After another fifteen minutes, Anatoly was resolved to take action, only he wasn’t entirely sure where to start. He hesitated, wasting another ten minutes before he finally decided to start at the most obvious place: the station. That was the last place he knew she was supposed to be, so it seemed the best option to find her.
Perhaps she’d simply been held up?
He tried to hold on to that hope, but when he pulled into the station parking lot and saw that part of it was cordoned off with yellow tape, all hope melted away.
Parking the car, he got out and strode up, his gaze scanning the crowd of cops and bystanders, looking for Maggie’s familiar face. He didn’t see her, but he did spot her vehicle with the door thrown open and a box of her personal effects strewn over the ground.
It was just starting to snow and a thin layer was coating the salted pavement.
Fear the likes of which he had never felt before gripped his heart. He stepped under the tape and walked right up to Lieutenant Martin. “What is happening? Where is Maggie?” he demanded unapologetically.
Martin looked surprised to see him. “Padre? What are you doing here? The case is over.”
He started to turn away, but Anatoly caught his arm. “Maggie was supposed to meet me,” he explained. “This is her car. Where. Is. She?” He poured every ounce of authority into his voice that he could muster, and to his surprise, Martin caved.
“We’re not sure,” he replied. “When was she supposed to meet you?”
“Over hour ago,” Anatoly answered, his gaze taking in the scene again with fresh perspective. He couldn’t keep the concerned frown off his face. He was too busy assuming the worst.
Martin patted him on the shoulder. “Well, there’s nothing for you to do here. Head back home and let us know if you hear from her.” This time when he turned his back on Anatoly, the vampire let him stride away.
Standing here, he could smell faint traces of her blood, and sure enough as he surveyed the ground he saw in the snow where a few drops had fallen.
Someone had attacked and abducted her, of that he was absolutely certain. The last person he trusted to find Maggie was Lieutenant Martin, but he had a sinking suspicion of who to ask for information…
Twenty minutes later, Anatoly was barging into the Volk Bar with every ounce of rage that he possessed. He’d had plenty of time to work himself into a frenzied lather, knowing he would need the extra fire to get anywhere with Luka Markov.
When the security guard goons came to confront him, Anatoly refused to back down. “I am here to see Markov. Now,” he told them sternly in Russian.
They exchanged a glance and one of them peeled off into the same back door that not so long ago he had gone with Maggie through when they first met Markov. It seemed like ages had passed since then and yet he wished they had never come across him.
Anatoly was certain that if someone had taken Maggie, then Markov would know about it. His real fear was that Markov had orchestrated it, but until he spoke to the man, he was reserving judgement.
A few minutes later the guard returned, motioned to his fellow and together they guided Anatoly into the back just like before. In minutes he was stepping into Markov’s office and he could tell right away the man was not pleased with Anatoly’s presence.
“You had better have a warrant,” Markov’s gravelly voice cut through the air between them like a poisoned blade. “Why are you disrupting my business, Mr. Brusilev?”
“Where is she?” Anatoly demanded, forgoing English in place of their shared language. “Where is Maggie?”
Confusion was not what the vampire wanted to see, but that was what he was met with when he spoke his demand. It made his heart drop.
“Why would I know where the troublesome detective is?” Markov replied, matching the Russian with his own. “The last thing I want is for her to stick her nose any further into my business.”
“Then we are in agreement on that at least,” Anatoly replied. “She was taken earlier tonight from the station parking lot. I am certain you know who has taken her and I demand?—”
Anger flashed in the werewolf’s eyes. “You demand nothing. Do you think I am foolish enough to steal a policewoman right under their noses? I am a discreet businessman, who wants nothing but to be left alone. Besides, even if I did know something, which I don’t, why would I tell you?”
Anatoly didn’t back down. No matter how much he feared Markov, he wasn’t about to give up on finding Maggie. This was his best lead, and if he had to make a deal with the devil to rescue the woman he loved, then so be it.
“Name your price,” Anatoly answered. “I am a simple man with few riches. Maggie is everything to me and I will do anything to see her safe again.”
Markov’s eyebrows rose in surprise and he pursed his lips, nodding slowly to himself as he regarded the vampire. “You surprise me. I expected that as a former priest you would have some lofty ideal?—”
“I do not have time for games.” It was Anatoly’s turn to interrupt. “Will you help me find Maggie or not?”
“Let’s be clear. You are asking me for a favor so I will demand a favor in return, but bear in mind, the price will not be cheap,” Markov explained, leaning forward, his eyes catching the light so that they gleamed. He looked every bit like a predator in that moment.
Just as Anatoly was about to accept, his phone rang. Normally, he would ignore it given the situation, but his eyes went wide as he recognized the ringtone he had set up for Maggie.
