talk about this. Let mein.”
Still no answer. Not that he deserved one. He’d hurt her badly, but they couldn’t solve their problem if they wouldn’t face it. No matter how long it took, he’d make it up to her. He couldn’t live without her. Couldn’t breathe without her. After knowing her touch again, there wasn’t a chance in hell he could ever go back to the shell of a life he’d been pretending to livebefore.
“We have to talk. I’m coming in.” Cole grabbed the doorknob, not surprised to find it locked. “Dammit, Tomi, this isn’t theanswer.”
She was locking him out of her life just like she’d donebefore.
With more force in his voice, Cole said, “If you don’t open this door in three seconds, I’m kicking it in, Tomi. That’s apromise.”
He silently counted to himself. One. Two.Three.
There wasn’t so much as a whisper of movement on the otherside.
Shit. She’d called him on hisbluff.
He had two choices—he could walk away and let her stew or he could barge in and demand she listen. Neither of them was good. But one of them at least put them in the same room. “Stand back from the door, baby, because I’m comingin.”
He gave her another couple of seconds to steer clear, lifted his bare foot and slammed his heel into the wood. The door exploded open and banged into the wall with a loud burst. Cole stalked into the room and turned a slow circle before his gaze locked on the open window in the back bedroomwall.
Tomi wasgone.
“No!”
25
Cole rushedinto the living room, nearly out of his mind with fear. He targeted Stahl, leaping over the couch in his hurry to punish the agent. “She’sgone!”
Clint caught him mid-air with a lunge that brought them both to the ground. Although Cole was bigger and stronger and had rage on his side, Clint was better prepared. He caught Cole in a bear hug from behind, trapping him at a complete disadvantage. “Calm down. You need to hear what he has tosay.”
“I don’t care what he has to say! Did you not hear me? She’s gone!” Cole strained with all his might, kicking his feet back as he threw his head in tandem—anything to escape. But Clint and Cole had the same training, and his brother easily avoided the attack. He ducked his head out of the way, threw a leg over Cole’s and locked him up even harder in the bear hug. “I heard you, brother. We’ll get her back, but not likethis.”
Cole knew he was acting insane, but he could no more help that than he could stop the world from turning. It felt like everything that mattered was slipping through his fingers. Again. “Let mego!”
Carter stepped into his line of vision and crouched in front of them. “Luis moved the meeting up. Said after what happened with the attack, he needs to assure that your slave survived.” Carter paused and then said, “Oh, and the Frenchman is combing the country looking for her. As far as he’s concerned, she belongs tohim.”
Cole froze, dread disabling his body. The Frenchman had his fingers in nearly every significant weapons deal in the southern United States. If they were both searching for Tomi, it was only a matter of time before they caught her. Cole might never see her aliveagain.
Cautiously, Clint eased up his grip. His resistance gone, Cole collapsed on the floor, staring up at theceiling.
“I have to findher.”
Clint held out a hand and Cole took it, needing his brother’s support to get to his feet. The floor felt like it was shifting beneath him, sucking him down and stealing his bearings. He’d always been able to operate without emotion or feelings, a deadly machine molded and trained for battle. But his fear for Tomi stole that skill from him. Left him floundering, barely able to stand on his own. He stumbled to the couch andcollapsed.
“He took my fiancé,” Stahl said quietly. “She disappeared a year ago today. I got close once, or so I thought, but I still haven’t found her. This long gone…” Stahl let his words trail off and looked at Cole, his expression full oftorment.
He didn’t have to finish his sentence for anyone here. The likelihood of finding a victim who’d been gone for over a year was almost zero. Women who were kidnapped and sold by human traffickers virtually never turned up alive. Most never turned up at all. Suddenly, Cole looked at Stahl through new eyes. The man had taken these extreme measures, had threatened and coerced him, because he was beyond desperate to take Luis down. If someone had kidnapped Tomi, he’d hunt to the ends of the earth, until he had no life left. He would never give up. “I’msorry.”
