KATIE

 

It's late in the night and the loft is dark with the only lights coming from the computer screen before me and Tosha. We're sitting in an office down by the bedrooms.

I'm not much of a tech girl, so Tosha is doing all the heavy lifting as we try to encrypt the location data of the live feeds displaying the security footage where Shelby Ford is being held.

On a separate monitor, that same security footage plays. She's in the kitchen right now, dressed in a different dress but with the same kind of flowery prints as the night before. I don't know this girl at all, but I would imagine that she's a good girl. I imagine that she's had a hard life since being kidnapped but somehow she has managed to keep her composure.

Since I turned on the security footage, I haven't seen my brother. That's not much of a surprise to me though because I don't expect that they would be held together. What I would expect is for them to be on opposite ends of the country or globe. Since the paper I found only listed thirteen names, I have no idea how many people Seth has had kidnapped and held for leverage. I would imagine it would have to be at least twenty if not more.

A part of me wishes that Dominic wouldn't have pulled the trigger. That same part of me wishes that I could've gotten my hands on Seth myself. In my darkest fantasies, I manage to subdue him and then take him to a dark bunker where I torture him until he gives me the information that I need. It would be the easiest way to find Victor but that is no longer a possibility because Dominic sent a bullet through his skull. And I can't blame Dominic for pulling the trigger because just maybe I would have done the same thing.

So often we like to pretend or believe that we are stronger than we really are. Our emotions, however, often define us and make decisions for us. It's the hardest thing in this world to control.

On the screen, Shelby breaks up spaghetti and drops it into a boiling pot of water. I can't help but to get lost in the footage before me. It's like looking into a window and watching a complete stranger. And the more I watch her, the more I feel like I know her. If Dominic isn't going to be with me in this, then I'll have no choice but to take matters into my own hands. Once I have a location, I will go and rescue her on my own. And maybe then, Dominic will finally trust me enough to help me.

At the end of the day, I'm not doing any of this because I'm a good person. I'm doing this for my own selfish reasons because I want and need my brother back. I miss him but more than that, I feel responsible for his kidnapping.

Tosha leans back in her chair and crosses her arms over each other. There's an annoyed look on her face as she shakes her head gently from side to side.

"What if we do all of this and it’s for nothing?" She cocks her head to me. "What if when this is all over, we still haven't found Victor? What if all of this is for nothing?"

"I wake up every day and choose to believe that that's not a possibility," I sigh and bite into my lip. I look back to the screen where Shelby is now pulling a cookie pan filled with garlic bread out of the oven.

"What are you going to do if you find him?"

The question seems to take me back. To be honest, I've never even really thought about it. To be honest, I've never been able to think about that. It’s like there's this mental block inside of my head that won't allow me to think of anything other than saving him. It seems like such a foreign idea at this point, especially after eight years, that I'll ever see him again. And still, I have all the hope in the world and I don't know if that makes me a strong person or if it makes me an idiot.

"I don't know," I say slowly. "I haven't really thought about it and to be honest, it's been so long since I've seen him that I wonder if he’ll even remember me."

She looks to me with a warm smile and uncrosses her arms. She reaches behind my back and caresses me softly, comforting me. "Of course he’ll remember you. Family isn't something you just forget."

"The truth is that I don't even know if I’ll recognize him." I break away from her touch and shrug my shoulders gently. "I mean, I know him like the back of my hand, but what if I don't recognize who he is? What if whatever he's been through has changed him so drastically that I can't connect with him?"

She smiles again, and it's more than comforting. Her smile and the way she looks at me is anchored by our long history together. For all this talk about family, it's ironic that I'm looking for my last living relative. All of this time, I've had family with me. Tosha and Alice are my family in all the same ways that Victor is except by blood.

"I think you're worrying about things best left not worrying about." She looks back to the computer screen as an indicator flashes on the screen. She moves the mouse and clicks into another folder but there's more encrypting to do. "This is probably going to take all night."

"I've been waiting eight years so one more night is nothing."

She sighs heavily and crosses her arms over each other as she waits patiently for the files to be unencrypted. "What about Dominic?”

"What about him?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

“I'm also not thinking about that either." I climb to my feet and circle to the back of my chair so that I hang over it as I watch the computer screen.

"Don't you think you're taking advantage of a vulnerable man and using him?" She cocks her head over her shoulder and glares at me.

I push myself backwards and shake my head. "We're not talking about this."

She shrugs and clears her throat. "It’s just something that I think you need to think about."

"I said drop it," I scold her and then drop my head low and push my tongue against the inside of my cheek. "I'm doing everything that I'm doing to see my brother again. And if I can help Dominic find his sister, I don't think it matters much that I'm using him, right?"

"I just think you should consider the collateral damage." Her eyes shift back on the screen and I get the sinking feeling that she is ignoring me on purpose.

"The collateral damage?" I purse my lips in contemplation. "There's always going to be collateral damage."

"That's exactly what I'm talking about…" Her words are so cold and they almost make me feel ashamed of myself. But I have to force myself to remember why I'm doing this.

Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock.

