CHAPTER TWENTY
“What the fuck do you mean ‘gone’? How the hell did you let this happen?”
At some point, very long ago, it seemed, Atlas had been a gentle man. Now all he did was rage, and rage he was now, at the bodyguard, who glanced at Bella. She looked away from him. “I’m sorry, sir, I let them out of my sight for a few minutes.”
Atlas rubbed his face and turned away, fists clenched. It was obvious to anyone present who knew him that he was angriest at himself for how he’d treated his brand-new wife.
How could I have treated her that way? What the fuck is wrong with me?
Terror clogged his chest as he avoided thinking that he might not get her back. That thought had to be avoided at all costs, or he wouldn’t survive long enough to bring his wife home—his wife and nephew—and spend the rest of his life apologizing.
Stanley cleared his throat. “Look, the police are on their way…I think we know who’s behind this.”
“Carson Franks,” Atlas said with a groan. “God, how? How the hell did he know where they were? And how did Ebony come to be at the same diner? Jesus…”
Bella looked miserable. “I’m sorry, Atlas.”
He didn’t answer her. Stanley patted his daughter on the back. “Go make some coffee for us, would you, dear?”
Bella disappeared from the room. The bodyguard cleared his throat. “Sir, Mr. Duggan, I think you should both know that Miss Duggan insisted on going into the diner alone. This is not to tell tales or shift blame – it’s entirely my responsibility, but she was quite insistent.”
“Bella wouldn’t have deliberately put them in harm’s way,” Stanley said, but Atlas could hear the doubt in his voice.
“Why would she do this? No, I don’t believe Bella had anything to do with this, she adores Fino and Ebony.”
Stanley’s shoulders slumped. “Thank you, Atlas. Thank you for saying it. But it doesn’t answer how the hell Franks knew they were there.”
“Carson Franks has unlimited funds,” Atlas pointed out tersely. “He’s probably had us all followed. Maybe when Ebony took off from the courthouse, he saw his chance.”
“What does he want with them? He can’t be holding them for ransom.”
“Not monetary, but he’ll use them to leverage an escape route, passage out of the country. He knows he’s finished here, that if he’s caught, he’ll spend the rest of his days on Death Row. Shit, I’d better call Blue, let him know what’s happening.”
“First,” came an angry voice from the doorway, “you can tell me what the fuck is going on – and where my nephew and the mother of my child are.”
Atlas looked at the anger, the fear on the face of his much-loathed stepbrother, and received the second shock of the day. This one was oddly more pleasant as he realized that, for once, he and his brother were united in wanting the same thing:
Ebony and Fino back home, safe and unharmed.
“No. Oh, god.” Romy looked shocked to the bone as Blue told her about the abduction. “Blue, he’s a psycho, he likes to kill women. He’ll murder Ebony whether she tells him she’s pregnant or not. And Fino…god, that poor child.”
She hugged Gracie to her harder, and her daughter clung to her. “Don’t cry, Momma. The policemen will find Ebony and Fino.”
Romy closed her eyes and sighed, leaning her face against her daughter’s soft curls. “Of course they will, pumpkin. Thank you.”
“I shouldn’t have told you in front of…” Blue look apologetic, nodding at his daughter. “It was just such a shock. Look, you are safe here. The kids are safe. Your family is safe – Stuart’s arranged for protection for everyone, and the hospital is on top alert.” He sighed. “God, I just want this over, and I feel helpless to do anything.”
“You’re doing what you can, baby. I just pray the police find Ebony and Fino soon.”
Blue leaned over to kiss her. “I’m going to call Atlas now. You’re okay for now?”
“Perfectly,” she smiled up at him. “I’ve got my little bodyguard here.”
Gracie giggled as her mother tickled her and Blue smiled. “I’ll be right back.”
Blue heard the pain in Atlas’s voice, and his heart went out to the other man, knowing how he would be kicking himself around the block endlessly. “Anything, anything I can do, just ask. No matter the cost, no matter what, remember?”
“Thanks, Blue.” Atlas lowered his voice. “Cormac’s here and I don’t have the heart to throw him out. He’s beside himself. I’ve never seen him so … human.”
“Maybe something like this puts it all into perspective.”
“Maybe so. Blue—”
“Don’t,” Blue cut in. “What you did was unacceptable, yes, but not unforgivable. You’ll find them both, Atlas, and you’ll make it up to them. Especially to your wife.”
“What was I thinking?” Atlas whispered. “That wasn’t me in that courtyard. Blue, I would never—”
“You weren’t thinking,” Blue replied bluntly. “You’ve fallen down a rabbit hole of despair ever since Mateo’s death and it’s time to climb out, Atlas. Your living family needs you, my friend.”
There was a long silence before Atlas cleared his throat. “I’m climbing,” he rasped. “But I haven’t heard from Franks yet…the police say I should expect a call from him. I just want him to give Ebony and Fino back, I don’t care if he escapes.”
“Yes, you do,” Blue said, a little anger creeping into his voice. “Because this won’t be the end of it. He stabbed my wife, threatened my kids and your family too. He murdered your brother. He doesn’t get a free pass.”
“I agree,” Atlas sounded exhausted, “but I just don’t know what to do. And there’s something else…I think Bella might be involved.”
