Chapter 20
CHAPTER 20
Carter’s cell rang, waking him instantly. He grabbed his phone. “Nolan,” he growled.
“Carter, man wake up,” Flint’s voice cut through the fog.
“What’s wrong?” Carter demanded as he sat up and looked around. Where the hell was Mia? The bathroom door was open so he knew she wasn’t in there. His heart thundered.
“It’s Mia. She was kidnapped from Emery’s.”
Carter bounded to his feet and spun in a circle. “Did Emery see who took her? Did she call it into the PD?” He immediately got his go bag and threw it on the bed.
“Emery has the guy on video. She heard something and went to look. She said she missed it by maybe five minutes. That was about twelve minutes ago. She knows Mia’s involved in something and she wants to talk to you before calling it in.”
“Give her my number. I need five minutes.” Carter cut the call and went into the bathroom. He took an ice-cold, three-minute shower, and then dressed in his gear. Black cargo pants and a black t-shirt. He was adding his weapons when his phone rang again.
“Emery,” he barked, “tell me.”
“Carter, I could fucking kick myself. I heard a sound and it took me a minute to drag my ass out of bed,” Emery’s voice sounded stressed.
“It’s not on you. Give me the details.”
Emery told him exactly what was on the video and then sent him the clip. “I found her purse on the sidewalk with her phone and everything in it. I’m just so fucking pissed at myself for not getting to her in time. Do you know who’s behind this?”
Carter hesitated. “There are a few options.”
“What? What the fuck has Mia gotten herself involved in?” Emery was pissed and Carter knew she was only going to get madder when he told her the rest.
“Look,” he said as he slammed the door to his cabin. “I’m…” he glanced toward his truck. Flint, Quinn, and Bowie were standing next to it, dressed in their gear ready to go. “We’re on the way to you. I will explain everything once we get there.”
“Fine. I’ll be standing by,” she said before clicking off the call.
Carter raced toward the truck. “This shit Mia’s involved in, it’s bigger than we thought. I?—"
“Shut the fuck up and get in the vehicle,” Bowie groused. “It’s too fucking early to be out here and I haven’t had enough coffee. You can tell us everything when we get there.”
“I’m with Bowie,” Quinn growled.
“Dude, did you really think we wouldn’t come with you?” Flint snorted. “You’re not that much of an idiot. Let’s go. Emery has coffee on.”
Carter just nodded and pulled open the driver’s side door of the SUV. He knew his team; his brothers were with him, not even thinking about making him ask for their help. Their support warmed his icy heart.
In no time, he pulled into Emery’s driveway. The four of them trooped into the house and Emery handed each man a mug. She turned to Carter. “Start talking and it had better be fucking good.”
Carter filled them in on what had been happening over the last couple of weeks.
Emery swore. “Stupid. Why the hell didn’t she come to me?”
“Because she didn’t want to put you in the position of having to choose between her and your job. She knows how much you love what you do. Mia didn’t want the cops involved because she also knew that they’d keep her on the inside anyway because she was sure they’d want an inside person. Plus, there was Akela and her brother to think about.”
Emery sighed. “She’s not wrong. The DA would’ve kept her in, but they would’ve protected her. And yeah, there’s not much I could have done about Akela.”
Carter could point out that he’d been there to protect her but she’d still gone out on her own. He was pissed at her for doing it. Taking the risk the first time was bad enough but doing it a second time? What the hell had she been thinking? He was determined to find her and ask her.
“They must have followed her from the ranch,” Emery pointed out. “There’s no way they were staking out my place just in case she came by.”
“But how would they know she was there?” Quinn asked.
Emery snorted. “It’s not like you guys have been subtle. You’ve all been hanging at Ohana’s and,” she turned to Carter, “you and Mia have been seen together. They didn’t have to be geniuses to figure out where you would take her if things got crazy. They just had to ask around a bit.”
Carter grunted in acknowledgment. Emery was not wrong. They probably had the road to the ranch staked out. He should’ve thought of that.
“This Bobby guy is who ran her off the road last night?” Flint asked.
“His goons. Nakoa and Mikey,” Carter confirmed.
“Okay, we just have to find him,” Bowie commented. “Emery, where would he hang out?”
Carter held up his hand. “There’s more.”
“What the fuck? How can there be more?” Emery slammed her mug down on the counter. “Jesus, it’s only been a couple of weeks. What else could Mia be involved in?”
“Makaio Hale is involved,” Carter announced.
Emery’s eyes narrowed. “Involved how? I know Mia was gambling at his place to get the money but what does that have to do with anything.”
“Makaio is her uncle.”
Emery’s breath hissed out. “Son of a bitch. That’s one hell of a secret to keep.”
“Who’s Makaio Hale?” Flint asked.
“He’s one of the biggest organized crime bosses in the whole state. He usually stays in Oahu, but he’s been on the island for the last couple of weeks. Rumor has it he’s making some kind of real estate deal, but no one knows too much about it.”
Carter didn’t care. He just wanted to find Mia. Standing here talking had been killing him, while she was out there somewhere, in God only knew what kind of condition. But he also knew the best way to find her was to have a plan and that’s what they needed to do now.”
“You’re saying this crime boss might want to kidnap her as well? It could be either of them?” Quinn asked.
Carter nodded. “Makaio might think it was Mia who dropped the dime on his gambling den. Mia was invited to be there and we were on the way when we saw all the cop cars. We didn’t stick around nor did we say anything. Makaio might hold a grudge.”
Emery snorted. “That’s for fucking sure. If he thinks Mia ratted out his operation, then he would have to make an example out of her. He can’t have people screwing up his business without getting punished.”
Carter’s already knotted gut spasmed. He needed to get out there. He needed to find Mia before… well he just couldn’t go down that road.
“Emery, can you get a list of places that Makaio and Bobby might take her? We’ll divide and conquer. Whoever finds a likely spot, we’ll regroup there and form a plan.” Carter looked at his teammates, who all nodded.
“Okay, that makes sense,” Bowie nodded. “Let’s do teams of two though. We don’t want to be spread too thin. It’s unfamiliar territory and we don’t know who all the players are.”
Carter wanted to argue. They needed to cover as much ground as possible, but Bowie had a point. They had to be smart about this. Mia being kidnapped was killing him. His heart hurt and his thinking was foggy. He needed to get his shit together if he was going to be able to help her at all. “Two-man teams,” he agreed. “Emery, give us a place to start and then feed us more locations as you get them.” He turned to Quinn. “You’re with me.”
Quinn nodded.
“Be safe,” Emery said as the guys headed out the door. She was already working the phone for information as they walked out.
Carter walked toward the SUV. His body was tied up in knots and icy fingers gripped his heart. Please, God, don’t let us be too late.