Page 9 of Untamed Sinner

"No."

"Hide?" I cringe at the thought.

"No."

"Then what?"

Gabriel's quiet for a beat. "Go to Hendricks."

I laugh. It's sharp and humorless, echoing in the nearly empty café. The waitress glances over, and I lower my voice. "You've actually lost your mind. You just said he’s hired to deliver me to Ashford."

"Yeah, I don’t get that since he works with your sister’s boyfriend, but if anyone can get you out of this⁠—"

I close my eyes. I already know what Gabriel's going to say. I don't want to hear it, but I know.

"—it's Hendricks, because you know I can't help you." His voice is flat. Final. "My brother has business dealings with Ashford. If I step in on this, it disrupts business and I'd be moving against an ally. I can't do that, not even for you."

Click.

The line goes dead.

The words hit harder than they should. Gabriel saved me—pulled me out of Cole Turner's trafficking operation after three years of captivity and turned me into something more than a victim. He made me capable and dangerous. By virtue of that, we’re close. Ish.

He's also the enforcer for his family, and his older brother runs the Reyes cartel with an iron fist. Family politics trump everything.

Especially me.

Something twinges in my chest. Stupid, because it’s not like I expect anything from him.

Sticking the last morsel of donut in my mouth, I sit there in the booth, staring at my phone as I chew. Thomas Ashford hired Hendricks to find me. Which means Hendricks is already looking. Which means I'm running out of time.

Opening the notebook, I trace a finger along the edge of the girl’s photo. So is she.

I could run—disappear. I've done it before, lots of times. But running won't save this girl. Running won't stop whatever Ashford's involved in. And running sure as hell won't get me answers.

Which leaves me with one option.

Shaking my head, I close the notebook and tuck it back into my bag. “This is going to be the dumbest thing I've ever done,” I mumble, gathering my things and scooting out of the booth.

7

HENDRICKS

It’s dusk when I head to Blackthorn Ranch. I time it so everyone will assume I drove in from Chicago. Fewer questions that way.

As I navigate the backroads, I mentally pull up all the information I’ve gathered about Mandy’s sister. On the surface, Lily Carter is picture perfect: veterinarian, graduated top of her class, good resumé, quiet citizen. Look a little closer and you’ll notice that her life seems to have started thirteen years ago.

I know through Mason, her partner, that she’d been taken with Mandy, but Mandy had managed to make a diversion that allowed Lily to escape after only a couple weeks. I had to pull some strings to find out she’d reconstructed her identity after being taken, with some help from the federal agent assigned to her case, though the trail was well covered.

I figure if anyone knows where Mandy is, it’s Lily. The question is whether she’ll tell me.

I’m not holding my breath.

8

MANDY

Ipolish off the apple fritter I got for the road as enter the Iron Ridge town limits.