Chapter 34
Chapter Thirty-Four
LOTTIE
My hands wouldn't stop shaking.
I stared at my phone, reading Kaleb's last text for the hundredth time.
Kaleb: Patrice took Keeley. We're handling it. Stay with Colby. We'll update soon.
That had been forty minutes ago.
Forty minutes of pacing Kaleb's living room while Colby tried—and failed—to get me to sit down. Forty minutes of my mind conjuring increasingly horrific scenarios.
A two-year-old. Patrice had kidnapped a two-year-old.
"Lottie, you need to breathe." Colby's voice cut through my spiraling thoughts. He stood from the couch where he'd been pretending to read, crossing to where I'd worn a path in the expensive rug. "Come here, little one."
I shook my head, unable to stop moving. "I can't. What if she hurts Keeley? What if Kaleb and Andrei—" My voice cracked. "What if something happens to them?"
Colby's hands settled on my shoulders, firm and grounding. "Nothing is going to happen to them. Andrei knows what he's doing."
"That's what scares me!" The words burst out before I could stop them. "He knows what he's doing. Because he used to do things like this. Violent things. Dangerous things."
Colby's expression softened. He guided me to the couch, pulling me down beside him. "Andrei's past doesn't define him, Lottie. He left that life behind."
"Did he?" I twisted my fingers together, picking at my cuticles. "Or did he just bury it until he needed it again?"
Before Colby could answer, headlights swept across the front windows. A car door slammed.
I was on my feet in an instant, rushing to the window. Relief flooded through me as I recognized the Audi. Kaleb emerged from the back seat, followed by Andrei.
They were okay. They were here.
But their faces—
Kaleb looked devastated. Andrei's expression was carved from stone, but his eyes blazed with barely contained fury.
I didn't wait for them to come inside. I flew to the front door, wrenching it open just as Kaleb reached for the handle.
"What happened?" I demanded. "Did you find her? Is she—"
"She's at the Lake Oswego house," Kaleb said, his voice rough. "Patrice called. Demanded two million dollars."
My stomach dropped. "The money you don't have anymore because you put it in the trusts."
"Exactly." He scrubbed a hand over his face. "She gave us twenty-four hours."
Twenty-four hours or what? I didn't want to know. Couldn't let myself think about it.
Andrei brushed past us, already on his phone. I caught fragments of Russian—sharp, commanding. Planning something.
"Come inside," Colby said gently, his hand settling on the small of my back. "All of you. We need to figure this out."
We moved to the living room. Andrei remained standing, pacing as he continued his rapid-fire conversation. Kaleb sank onto the couch, his head in his hands.
I'd never seen him like this. So broken. So helpless.
Without thinking, I climbed into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck. He pulled me close immediately, burying his face against my shoulder.
"I should have seen this coming," he muttered against my skin. "Should have known she'd go after Keeley."
"This isn't your fault," I insisted fiercely. "Patrice is a monster. That's on her, not you."
"Sierra's terrified." His arms tightened around me. "Monica's trying to hold it together, but I can see she's barely keeping it together. And I can't—I don't know how to fix this, Lottie."
Hearing him admit that—hearing the defeat in his voice—broke something in my chest.
Andrei ended his call, turning to face us. "Mikhail has eyes on the house. Thermal imaging shows three people inside—Patrice, Rupert, and Keeley."
"So we know where she is," Colby said. "What's the plan?"
Kaleb lifted his head, his eyes meeting Andrei's. Some wordless communication passed between them.
"We have two options," Andrei said finally. "Legal or... not legal."
My heart stuttered. "What does 'not legal' mean?"
"It means we go in ourselves," Kaleb explained, his voice flat. "Before the police can mobilize. Before Patrice has time to move Keeley or hurt her."
"That's insane," I breathed. "You could get killed. You could get arrested. You—"
"We could also save my niece," Kaleb interrupted gently. "The legal route takes time, Lottie. Search warrants. Negotiations. Every second we wait is another second Keeley's in danger."
I looked between them, my mind racing. They were serious. Actually considering this.
"What if we do both?" I heard myself say.
Three pairs of eyes locked onto me.
"Both?" Colby prompted.
I slid off Kaleb's lap, my thoughts crystallizing. "You get Marshall involved. Start the legal process. But while that's happening..." I looked at Andrei. "You do what you do best. You get Keeley out."
Silence stretched for a long moment.
Then Kaleb's phone rang. He glanced at the screen, his expression hardening. "It's Marshall."
He answered, putting it on speaker. "Marshall."
"Kaleb." Our lawyer's voice was tight with controlled urgency. "I just got off the phone with the DA. They're filing emergency charges against Patrice for kidnapping. But—"
"But what?" Kaleb demanded.
