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  Curiosity piqued, Jordan asked, “What do you mean?” He was running on the treadmill, desperate to straighten out this mess in his head, hoping for divine inspiration with his sweat.

  “The one rule I have is don’t sleep with the clients. Keep your dick in your pants when it comes to women on these cases. So far, three of you have slept with clients, marks, or somebody related to the case. Now a woman you’re involved with is grabbed. That’s what I mean by odds, Jordan.”

  Suddenly pissed, Jordan jumped off the treadmill and nearly ate his shit as he tried to make up for his sudden lack of motion by stalking over to Simon. Oblivious to the daggers his boss was shooting his way, he yelled at him, “What kind of fucking attitude is that? A woman is kidnapped and your first thought is too bad we can’t help her, Jordan’s fucking her!?” Sticking his finger in Simon’s face, he saw the foolishness in the gesture as soon as Simon quirked an eyebrow and pursed his lips, but he couldn’t stop himself. “And we’re not involved! We’re friends, that’s all.” That’s all they’d declared, anyway. That and the very real expectation of some spectacular sex. “We’re not fucking.” He felt the sneer distort his face.

  Jordan was torturing himself with this line of thought. He saw the raised eyebrows Simon was aiming at his misplaced finger and Jordan slowly lowered it, with a sheepish, “Sorry.”

  Evan piped up with his two cents. “If it wasn’t for our personal relationships, we’d be missing out on a lot of business.”

  Simon sighed heavily and looked around at the other guys who were watching avidly, waiting for him to snap. Quinten looked positively eager at the possibility.

  “Okay, we’ll make this one a priority. Zack can write up the reports on the missing kids we’re working. Evan, you sure that’s a trafficking ring?” At Evan’s nod, Simon continued, ticking off their other cases on his fingers. “Quinten can do a little extra in his down-time so we can focus on this. Evan, can you put off some of what you’re working on?”

  “Sure thing, boss,” Evan nodded.

  Following Simon to his office, Jordan felt a stirring of hope in his chest. With the whole office behind him, he and Ryan had a better chance. For the first time since leaving the Marines, Jordan felt like he was part of a team.

  They worked and brainstormed for the next two hours with Evan on his laptop, looking for other women this guy could have taken. Hopefully, that would give them the clues they needed to figure out who Mikey was.

  Evan couldn’t track the F150 much further beyond the warehouse district where the switch had been made, so that was a dead end. He could have taken Mia anywhere. And that made Jordan nuts.

  Misty had vanished into thin air. Apparently, Mikey had taken another woman, who wasn’t even reported missing yet. What did he do with the women? Where did they go? What was his plan for them?

  “I think I’ve got something here.” Miriam was combing the police reports, looking for missing person’s cases from a month ago. “A woman named Evelyn Torres didn’t come into work last month. A co-worker called to see if she was in custody at the police station. Dispatch logged the call, but it doesn’t look like there was any follow-up.”

  “Name?” Jordon was all over this, the first lead he’d gotten.

  “The co-worker is Sharon Hawkins. That’s all I got. Evelyn was never reported missing. But she’s brunette and petite, like Mia and Misty, subtle Hispanic features. It’s slim, but it’s what I’ve been able to come up with from here.” Miriam shrugged, her face hopeful.

  “Evan? Can you get me a number for her?”

  “On it.” Evan was tapping away furiously on his laptop on the corner of Simon’s desk.

  “You and Ryan go check her out when he gets you that number, we’ll keep working from here,” Simon muttered, his face still buried in Misty’s police file.

  After getting the number, Jordan had it keyed into his phone while he and Ryan raced each other down the stairs to the parking lot. Outside, he called her.

  “Miss Hawkins? Do you have a moment?” Realizing he was out of breath from running, he forced a calm into his voice he didn’t feel, even though his heart was racing at the possibility of a lead.

  “Yes. Who’s calling, please?” an efficient voice sounded.

  “My name is Jordan Rocco, and I work with Pierce Securities and Investigations. A co-worker of yours came up in regards to a case I’m working and I was wondering if you had heard from Evelyn Torres?” He crossed his fingers, hoping this would go somewhere.

