Chapter Nineteen
H e’d been to hell before. At least, that was what he’d always thought after seeing the worst humanity had to offer during missions. He’d been wrong. Hell was the woman you loved disappearing before your eyes. They’d discovered her car outside her mother’s trailer, but Sam and Angel were not inside. Everything around him seemed to stop when he noticed the blood droplets on the steps. Everything but the fear thundering through him, clenching his heart, cutting off his air supply. The police had agreed to start a search for her once they examined outside of the trailer. They deemed the area a crime scene, but despite the blood, they were tight-lipped about their reasoning. His team was putting all their resources into locating Sam, and he prayed it wasn’t too late.
They’d split up to canvass different sections of Virginia Beach. He and Ransom took the north, Silver the south, Axe the east, and Branch the west part of the area. So far, they’d found nothing. All he had of Sam’s was her purse, which she’d left at Brynn’s in her hurry to leave. He’d gone through it, privacy be damned. If it would help bring Sam home, he’d do anything and deal with the consequences later. In the hidden zipped pouch of her bag, he’d found all the silly drawings and notes he’d given her. She’d saved every single one. He punched the dash and bit back a scream.
“I know this is torture. When I thought Brynn hadn’t survived, every breath was like sucking down fire. The team was what got me through. I knew Jacob was safe because you stayed with him. Silver drove because I was not in my right mind, and Branch told me to get my shit sorted when my control was at its worst. Told me that Brynn was out there being tough for me and to show her the same respect.”
“Sam sees the good in everyone. It’s one of the things I love about her. The thought of someone hurting her makes me sick, and I can’t stop thinking about all the things that could be happening to her.”
“Lock it down. The only way you’ll get through this is to block everything out, just like a mission.”
“She’s not a mission, though. She’s my life.” His jaw ached from clenching his teeth.
“All the more reason to embrace everything you are in the field and bring her home.” The digital screen on the dashboard lit up with an incoming call, alerting them that Brynn was calling. “You’re on speaker, baby.”
“Angel showed up at the house. Oscar was going crazy, so I let him outside, and she was there.”
Ransom and Julian exchanged a look. “Any sign of Sam?”
“No, I shined the flashlight into the woods behind the house but didn’t see anything else. Hannah texted me, though. They just got called out for two med flights from that old warehouse. The one I always say is creepy when we drive past it.”
“Then that’s where we’re headed. Thank you. Stay inside and keep the alarm set, okay?”
“Good luck, guys.” Brynn disconnected the call, and Ransom veered left, changing the car’s direction in the middle of the road.
“The warehouse is ten minutes out.”
A tense silence ballooned around them. His hands were shaking so hard that he had to fist them in his lap. He’d never been so helpless. So undone. The only sounds were the windshield wipers swishing droplets off the glass and the acceleration of the engine. There could be a hundred reasons why life flight was headed to the warehouse, and none of them might have been because of Sam. Although he wanted her found, the thought of her being in a state where she needed to be flown to the hospital was crushing down on his chest, squeezing at his lungs until it was almost impossible to draw a breath. Ransom cut the ten-minute drive down to seven. The site was easy enough to find. The warehouse was illuminated by the flashing lights of half a dozen police vehicles. An officer in a neon traffic vest stopped their car.
“Turn back to the main road.” The officer’s demand had him digging his fingers into the material of the seat, but Ransom quickly took control of the situation, explaining why they were there. The officer stepped back and clutched the sides of the radio positioned on his chest. He relayed the message, static crackling over the airwaves.
“A male and female were taken by a med flight to Virginia Medical. Our guys canvassed the area, and there’s no one in the immediate vicinity. Sorry, but we can’t allow unauthorized personnel at the crime scene. Your best bet is checking the hospital.”
He gripped his hair by the roots, ready to berate the officer. The man was just doing his job, but every thread of sanity he possessed was quickly snapping beneath the pressure of Sam’s disappearance. Ransom said something to the officer, but he couldn’t hear the exchange over the deafening roar of blood rushing to his head. Before he could process their next steps, Ransom shifted the vehicle into reverse and cut the wheel to maneuver back onto the main road. The headlights streamed through the dark. Something flashed in his peripheral vision.
“Stop!”
Ransom hit the brakes, and he had his seat belt off and was stumbling out of the car and into the rain, looking for the pale form that had briefly glowed in the headlights. Ransom’s boots squelched through the muck, and he came to stand by his side.
“What is it?”
“Thought I saw something deeper in the woods.” He clicked on his flashlight and started running toward the tree line.
“Joker, there.”
He angled his flashlight toward Ransom’s outstretched hand, and they both took off at a dead run, pushing past branches and debris on the forest floor. Heavy wet leaves still clinging onto their stems mopped over their faces as they moved toward the still figure.
“It’s her.” Joker dropped to his knees at her side. Her wrists and ankles were bound, and her hands and feet had taken on a sickly plum color from being cut off from circulation. He pressed his fingers to her throat, and when he found a steady beat beneath her chilled skin, the first tear slipped over his lower lid, falling with the rain.
“I’ve got you, Starburst.”
“There was an ambulance still parked at the scene. Stay here.” Ransom took off, running in the direction of the officer that wouldn’t let them pass. His people might’ve canvassed the immediate area, but they did a piss-poor job of searching beyond that perimeter because Sam was just outside that zone. He took off his shirt and draped it over her rain-soaked leggings and tank top. He kissed her forehead with featherlight touches and murmured about her bravery.
“Ju-Julian?” Sam’s teeth chattered together.
“I’m right here. You’re safe. Ransom is coming back with help. Thank you for hanging on. I fucking love you, Sam. Never thought I’d say that to anyone but my father and my sister. I love you. Never want to be without you.”
“I l-love you, too.”
“Just take it easy now. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“Julian, Angel. L-left her in the c-car.”
“She must’ve escaped. Made it all the way back to Jacob’s.”
The sound of voices and multiple footsteps crashing through the trees was a welcome relief. He desperately wanted to hold Sam in his arms or pull her up into his lap, but he was afraid she might have a spinal injury. Once her neck was stabilized, they could move her onto a spinal board and safely into the ambulance. Julian stepped to the side as the paramedics rushed in and began working on her. With the additional light, the full extent of her injuries slammed into his gut. Her knees and elbows were skinned down to the bone. Bruises marred her face, and there was blood, some dried, some fresh, caked over her skin. Ransom cursed as the light passed over her body for a second time.
“I’ll let the others know. We’ll meet you at the hospital.” His teammate gripped his shoulder and released his hand. They followed the paramedics out of the woods, and he got into the back of the ambulance while Ransom went to his SUV. The paramedics started an IV and gave her a dose of painkillers. Whatever she’d been through, he’d go to hell and back to help her recover. He’d gotten back his Starburst. That one special person who shined through the dark. Who brought sparkle and light into his life. The one person he would entrust his heart and soul to for the rest of time.