She nods, but her eyes keep darting around the room, and she’s squeezing her husband’s arm. Finally, she says, “Can you please tell us what’s going on? Where’s Savanna?”
“Here, come sit down,” my mom says, ushering them into the living room. Evgeny and Luka quickly hop up so they can have the couch. “We’ll explain everything, just please sit down.”
They do, and then there are two sets of eyes on me, waiting and desperate for answers. I sit down across from them, keeping my laptop propped on one of my thighs, and start from the beginning. I tell them about Cupid, how he’s been supplying drugs on campus, about the mixup with Cindy and how Savanna was almost drugged a few months ago, about his obsession with her and my inability to find him. While I talk, my eyes stray to the screen every few seconds, making sure she’s okay and still sleeping. I tell them about Cupid’s real identity and the fake one he’s been using for decades, and when I tell them he took her and that she’s being held somewhere, her mom sobs while Phil wraps an arm around her, trying to soothe his wife while also not falling apart himself.
Cindy quietly cries while Sasha holds her, and I’ve never felt like such a failure in my life.
“I don’t understand,” Phil says. “Why aren’t we calling the police? She was taken yesterday afternoon. Why didn’t you tell us?”
“It’s complicated,” I say, not at all surprised when that answer isn’t enough for him.
He looks around the room at my family, who, thanks to my Uncle Vitaly, are trying their best to not look like a bunch of criminals. There’s no hiding certain things, though. If the tattoos and muscle weren’t enough, then the general air of danger that’s a staple of the Melnikov family certainly would be.
“Complicated how?” he asks.
“We can’t get the police involved,” I say. Before he can ask why not, I add, “They would just mess it up. I don’t trust them. I can do this better than they can. Also, there’s the fact that they’d be too busy arresting all of us to care much about finding Van.”
Her dad raises a brow at my nickname for his daughter, but his focus quickly returns to what I’ve just said.
“Why would they want to arrest you?” Phil asks the question while wrapping his arm a little tighter around his wife and side-eyeing my Uncle Matvey who’s standing next to the couch.
“Because they tend to frown upon organized crime,” I say.
“Oh Jesus,” I hear Grace whisper as she gives my family a horrified look.
“Please don’t be scared,” I say. “It’s not like what you’re thinking.”
“We’re really very nice people,” my mom says, trying her best to comfort them.
“She’s right,” Cindy says, stepping away from Sasha, who doesn’t look all that thrilled about it, so she can walk over to them. “This family saved me that night. That drink was meant for Sav, and Sasha and his family saved me from a nightmare that I don’t even want to think about. They’re not bad people. I swear to you, they’re not.” She looks at me before facing Graceand Phil again. “Niki loves Sav, and he would do anything for her. He’s going to find her. He can do it faster than the police ever could.”
“Then why aren’t you getting her?” Phil asks. “Why are we all just standing around?”
It’s a fair question. “I need your help,” I tell him. “That’s why you’re here. I know who Cupid is, but I don’t know where he is. He’s sent me a link so I can see her, but there’s no way for me to track it.”
“You can see her?” Grace asks, instantly perking up.
When I nod, she stands up. “Show me. I want to see her.”
The look on her face is one that only a mother could wear. The pure, unwavering determination radiating off of her isn’t even slightly affected by her slight stature. Right now, she’s a force to be reckoned with, and I can either show her the video feed or find myself on my ass with her foot on my throat.
I opt for the less violent choice and after making sure Savanna is still okay, I slowly turn my laptop around so they can see their daughter.
“Oh my god,” Grace says before falling to her knees in front of the screen. She reaches out, and my first instinct is to pull back, but I fight it and let her touch my screen.
I can’t resist saying, “Please don’t press any keys,” because it’s too important and instincts run deep.
“Is she handcuffed?” Phil asks, and the horror in his voice is exactly what we’d all thought when we’d seen it. I don’t fill them in on what they’ve missed. They don’t need to know about the other girl. For their sakes, I hope they never find out.
“She is,” I say, “but she’s okay, and we’re going to find her.”
“How?” Phil asks, looking up at me briefly before putting his eyes back on his daughter. “You said you needed my help, but what can I do?”
“I need you to systematically shut off power to the city,” I tell him.
He looks at the image of his daughter, and it doesn’t take him long to piece it all together. When his eyes meet mine again, I see a flash of the dimple he passed down to Savanna as excitement lights up his eyes. “When her light goes out, you can narrow down her location.”
I nod and ask, “Will you help us?”