  “No, she never did show up. Mr. Perkins has replaced her already, although the new kid isn’t nearly as good as Evelyn. Have you heard from her?”

  “Can we come and speak with you, please?”

  “Um, I’m off today. Can we meet at a coffee shop or something?” She sounded hesitant, maybe because they were strangers. Finally, someone with some sense. That wasn’t fair, but Jordan just wanted everyone to be fucking safe. Was that really too much to ask? With all the sordid shit happening around him, Ms. Hawkins was a beacon of sanity.

  “Sure, you name the time and place and we’ll be on our way.”

  After setting up a meeting with Sharon, Jordan and Ryan drove as quickly as they could. Ryan interrupted the silence with a wry laugh.

  “You really don’t have a relationship with her?” Disbelief was obvious in his voice.

  “No.” Jordan sighed, wondering if he’d get called a pussy if he told Ryan how he felt. Fuck it. Who cares? “But I want one.” Dragging his hand across the back of his neck and staring out the window, refusing to make eye contact with Ryan, he continued, “We’d decided to have a physical thing, because neither of us wanted attachments. But I’d already changed my mind. She’s it, you know? Everything I want in a woman.” Leaving it at that, he waited for whatever Ryan was going to say next.

  “You love her?”

  Shrugging, Jordan refused to answer. He didn’t think so. Hell, he didn’t even know her, really. But he liked her.

  Breaking the silence, Ryan spoke words that reassured Jordan more than he wanted to admit. “We’ll find her, man. We’re a great team.”

  Sharon Hawkins wanted to meet at a crowded Starbucks, and Jordan credited the woman with some smarts. At least she wasn’t inviting strange men into her apartment.

  Of course, that edge had been what initially drew Jordan to Mia. When he got her back, he’d make sure she never invited a strange man into her apartment again.

  “Thanks for meeting us, Miss Hawkins. Can we ask about Evelyn Torres?” Ryan began, showing her his Pierce Securities ID.

  “Sure. What do you want to know?” She looked at the badge, fidgeting, but Jordan figured it was just nerves from being called out of the blue to meet two strange men.

  Jordan chuckled, trying to ease her a little. “Everything. We’re sort of up against a wall here.”

  Ryan interrupted, “Start with any friends she had that you know of, or the last time you remember seeing her.”

  “She was at work the week before. I guess that was…” She thought a minute. She was an older woman, sort of matronly, on the heavy side, but still well-put together. It was obvious she didn’t have a lot of money, but she wore her jeans and cardigan set well. “Valentine’s day? Yeah. She was going out for Valentine’s, but I didn’t see her after that.”

  “Who did she go out with?” Jordan pressed.

  “It was a blind date. Somebody she’d met on that cell phone site where you flip right or left.”

  “You don’t remember a name?” Ryan was leaning up in his seat, his eyes flicking to Jordan.

  Sharon shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t.”

  “Anybody she hung out with? Exes?” Jordan tried to impart his urgency without freaking the woman out, but he feared his frustration showed because Sharon stopped looking at him and focused on Ryan.

  “Evelyn was a bit of a loner. She had a couple of exes, but I don’t remember them. One’s name was Joey, but I don’t remember his last name. Sorry.” S
he looked apologetic, too. Sharon wasn’t just giving them lip service. Jordan could see the frustration written all over her. She wanted to help.

  “Family?”

  Laughing ruefully, Sharon said, “She had a couple of step-brothers, but that was it. Her parents died a long time ago. That’s why I called the cops. They said I couldn’t report her missing, but I wanted something on record about her. She didn’t really have anybody, you know?”

  That pissed Jordan off. She sure as fuck could report her missing, and he’d be sure and let Detective Hollerman get a piece of his mind regarding lazy dispatchers who didn’t want to fill out extra fucking paperwork. Instead of showing his ire, though, he continued his questioning. Nothing to be done for it at this point. “What about a guy named Mikey? Did she ever mention him?”

  Sharon thought hard, biting the inside of her check with frustration. Her cheeks reddened and her eyes got glassy. “I can’t think of anyone specific, but that name sounds so familiar…” Jordan felt her frustration like a common friend they both clung to in their vast wheel spinning.

