8. Significant Findings
Significant Findings
Finn
The car broke down a few miles from our destination.
It’s not broken but the tire is blown. Dante and X are working on it while I pace.
The sky is already lightening. We’re losing the night that was supposed to help us sneak in.
At this rate, we’ll need to lie low until tonight, leaving Sara in there for another day.
Fortunately, we’re on a dirt back road that not even Peter Sokolov would drive down in his expensive cars. Sebastian stands next to Mac with his phone in hand, doing fuck knows what.
Dante brushes off his hands on his pants as he stands and looks over at me. His brow furrows. “She’s strong.”
Fuck, I know that. I’ve always known that about Sara. It doesn’t help this situation though.
“He wants her as a trade. He won’t hurt her.” Sebastian lifts his gaze. “We have time to get her. We just need to rearrange our plan a little.”
A muscle in my jaw ticks, but I don’t say anything. The other day she was in my arms and I let her slip away. I need to get her back. Not tomorrow. Today.
The problem is the place has staff. A lot of staff. Cleaners, cooks, servers, probably a fucking butler. Getting there during the day and trying to sneak in would be damn near impossible. This isn’t like a house in the city where a delivery person would stop by.
Even sneaking in as staff would be impossible. They have employees, not just people who come and go. Unless they throw a fucking party, they know every single person who’s supposed to be on the property.
I kick a piece of gravel down the road. There’s nothing out here. Some trees to one side of the road and a field on the other.
“Done.” Dante lets X take the tire and heave it into the trunk. “What do we need to do?”
He stops in front of Sebastian. Unlike me, he’s calm and cool as usual. I’m a fucking volcano.
“We need to find a place to wait. The security system will be on at night, but we can get in and turn it off.” Sebastian pockets his phone. “We can do some surveillance while we wait.”
I’m trying not to explode because, rationally, I know he’s right. It’s the smart thing to do. Wait until the right opportunity presents itself. It will make it better for all of us.
They get back in the car but I don’t. It’s a few miles up the road to the house. Probably not even an hour walk. I take off my long sleeve black shirt and chuck it in the open door before closing it.
“What are you doing, Finn?” Dante climbs out of the car.
I smirk. “I’m going to do surveillance.”
“Get in the car.”
“Nah.” I scratch the back of my neck and look toward where the estate is. “I’m going to walk up and see what’s happening. Maybe we have this all wrong and she’s not even here.”
“We have binoculars and thermal imaging cameras,” Sebastian rolls down his window to say. “You could get yourself killed.”
I scoff. “You already said they wouldn’t hurt Sara. Why would they hurt a guy whose car broke down? I just need to use their phone. My battery died.”
The more I think about it, the more I like this idea.
Dante looks resigned and starts to close the door, but he’s on the wrong side of it.
“No, Dante. I need to do this on my own. One guy all alone versus with you. You look like you could take on at least fifteen guys by yourself.” I back away, shirtless, in a pair of black pants and sneakers. “I’m fucking harmless.”
Dante raises an eyebrow at me, but finally, he caves. “Don’t be a fucking hero.”
I give him a placating look. “Couldn’t be if I tried.”
“Fuck.” Dante gets back in the car. “Let’s go.”
“You remember the layout?” Sebastian asks.
“Yeah.” I memorized that shit.
“We’ll be behind the back barn.” Sebastian rolls up the window. I don’t know if he thinks I’m crazy, but I should have thought of this an hour ago when we first broke down.
If I can get eyes on the inside, that’s what we need. Am I putting myself at risk? Maybe a little. If I wind up dead though, they’ll be bringing my family into this.
I may have distanced myself from my family, but they still have a future planned for me. They wouldn’t let my death go unpunished.
The car takes off, and before long, it’s just me and the road. I take my time walking as the sun comes up.
As I stroll up a hill, the house rises with me, coming into view. It’s daylight and there are people working in the garden. Woods help hide the back of the house, but the drive rolls right in front.
Windows cover the three stories. I want to circle the whole property, but that would look suspicious. Instead, I head straight for the front door. I make sure my phone is off in my pocket and ring the doorbell.
I’m almost surprised there is a doorbell. There aren’t any houses nearby. But I guess it’s what they’re used to.
A giant of a man dressed all in black opens the door. He looks more like a bodyguard than a butler. This could be the right place after all.
“Hey, my car broke down and my phone is out of juice. Could I either charge my phone or use yours to get a tow?” I give him my best smile.
He glances over my shoulder like I’ve got people waiting in the wings to charge the house. Not seeing anything for miles, he steps back to let me in.
“I can’t thank you enough. It was quite the walk from my car to here and I didn’t see anywhere else to stop.” I take in the marble entryway and whistle. “This is a nice house. Is the owner home? I’d love to thank them for their hospitality.”
“Phone’s in there.” The guy gestures to the office.
“You wouldn’t have a bottle of water.” I touch my throat. Not having to fake it. “It was a long walk.”
He narrows his eyes suspiciously but nods. When I walk into the office and pick up the phone, I dial Dante, knowing it will go to voicemail. I make sure my voice is loud while I talk to the “towing company.”
My gaze takes in this whole room. It doesn’t seem like an actual office, more like a staged office. There aren’t files on the desk or even a pen. The monitor has a few connectors for a laptop, but no computer is present.
“I’m sure I can stay put for a few hours,” I say as the guy in black walks in and hands me a bottle of water. Giving him a smile, I say on the phone to Dante’s voicemail. “Yes, I’m at…”
I look at the guy for the address. When he just stares at me, I cover the receiver. “What’s the address?”
He presses his lips into a thin line, but he tells me and I repeat it into the phone before thanking the answering machine and hanging up.