I grunt out in frustration, twist around on my feet and throw the office door open. I race across the open space of the open loft and to the front door. And when I rip it open, it's Dominic that’s standing at my front door. I swallow nervously as our eyes tangle with each other even if I know I've got nothing to be nervous about.

I know why he's here.

I push one hand firm against his chest and take notice of how strong he is. Even through his T-shirt, I can feel the absolute steel beneath the fabric. I push him gently backwards, just enough so I can squeeze through the door and close it behind me so that we’re standing in the hallway. I'm not concerned about anyone seeing or hearing us because my loft is the only apartment on this floor.

I cross my arms over each other and shift my weight to one foot. "What are you doing here?"

"I think you know why I'm here." He nods. "I'm not saying I want to be here, but I don’t exactly have a choice in what I want anymore. To be honest, it's been so long for me to actually have a choice in anything I've done that I don't know what it feels like to make a choice anymore."

"This is what it feels to make a choice." I take a quick step to the side of the door and lean back against the exterior wall. "You made the choice to come here tonight."

"Did I?" He cocks his head curiously at me. "I don't really feel like I had a choice."

"You always have a choice," I point out to him. "It doesn't always mean that we want to make that choice, but we always have it. We can always choose to say yes or say no. We can always choose to go on with our lives. But you can’t go on with your life and I know that all too well because I can’t go on with my life either. Every day I wake up and I make a choice to never give up hope that I'm going to find my brother. You've made that same choice every day for the last ten years."

"You know…" He bites into his lips almost like he's trying to think about what he's trying to say. "You know, you're a lot wiser than you appear."

"I'll choose to take that as a compliment." I chuckle under my breath. "See, I just made a choice."

He sighs and follows it with a shrug. "So, how are we going to do this?"

"You're going to have to start by trusting me." I reach forward and place my palm on his chest. "Are you ready to make that choice?"

He looks away from me and scratches nervously at the side of his cheek before he stares me straight in the eyes. “I'm here, aren't I?" He drops his head slightly and looks at my hand pressed against his chest.

"Yeah, I guess that's good enough." I pull my hand away from him and push one hand into the pockets of my jeans as I shift my weight to my other foot. "We're working on getting a location right now."

His eyes seem to light up at the very thought that we are so close to finding his sister. "Will it be tonight?"

"I can't say for sure but Tosha is getting very close."

A haunted look passes over his face, his complexion goes slightly pale like he's just seen a ghost. He spent the last ten years looking for his sister and it might be time for him to face the very real possibility that he's not ready for this. Nobody could ever be ready for this. "What's the plan?"

I roll my eyes and chuckle nervously. "That's why you're here." I dig my hand out of my pocket and poke him playfully in the chest. "I'm sure you've been in these kinds of situations before so I was kind of figuring that you'd be the one to make the plan."

"You knew from the time you met me that I was going to say yes, didn't you?"

A knowing smile passes over my lips, but I try not to be too cocky. "Let's just say that one of my absolute best abilities is being able to read people. And you, Dominic, are like an open book."

His eyes shift to the side and then he looks back to me with a half smile. "I'm going to make the choice to take that as a compliment."

It's nice that we're able to joke with each other in times of such serious matters. The levity is more than welcome and if all of this goes well, I can honestly see us working together in the future. There's a little bit of a back-and-forth chemistry between us but it's not hostile. "Do you want to come inside and see where all the magic happens?"

"I thought this was your apartment?"

"It is my apartment." I nod my head to the side as I twist on my feet and push the front door open. He follows me inside the dark loft that overlooks the City of Angels. "It's also my place of work. And I share it with both Tosha and Alice."

"Why do you choose to live in the same place that you work? Aren't you concerned that it poses a security risk?"

"You should know this better than anyone…" I crane my head over my shoulder with a gentle smile. "If someone wants to find me bad enough, they'll find me. It doesn't matter if I'm hiding out underground like you do or if I'm hiding in plain sight." I turn my attention back to the long hallway where the bedrooms and office is. "And my mother always used to tell me that if I wanted to hide from someone, it was best practice to hide in the most expected spot."

"I have a location!" Tosha screams with joy from the office.

I take a quick glance back at Dominic before racing forward and through the office door. Dominic is hot on my tail and soon enough both of us are standing over the desk as Tosha leaps to her feet. And on the screen, no longer is there a flashing indicator. The dialogue that was on the screen while she was decrypting the files has now been replaced within an exact location.

I can't describe the elation I feel and I can't imagine how Dominic is feeling either. But when I look over to him, it's like the ghost he had seen earlier has now taken over his entire body. He's pale and shaking. And I swear I can see the slightest glistening in his eyes and I don't know if those are happy tears or sad tears, all I know is that it's time to make our move.

"Do you think you can get the rest of your men to mobilize tonight?" I question him, to which he swallows a large gulp and then looks to me with uncertainty in his eyes.

"No." He shakes his head furiously and I know not to press him any farther on the issue. "You and I are going to do this alone."

Shit.

I never considered the possibility that it would only be the two of us going down to San Diego to rescue his sister and hopefully find my brother as well. For the first time since this all began, I'm feeling more than over my head. I force a smile but a nervous gulp going down my throat is enough to betray my smile.

I look back to the computer monitor once more.