  “Can you think of anything that could have happened to her?” Ryan asked, grasping at any random theory that might propel them in the right direction.

  “Honestly? I can’t. I can only think someone saw her and took her. She didn’t really know anybody.” Sharon spread her hands on the table, and Jordan and Ryan nodded along with her. Except they knew better. Evelyn had pleaded with her kidnapper, called him Mikey.

  “Can we get her address from you?”

  After getting some more information, Jordan and Ryan at least had somewhere to go, even if they didn’t have any more answers.

  Back at Pierce Securities, Jordan and Ryan were in their office going over what they’d learned. Jordan had put in a call to the dating company, telling them they had a missing person’s case. Of course, they couldn’t release any information without a court order, and since the police hadn’t been alerted to Evelyn going missing, there couldn’t be. So Evan was hacking them.

  “I’ll check her Facebook page for ex-boyfriends and anybody else who looks suspicious,” Ryan was saying when Jordan’s phone rang.

  Nearly dropping it on the way to his ear, Jordan couldn’t help but hope it was Mia. “Hello?”

  “Jordan? Are you someplace safe?”

  “Mom? Yeah. Why?”

  “Because your neighbor just told us about the break-in and since I’ve been waiting here since six o’clock, I was beginning to worry.”

  “You’re at my apartment? Wait. My neighbor? Is she there? Let me talk to her.” Thank fuck. Mia was home. She was safe. Relief flooded through him at the prospect of holding her in his arms again. He would go home and kiss the ever-loving hell out of her, take her to bed, claim her as his, and never fucking let her go.

  “Yes, honey. I’m at your apartment, and yes, your neighbor’s boyfriend was here getting some things for them. He said they were moving, because your neighborhood’s too dangerous.” Jordan’s blood turned to ice water as her words sank in.

  “I’ll be there in ten minutes, Mom. Lock the door. My neighbor didn’t have a boyfriend.” To Ryan’s questioning look, Jordan responded, “Fucker talked to my god-damned mom.”

  By the time Jordan got to his tiny apartment, his mother was inside already. “How did you get in?”

  “Whether your neighbor has a boyfriend or not, he’s really a rather nice young man. Unlike some people I know,” she huffed. “Aren’t you even glad to see me?” Perched on the corner of his futon, hands on her knees, Molly Rocco was the picture of elegance, even in Jordan’s shitty apartment. “You’re home for two weeks after I haven’t seen you in God knows how long, and you’re off to Austin, Texas of all places, taking a job with your brother, whom I also haven’t seen in ages. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think—”

  “Mom, is this the guy from the apartment across the hall?” Jordan interrupted her guilt trip to show her the police sketch artist’s rendering of the guy who had grabbed Mia.

  At least she recognized the significance of a police sketch. Her face paled. “Yes. It is.” Her voice softened as she looked up at Jordan. “What happened?” His mother took the picture with trembling hands and studied it carefully, as if she could bring the man back by looking at it.

  “Mia was kidnapped by this man, and I don’t know where to find him. Can you tell me anything? Please? Did he by any chance leave a note saying anything?” Jordan knew that was wishful thinking. Like the kidnapper would leave a signed confession with the address of where Mia was being kept. “Did you see the car he was driving? Get a plate number?”

  “No. I’m sorry. He was carrying a box and a backpack. He did tell me to tell you Mia said goodbye. I thought he was being sweet, but he wasn’t was he?” Her eyes widened, the same brown eyes Evan had.

  “No, Mom.” Now was not the time for a visit from his mother. He couldn’t think. Everything was racing around in his head. “He wasn’t.” At least he came and got Mia’s stuff, if that’s what he got. Jordan could only assume. That meant he was stupid. But it also meant he was planning on keeping her alive.

  Hope suffused him as he called Ryan. “He came back for more of her stuff. That’s good, right?”

  He heard the scritch of Ryan rasping his hand across the stubble on his jaw. “I sure as hell hope so. I’ll call the cops and get them over there to print things again. Maybe he left something we can work with.”

  After hanging up with Ryan, Jordan turned to his mom. “Mom, look, now really isn’t a good time. If you had called first…”

  “You would have had fair warning and made up excuses. Nope. I’m here and I’m going to see my sons.” Her voice took on an obstinate edge, and Jordan immediately recognized the futility of arguing with her.