“I hope you don’t mind. My shirt tore when I tried to fix the car myself and the heat is getting awful out there.” I hold up the bottle and open it before downing the whole thing. “I’m sure there’s somewhere I can wait in a place this big. You won’t even notice I’m here. Quiet as a mouse.”
I glance around for a trash can and then hold the bottle up to the guy. “Recycling?”
He snatches the bottle from my hand, but I give him a smile. If anything, he looks grumpier than before.
“So…” I put my hands in my pockets and glance around. “Is the master or mistress of the house here?”
“No. Mr. Sokolov is out.” He looks behind him and gestures with his head for me to follow him.
“I really appreciate this.” I look up the stairs and wonder if she’s up there. Would Sokolov leave her on her own? I whistle again and say loudly, “This is a gorgeous place. I’ve been thinking of getting floors like this for my place in the Hamptons.”
Can she hear me? I don’t know how they’re keeping her. That knot that’s been there since Dante’s call when Sara went missing tightens. I’m so fucking close, I can feel it.
I check out my host. If he’s the one in charge, leaving Sara in his care would make sense. Not a lot of people could get through him. I wouldn’t even try.
“Should only be a couple of hours, and then I’ll be out of your hair. Sokolov, you say? That wouldn’t be Peter Sokolov, would it?”
He leads me down the hallway. “Yes.”
“I believe my father has some contracts with Mr. Sokolov.”
The guy arches his eyebrow like he’s not impressed. But I want him to know that my people know his people.
“Oh, where are my manners? Finn Lawson.” I hold out my hand but he ignores it. “Yeah, my father isn’t the kind to make friends. Not like me. I’m everyone’s friend.”
“You can wait in here.” The guy opens a door.
I check out the small sitting room. I’d bet anything that he’s going to lock me in here, but I’m also counting on it. “Is there a bathroom I can use?”
“The door in there.”
He’s thought of everything. Perfect.
I smile and walk into the room. “I’m not sure I’ll hear when the car arrives, so you’ll let me know?”
He nods curtly and closes the door. The light snick of the lock fills the room. I shake my head. This is almost too easy.
I walk into the bathroom and use it before looking around for anything useful. Our phones have been off anyway, just in case Peter is trying to track us.
Inside my pants is a small pocket with my lockpicking kit. The room itself is simple. Nothing small or useful in it. I could use the stone lamps to bash the bodyguard’s head in, but that might go the wrong way.
I don’t want to end up on trial for murder.
No, I want the option of a life with Sara if she’ll have me.
I’m not the proper gentleman like Dante.
I don’t have that dark, broody side like Wyatt.
Drew and I are similar, except his family does things through the normal channels while mine does what needs to be done.
I knock lightly on the door and call out, “Hello?”
Then I patiently listen to see if he’s hovering in the hall. My guess is he’s run off to do whatever he’s paid to do now that I’m trapped.
I kneel and work on the lock until I hear that little snick. Careful to put away my tools, I rise and turn the knob slowly before dragging the door open. I wait a heartbeat. Two.
Then I look out to see if anyone is around.
It’s clear so I creep down the hallway, staying close to the wall.
Checking out the downstairs is probably a bad idea and a great way to get caught.
According to the floorplan, no bedrooms are down here.
It wouldn’t be prudent to put someone being held captive in a first floor room where they could jump out a window to safety.
I make my way to the main staircase and hurry up the stairs.
I stop at every door and turn the knob. When they’re unlocked, I keep moving. There are a lot of doors up here. After getting through most of the rooms, I turn a doorknob and it opens. Heavy footsteps on the stairs sound behind me so I duck into the room.
It’s a small bedroom that looks out over the back of the house. There’s a sharp knock on a door, but it’s not mine. A key turns in a lock and then a door opens. I don’t dare look out. I assume it’s the bodyguard and he’s feeding a prisoner. Hopefully Sara.
The door shuts and the lock is engaged. The heavy footsteps go down the hallway and then descend the stairs. I wait a few minutes before opening the door and checking to make sure the coast is clear.
When I walk to the next door, I turn the knob. My heart stops as it locks. I wipe my hands on the back of my pants and check the hallway before kneeling and getting out my lockpick set. My hands tremble as I work the lock.
This has to be her. I don’t have any plan beyond seeing her. I don’t know how I’m going to get her out of this, or me for that matter, since the tow truck isn’t coming. If I escape, then they’ll know why I’m really here. But if he tells Peter I’m here, he already knows.
Fuck it. I’ll take my chances. Maybe we can disappear into the woods.
The lock releases and I pocket my tools and take a breath. Standing, I open the door and step in before closing it behind me. The smell of eggs and bacon reaches my nose and a gentle snore rises from the bed.
I creep across the room. Her red hair is spread over the pillow. She’s dressed in jeans and a sweater and even has her sneakers on like she’s ready to go. Blowing out a breath, I look her over like I’d be able to see if they abused her at all.
Lowering to the edge of the bed, I brush her hair away from her face and her nose wrinkles like I tickled her.
I put my hand over her mouth and nudge her. Her eyes open wide and then relax when she sees it’s me.
I hold my finger to my lips before I take my hand away. She sits up and wraps her arms around me. Those pieces that felt scattered with her gone click back into place as I return her hug.
This hug could never end and I’d be happy here, but we need to figure out how we’re getting out of this. I pull away and see the tears shimmering in her eyes as she smiles at me. Okay, this is on me now.
Maybe I want to be her hero.
I slide off the bed and hold my hand out to her. She takes it and hurries with me to the door. This wasn’t supposed to be a rescue attempt but I can’t let her go now that I have her.
The door opens. Sara gasps. I turn and see something coming at my head before the world goes black.