That shocked Blue to his core. “No. No way, Atlas. Bella adores Fino; she’d never put him in danger.”
“We’ll see. Look, I have to go, wait for this call. Is Romy okay? Are your kids safe?”
“Yes, all good, don’t worry about us. But you need anything, call me, man. I got your back.”
“Thanks, brother. Talk to you later.”
Blue ended the call then leaned back against the wall, exhausted. One man, responsible for all of this horror. Blue knew that if Carson Franks stood before him now, he would have no problem ending the other man’s life. He almost wanted Franks to show up to the hospital so that he, Blue, could punish him for what he’d done to Romy, to Mateo. And yet, he’d just cautioned Atlas from letting himself be consumed by anger, so he had to follow his own advice.
Blue sighed and pushed away from the wall, heading back into the room where his family was, thankfully, safe.
She was certain it was a dream…or a nightmare, to be perfectly correct. She was tied to a huge pipe, sitting on cold, hard concrete, her clothes soaking wet, her head pounding with agony. She opened her eyes and saw the giggling man, his face contorted by malevolence, a vicious looking knife in his hand. Please don’t kill me, don’t kill my baby…
Ebony fought the need to pass out again. She could feel a little body wedged next to hers, hear his soft cries.
“Shut up, kid, or I’ll stick a knife in your momma.”
Momma? Was he talking about her? “Ebony? Ebony?” She recognized that sweet voice...
“Fino?”
She heard his sigh of relief. “Ebony, are you okay?”
“I am, sport.” At least her mouth still worked, even if her head felt split in half and her voice sounded funny. “Where are we?”
“I don’t know.”
She opened her eyes wider, fighting the dark spots at the corner of her eyes. Fino, his big eyes wide and frightened, was curled next to her, his arms locked around her waist. Their kidnapper, a blandly handsome man, was watching them.
Carson Franks. It had to be. He smiled at her. “Welcome back, Mrs. Tigri. It’s nice to meet you at last.”
“Let Fino go,” Ebony said immediately. “Take me, but let him go.”
Franks rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because you’re the one in charge here, beautiful.” He suddenly scooted down next to them. “Listen here. The brat’s father is going to arrange a private plane for me, then I’ll let him go. You, on the other hand…well, I need some sport. This,” he showed them a knife, “hasn’t had a workout since the pretty doctor. I’ll leave your body on Tigri’s plane to find.”
“No!” Fino screamed at him. “No, don’t hurt her. She’s having a baby.”
Franks smirked. “I really don’t give a crap, boy. And scream at me like that again, and I’ll cut your tongue out.”
Fino cringed against Ebony, and she wrapped her arms around him. “You fuck,” she snarled at Franks, “you pathetic little fuck. Spoilt little rich boy. You’ll get yours, Franks, believe me.”
Carson Franks’ face contorted in rage, and he grabbed her face, his finger biting deep into her cheeks painfully. Ebony winced as Carson crushed his mouth against hers. She bit down on his bottom lip, then cried out in pain as he slashed at her side with the knife. Ebony felt the steel slice through her skin.
“Flesh wound, beautiful,” he snarled, “next time it goes in your belly…the whole way.”
He got up and left them in the small room, slamming the door behind him. Ebony tried not to whimper, and Fino, tugging off his sweater, pressed it again the flesh wound on her side. She smiled at him gratefully. “It’s just a scratch, sweetheart.”
He clung to her. “I love you, Ebony.”
“I love you too, big guy. We’re going to get out of here, I promise.”
At least you are, my precious little one, she thought to herself. That’s all she could worry about now – get Fino safely away from the psychotic Franks. The room they were in was small and damp, with a window high up on the wall. Standing on her shoulders, Fino could reach it, but even from here, she could see it was locked. Maybe if they could break the glass…
The door opened, and someone new came in: a young, nervous looking boy, carrying a tray of sandwiches and water bottles. He set the tray on the ground and slid it over to them. “Boss says eat and drink.”
Ebony nodded, giving him a half-smile. “Thank you. Could you possibly open that window, let some air in? It’s very dank in here.”
Okay, so it was worth a shot, but the boy just shook his head. “Sorry.”
He disappeared, and Ebony heard the door lock behind him. “Fino, eat a sandwich, please.”
“Only if you will too.”
“I’ll try.”
The truth was she felt sick to her stomach. Back at the diner, when they had been taken, a cloth with chemicals on had been placed over her face, and she’d blacked out. She could still taste the acrid flavor of them now, and her stomach roiled. That, and the pain of the small wound, was making her feel as if she would be sick. She took a couple of unenthusiastic bites of the sandwich and some of the water, then feeling a little better, finished the sandwich.
It became obvious all too soon that the food or water had been drugged as first Fino, then Ebony, passed out.
Carson Franks looked over the unconscious pair and grinned. “Time to call Tigri, I think, see how much he’ll give me to get his wife and nephew back.”
The other man, the young boy, Rex, nodded. “So, you are going to give them both back?”
Carson laughed. “Not a chance. Oh, the boy, I don’t care about. We’ll dump his body in the ocean, but the girl…she’s all mine…and her body, we’ll send back to Tigri just so he knows that you never ever mess with Carson Franks…”