It was worth a shot. I inhaled, extending my hand to Misha. It was easy to think about Sephie and finding her. I was already desperate to feel her in my arms again. I felt Misha squeeze my hand tighter. “They took them to an old building, but it’s so dark that I can’t see an address. Keep thinking about her,” Misha said, then added, “they’re in a room. It’s an old office building. I can’t see very much clearly, but they’re both alive.”
“So, the north side in an abandoned office building. That narrows it down,” Andrei said, somewhat sarcastically, but with apparent frustration in his voice.
We stood in silence for a few minutes. Viktor looked at Misha, a look of hope on his face. “Misha, when they took the tracker from Sephie, did you see them take her earpiece?”
“No. Ivan’s either. They still had them when they got in the vehicle,” Misha said.
Viktor then looked to me. “The range on the earpieces aren’t as strong as the tracker, but we might be able to pick them up if we can get close enough.”
“How close do we need to be?” Andrei asked.
“Those things have about a two-mile radius,” Viktor said.
“It’s worth a shot,” I said.
“I also suggest waiting until daylight. If they’re holding them in an abandoned building, having people drive by at this time of the night is going to be obvious. They’ll see us coming. For once, the darkness won’t provide the cover we need. We should wait until daylight so there are other people out and about,” Viktor said. “We divide that part of town up into a grid and work it until we get a signal. We can get the dealers to help on foot, too. They’ll blend in easier.”
“F**k! I know you’re right, Viktor, but pausing the search does not make me happy,” I said, trying to control my anger.
“You’re not the only one, Boss. We all want to find her, but we need to be smart about it. We don’t want them moving her. Or worse,” Andrei said.
“We’re gonna find her, Boss. Now that we know Ivan is with her, that helps. I don’t feel like she’s dead, either,” Misha said. He paused to look at me, then added, “add that to the list of sentences never thought I’d say in my life. Seriously, though, you would feel it if something happened to her. I know it.”
“I don’t think she’s dead either. There’s a pull in my chest that I feel anytime I’m away from her until I get back to her. It’s still there and it’s getting stronger,” I said.
“We might be able to use titat to help find her,” Stephen said. “How strong does it get?”
“I’m not sure. I haven’t been this far away from her, ever. It gets stronger when she’s hurt though. I told her it feels like my heart is urging me to destroy whatever caused her pain.” I ran my hand through my hair. I was definitely not expecting to be having this conversation in the middle of the street at 3 am.
“She’s told us about that before. She feels it, too, and we all feel it with her, just to a lesser extent than you,” Andrei said.
“Let’s head back to the penthouse. I think if you can focus on that pull, it’ll help us know where we should start looking once. the sun comes up,” Stephen said. I nodded once.
As we drove back to the penthouse, I caught myself thinking about how surprising it was that it was Stephen that had come up with this plan. I would not have bet on him to take charge of this situation before Sephie. Just like with Misha, she was slowly bringing out the absolute best in Stephen. He had talked more since she came into our lives than he had in the previous few years that he’d been working for me. We were all somewhat relieved and admittedly slightly disappointed to learn that he wasn’t a serial killer.
Adrik
Viktor stopped by the office and grabbed a map before meeting the rest of us in the penthouse. Andrei started making coffee for everyone. We were all quieter than usual, worried about finding her. I was having trouble controlling my thoughts. I kept thinking about them hurting her, which would cause my anger levels to rise even more. It was taking every bit of control I had to keep my anger in check, using the trick that Sephie had showed me.
Viktor put the map on the kitchen island, marking the spots where they were grabbed and where we found their helmets. Sal controlled the north side of town. It had been a booming area years ago, but had seen a decline in the past few years. There were plenty of abandoned buildings in his area, which would not make our search any easier.
As I looked at the map, feeling completely overwhelmed at where to start looking, Stephen said, “Boss, focus on that pull you feel. Close your eyes if you have to, but focus on the pull you feel toward her.”
My anger was at such a level that paying attention to anything else was proving to be difficult. The pull in my chest was a normal feeling when I was away from her. It had become so normal that didn’t pay much attention to it when I was away from her. Stephen could tell from the look on my face that I was struggling.
“Think about her, then. Think about finding her, specifically. Think about how relieved you’re going to be to see her once again. Think about feeling her in your arms when you find her,” Stephen said.
His words were helping my anger subside enough that the pull in my chest grew stronger. My demeanor must’ve changed, because Stephen nodded to Misha, who grabbed my hand again. Misha’s eyes went wide as soon as he touched me.
“Keep thinking about her, Boss. Feel that pull in your chest. Focus on that,” Stephen said.
Misha said, “I know the area. I still can’t see the address on the building, but I know the area. They’re not that far from the docks.” He let go of my hand and pointed to an area on the map. “They’re somewhere in here.”
Viktor marked it on the map, taking a closer look at the area. “This makes it easier than having to search the entire north end of town, but there’s more abandoned buildings than not in this area.”
“How easy is it going to be for us to search the area without being seen?” Andrei asked.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.