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One way or another.

And when we do, he’s going to regret every decision he’s ever made if he’s so much as harmed a single hair on Luna’s head.

“This is too easy,” Metal says as we speed down the freeway. “He got taken down by a hacker once, and we have to assume he hired a hacker to get into Luna’s accounts and stuff. I feel like we’re heading into a trap.”

I’ve had the same thought but this is literally the only lead we have. If it’s a trap, we’re fairly well-prepared to fight back, but all I care about is Luna.

“Do you think he’s purposely leading us to her?” Grim asks. I don’t know if it’s rhetorical or not but I just keep my foot on the gas, eyes on the road.

“I think he wants Rage to suffer,” Metal says.

“For what reason?” I counter. “We never had any beef. I left the fighting world not long after he did, despite the age difference. He had to retire; I wanted to. I didn’t take anything from him. He was a heavier weight class than me, so we never even fought. Nor would we have if I’d stayed the course.”

“No, but there’s something there,” Grim says. “Maybe it’s just about the money. Or jealousy. It could be a million things.”

“Or something as simple as the fact that you love the woman he blames for taking down the Assault Academy.”

“What kind of sick fucks drug the women they’re supposed to love so they can rape them?” Grim mutters. “It’s bullshit. I like sex. I would even venture to say I love sex more than most people—but fucking a lifeless body is no fun. Not even a little.”

“It’s not truly about the sex act,” I say. “It’s about control. Being in charge to the point that your partner cannot say no. And they can’t even protest because they’re out cold.”

“Fuck that,” Metal mutters.

“Assholes.” Grim shakes his head.

“Do you think she’s dead?” I ask after a beat.

“That’s too easy,” Grim says right away. “If he wanted to kill her, he knows where she lives, so he could have done it at any time. He wanted her to suffer, be afraid. So no, I don’t think she’s dead.”

I can’t vocalize my other fears.

If he’s raped her—no, I can’t go there.

My fingers tighten on the wheel.

“The motel room was empty,” Metal says. “Silver and the others just got there. The guy at the desk said he checked out twenty minutes ago—so we just missed him.”

“Dammit.” We wasted so much time last night chasing our tails.

I’ve got Luna’s shattered phone in my pocket—like it’s somehow keeping her close to me.

“We’re going to catch him,” Grim says. “Don’t worry.”

I don’t respond because he knows I’m going to worry no matter what he says.

“Just heard from Daniil,” Grim says. “The police picked up both Candy and Neil and brought them in for questioning regarding the embezzled money from the fundraiser.”

I don’t care about the money.

We just need to find Luna.

I’m sorry, princess—I should have listened.

“Okay, we have something,” Grim says. “Garth’s wife owned a house just outside Pomona. It’s still in her name, but he must own it now. It’s on a lake, looks somewhat isolated.”

“That’s where she is.” I yank the wheel and move into the right lane. I need to get off and whip around, so I can jump on I-10 going east.

“Silver, Motor, and Nitro will meet us there—drop me a pin.” Metal’s on his phone. “And I’ll have one of the guys follow whoever has Garth’s phone, just in case.”