“Busted.”

I blink a few times, my eyes adjusting to the dark. Leo is lying on the sofa with a blanket over him, and it almost seems like he was waiting for me to appear.

“The Harry Potter room freaks me out,” I tell him. “Care to switch?”

Leo snorts. “If I thought you wouldn’t try to go down and see Mila, I might consider that offer, but unfortunately for you, I’m not a bloody idiot. If you don’t like your room, you can always go back to your car.”

I scratch the stubble on my jaw, frowning. He’s a clever bastard. He could’ve slept in his aunt and uncle’s room, but he knew I’d try this. Hell, I didn’t even know I would try this until about five minutes ago. I figured, it worked so well for me the last time I snuck in late at night, maybe I should try again. I started wondering what color pajamas Amelia was wearing, and then last night replayed in mind, and I was done for. Before I knew what I was doing, I was walking down the steps.

I sigh and start heading back toward the staircase.

“You know, it’s strange,” Leo says, and I stop. “She didn’t come up all night.”

I rub the back of my neck, feeling guilty about that. “Probably because of me.”

“Yeah…I guess.” He nods, then sits up, and looks at the door to the basement. “It’s just, she’s been really quiet tonight. Usually you can hear her music while she paints, or she’ll come up for something to drink…”

“Want me to check on her?”

He scowls. “I’ll do the checking, thank you.”

He disappears down the stairs. I stand there waiting, a nagging feeling growing in the pit of my stomach.”

He’s back so fast it makes my head spin. “She’s gone.” His face is pale, his dark eyes bulging. “She’s not there.”

I race down the stairs to the basement. The light is on. Paintings and boxes are scattered everywhere. The bed is empty. And Amelia is nowhere to be found. I drop right there to my knees, feeling the whole world fall down around me.

God, no. Please don’t do this to me again.

* * *

“Nobody fucking panic,” Viviana says, pacing the kitchen floor. “It won’t do us any good anyway. It won’t help us find Amelia.”

Don’t panic? Yeah, right. It would be easier if she told me not to breathe.

I stare numbly into the cup of coffee Viviana handed me. Thinking straight is impossible. My stomach is in knots.

Viviana leans against the island, slapping her palms against the granite countertop. “We can figure this out. The last place we saw her go was into her bedroom.”

“The egress window was unlocked,” Leo practically growls. He sets his laptop on the counter, flipping it open. “He took her right out of her room—but how? The alarm was set.”

“Has it been set all night?” she asks him.

Leo nods, furiously typing. “Since Care and Hugo left.”

I try to remember my dad’s training, wondering how the perp got Amelia out without activating the alarm, but nothing makes sense. I should’ve gone down there earlier. Checked on her. Something. Anything. She wouldn’t have wanted to see me. She probably would have kicked me out again, but maybe it would have saved her. After Alessandra’s death, I should have kept her in sight at all times. God, I feel so stupid.

“Let’s retrace our steps,” Viviana says, keeping her voice strangely rational. I have to hand it to the girl. Out of the three of us, she’s holding up the best. “Did anyone leave the house for any reason? Casper?”

I shake my head. “I’ve been inside the house since dinner.”

“Leo?”

“I took the garbage out around eight.” He runs his hand over his head. “Shit, Vivvy. She doesn’t have her cell on her.”

“Did you put a tracker in her phone, too?” she says, sounding accusatory.

“Yeah, I did,” he says, his voice growing louder and more frustrated. “And it would be really fucking handy right about now, wouldn’t it?”

“I suppose it would,” she admits.

“Let’s hope she wore the right bra.” Leo keeps typing, looking like a madman. “I kept devices in those too. The ones I could find in her drawer anyway.”

“Jesus, Leo—what the hell are you talking about?”

“Obviously the first thing a killer would ditch is a phone,” he explains to Viv. “A bra isn’t something he’d throw out. I put them in all of yours, too.”

She blinks. “You’re a fucking psycho, you know that?”

“Tell me you don’t appreciate it right now.”

“That depends. Is she wearing one or not?”

He keeps clicking. On edge, I stand up, seeing the flashing red dot he’s chasing on the screen.

Leo grins from ear to ear. “Everyone, get in the car. She’s about twenty miles south of here.”

I’m already racing toward the door. “What if she moves?”

“I can login on my phone,” Leo says, then starts handing out instructions. “Vivvy, call the cops. Casper can drive while I keep track of Mila on my phone.”

We all get in Leo’s Beemer, slamming the doors behind us.

Viviana puts her hand on my shoulder. “Just be careful, okay? We’ll find her. We have to.”

“Where am I going?” I ask Leo, cranking the engine.

“Turn right at the light…wait a minute.” He squints at his phone. “I know this address. This is one of the construction sites I manage through Dad’s company.”

“Coincidence?” I speed out onto the road.

“I wouldn’t bet on it.”

Viviana screams from the backseat. “Oh, my God!” She covers her mouth with her hand, her eyes flaring.

“What?” Leo and I both say simultaneously.

“Sergio,” she whispers.

Leo turns around to look at her. “What about him?”

“He came by this afternoon, dropping off your gym bag, Leo. He said you’d forgotten it.”

“I didn’t forget my bag…bloody hell. It can’t be him, Vivvy.”

“He came inside the house,” she says in a teary voice. “We talked for a few minutes, and I walked away when my cell rang. It was a client. Oh, God. I left him alone while I was on that call. It only lasted about a minute, but…”

“Christ,” Leo mutters, cursing some more under his breath. “I can’t believe it’s Serg. He seemed like such a good guy.”

“How did you first meet him?” I ask, blowing through a stop sign. “Did you approach him or was it the other way around?”

“I was at the gym. He approached me…dammit! This can’t be happening.”

At least with it being this late, the roads are clear enough for me to speed. I step on the gas.

“Call the police, Viv,” I say, taking a sharp left that makes everyone lean to the side. “Give them the address of the construction site. They may be able to get there quicker than we can.”

“I’m on it,” she says, pressing buttons on the screen of her phone.

“Leo, when she’s done, call Sergio. See if he answers. If nothing else, it will slow down whatever plans he has for Amelia.”

I keep my foot heavy on the pedal, driving like my life depends on it. In a way, it does. Because without her…I don’t even want to think about that. I need you to fight, baby girl. Just keep fighting until I get there.