  Thinking fast, and knowing Evan would kick his ass, Jordan said, “How about the happy news, huh?”

  Molly’s face lit up like a kid in a candy store. “Happy news?” Bingo.

  “About Paige? Didn’t Evan tell you? They think they’re pregnant. You’re going to be a grandma!” He forced a joyous smile to his face, spreading his arms wide. The idea of Evan and Paige having a baby wasn’t horrible, and he liked the name, ‘Uncle Jordan,’ or even ‘Uncle Jo-Jo’ if the baby couldn’t say his name. Wow. That thought was heavy. You can come back to that one after you find Mia.

  Molly sat frozen, a statue on his shitty couch. Guilt panged him in the gut, but it was guilt for Paige, nobody else. Evan was a big boy, he could handle it. And he had more room for Molly at his place, anyway. Sending Paige a mental apology, Jordan gathered her bags. “Can I call you a cab, Mom?”

  “No, I have a rental parked in the lot across the street. I can’t believe they didn’t tell me!” She flung her purse over her shoulder and helped Jordan with her suitcase.

  “Didn’t want to ruin the surprise. Paige likes to plan things, you know.” God he felt like an ass. Evan would totally kick him in the balls. “I’ll let her know you’re on your way. Don’t want to put extra stress on her, considering her condition.”

  “Yes, you do that. I can’t believe nobody told me.” Molly was in a happy fugue, her voice taking on a dream-like quality, and Jordan smiled to himself. He was going to owe Paige. Big time. Turning back to her son, Molly grabbed his arms in a tight squeeze. “I want to meet this girl after you find her.”

  “Let me find her first, Mom.” Jordan tried to smile, but knew it was weak, at best.

  After bundling his mom down the stairs and out the door, Jordan waited another two hours for the cops to finish at Mia’s place. He’d never been so exhausted in his life. In his service, he’d worked for days on much more physically taxing assignments than this one. But the emotion involved was kicking his ass.

  Not knowing what was happening with Mia was making Jordan crazy. He was an absolute wreck, and the sudden dawning of understanding for military families hit home. If he had to go through this every time his loved one was deployed, he’d go ape-
shit.

  He was terrified for Mia and constantly wondering what was happening to her. Did his parents go through this when he was overseas? Sure, they did. He felt a little bad for what he’d done to Mom, but the ends justified the means, didn’t it?

  He felt even more like a heel for what he’d done to Paige and Evan. Paige wasn’t pregnant, and for him to sic his mom on them was cruel. But he had things to do. He had to find Mia.

  This was hands down the single-most horrifying experience of Mia’s life. Mike, her captor, had some sort of sick fascination with the idea of her. She thought that because he didn’t know her from Adam. He’d just picked her randomly and brought her home to coddle, and it was freaking her out more than somebody who wanted to use her body and throw it away.

  Yesterday, he’d fed her instant broth, and then read her books all damn day—romances mostly, those old Harlequins her mother used to eat up. Mike had acted like it was her favorite thing to do, ever, and since she was still breathing, she decided it wasn’t all that bad.

  She’d been tied to this bed for almost two days, and with each hour that passed, Jordan’s face grew dimmer, his expression vaguer. Now she wasn’t so sure he was coming for her. And that hurt more than she wanted to admit.

  Mia hadn’t been able to talk Mike into untying her hands, yet she was still trying.

  “My fingers are numb, Mike. Can we loosen the knots a bit? Please?” She asked as nicely as she could. He was living in some sort of fantasy land, where this was a vacation for her.

  “I’m sorry, Babe. I can’t do that, but I’ll rub your fingers. Will that help? I’m afraid you’ll try to escape like the others, and that’s not a good thing.”

  Every time he talked about these mysterious ‘others,’ a shiver went up Mia’s spine. She didn’t know what happened to the others, but she couldn’t see or hear them, so she could only assume they weren’t here, and she couldn’t imagine anywhere else they could be. Except dead.

  When Mike brought back her stuff from her apartment, she nearly lost it but managed to keep her cool. “Um, did you see anybody?” Was Jordan there? Were the cops there?