"But they can't move without solid evidence she has Keeley. The daycare's security footage shows a woman matching her description, but without a positive ID or a confession, their hands are tied."
Andrei's jaw tightened. I could see him calculating, planning.
"What if she calls again?" I asked suddenly. "Kaleb, what if she calls and you get her to confess? On a recorded line?"
Marshall's sharp inhale came through the speaker. "That could work. If we can get her admitting to the kidnapping on tape, the DA can move immediately."
"But she might not call for hours," Kaleb said. "Or at all. She might just wait out the twenty-four hours."
"Then we make her call," Andrei said quietly.
We all turned to him.
"How?" I asked.
A ghost of a smile touched his lips—cold, calculated. "We wire the money. Set up the transfer. But we put trackers on it. The moment she tries to access the funds, it pings our location. Police can move in, seize the money, arrest her."
Kaleb's eyes widened. "That's brilliant. But I don't have two million dollars liquid."
"I do," Andrei said simply.
Silence.
"Andrei, you can't—" Kaleb started.
"I can, and I will." Andrei's tone left no room for argument. "Consider it an investment in removing a threat to our family."
Our family. The words settled over me like a warm blanket despite the circumstances.
"Marshall?" Kaleb asked. "Would that work?"
"If we coordinate with the DA and FBI—yes. They can trace the money, freeze it once Patrice attempts the withdrawal. She'll be caught red-handed." I could hear the satisfaction in Marshall's voice. "I'll make the calls. How fast can you get the money ready?"
"One hour," Andrei said, already pulling out his phone again.
"Make it ninety minutes," Marshall countered. "I need time to get the authorities on board. This has to be airtight."
"Done." Andrei ended the call, his attention immediately shifting to Kaleb. "You need to call your contacts at Portland PD. Anyone who can expedite this."
Kaleb nodded, rising from the couch with renewed purpose. The defeated man from minutes ago had vanished, replaced by the sharp businessman I'd first met.
"What about Keeley?" I asked, the question I'd been afraid to voice. "If Patrice is arrested, what happens to her? Will she be okay?"
Andrei's expression softened—barely, but enough for me to notice. "Mikhail will extract her the moment we have confirmation Patrice is in custody. She won't spend another minute in that house."
Relief flooded through me. "Okay. Okay, we have a plan."
"We have a plan," Kaleb confirmed, reaching for my hand. He pulled me close, pressing a kiss to my forehead. "Thank you, baby girl. For thinking clearly when I couldn't."
"That's what family does," I whispered, echoing his words from earlier. "We think for each other when thinking gets too hard."
His eyes glistened, but he blinked it away. "I love you. So fucking much."
"Language, Daddy K," I teased weakly.
That earned me a ghost of a smile. "Brat."
The next ninety minutes passed in a blur of phone calls and frantic coordination. Kaleb spoke with contacts at Portland PD. Marshall liaised with the DA's office and FBI. Andrei arranged the money transfer with terrifying efficiency—two million dollars, ready to be wired on command.
I sat with Colby, both of us trying to stay out of the way while remaining available if needed. He held my hand, his thumb tracing soothing circles on my palm.
"They're going to get her back," he murmured. "You know that, right?"
I nodded, not trusting my voice.
"And when they do, we're all going to be okay."
I wanted to believe him. God, I wanted to believe him so badly.
My phone buzzed. A text from Sierra.
Sierra: Any news? I can't take this waiting.
I glanced at Kaleb, who was still on the phone with someone official-sounding. He caught my eye and nodded.
Me: We have a plan. Andrei's wiring the money with trackers. Police will move in when she tries to access it. Mikhail will get Keeley out.
Sierra: How long?
Me: Soon. I promise, Sierra. Soon.
The three dots appeared, then disappeared. Appeared again.
Sierra: Thank you. For being there for Kaleb. For all of this.
My throat tightened.
Me: That's what family does.
"It's ready," Andrei announced, ending his latest call. "The money's in an escrow account. The moment Patrice provides wiring instructions, we transfer. FBI has eyes on the account."
Kaleb's phone rang. Unknown number.
He looked at Andrei, who nodded. Marshall was already on another line, recording.
Kaleb answered, putting it on speaker. "Patrice."
"I see you've decided to be reasonable," she purred. "Smart boy. I knew you'd come around."
"Where's Keeley?" Kaleb demanded, his voice hard.
"Safe. For now. Once I have my money—"
"How do I know she's even alive?" Kaleb interrupted. "Put her on the phone."
A pause. Then muffled sounds—Patrice moving, a door opening.
"Say hi to Uncle Kaleb," Patrice cooed in a sickly sweet voice.