Chapter 45
Missing
Nick! Kate’s voice, drenched in fear, echoed through Nick’s head, snapping his head up.
His heart slammed against his ribs as he scanned the room, pulse roaring in his ears.
Did he actually hear Kate in his head? He never had before.
And she had sounded terrified—the raw edge of panic in that single word tied knots in his stomach.
Kate? Nothing but silence. A vacuum lay where her presence should be.
Find me. The words drifted in his mind, so soft, so fragile, he wasn’t sure if he heard them, or imagined them—a whisper through his consciousness that made the hair on his arms stand up.
Kate! Can you hear me? A cold sweat broke out on his skin, trickling down his spine. Something was wrong. Every instinct he possessed screamed it.
He grabbed his phone with trembling fingers and called her, but it went straight to voicemail.
The generic greeting scraped his nerves like nails on a chalkboard.
Jumping up so fast his chair toppled backward, he ran downstairs and across the house, hating the size of the mansion that kept him so far away from her.
His boots thundered on the marble floors. Each second passed like an eternity.
Bursting into her suite, he called her name, voice cracking. “Kate! Silence answered—a horrible, oppressive quiet that pressed against his eardrums and made his chest tighten until he couldn't breathe.
David, Zach: Something’s wrong with Kate. We have to find her. He knew his own fear would be echoing in their minds, bleeding through the mental connection like blood in water, but for once, didn’t care about appearing strong. Nothing mattered but Kate. Nothing.
Where are you? Zach: calm, steady—an anchor in the storm raging through Nick’s mind.
Kate’s suite. I’ll meet you in the conference room. Nick forced the words out, though his throat felt like sandpaper.
On our way.
Nick paced back and forth in the meeting room, his hands clenched into fists so tight his knuckles ached and turned white.
He fixated on a single thought: finding Kate.
He couldn’t bear the thought of her being hurt, of her being in danger.
Images flashed unbidden—Kate scared, Kate injured, Kate calling for him and him not there.
The scenarios twisted like knives in his gut.
He had to protect her, had to keep her safe.
Zach and David burst into the room, and Zach took immediate control. “Tell us what’s going on.”
Nick took a deep breath, willing his heart to slow its rapid pace, though the thundering continued unabated.
“I heard Kate call my name in my head. She sounded terrified.” The memory of that fear in her mental voice made his own catch.
“I tried to answer her but got nothing. I called her phone, and it went straight to voicemail. I ran down here to her suite, and she’s not here. ”
His voice rose despite his efforts to control it. “Something’s wrong; I know it. She sounded so scared.” Nick paced as he spoke, rubbing his hand over his chest, over his thundering heart, trying to ease the ache sitting like a stone.
David hit a button on his phone. “Good morning, Lena. Have you seen Kate today, by any chance?”
Nick stopped pacing, laser focused on David’s face, reading every micro-expression, searching desperately for good news.
“Ok, thanks. If you see her again, let her know we’re looking for her, would you?
” David disconnected. “Kate was at the Pavilion for breakfast, then talked to Lena. She was going for a walk to work off her excess energy. Lena got a call, so didn’t see which way Kate went. That was about half an hour ago.”
Nick turned to the door, heart still racing, adrenaline flooding his system and making his muscles twitch with the need for action. “I’m going to find her.” He didn’t take two steps before a hand on his arm stopped him—Zach’s iron grip, firm but not painful.
“Wait. Let me call my guard that’s on Kate.”
Nick paced as Zach pulled out his phone and dialed, every ring echoing in the room like a death knell.
After a minute, he dialed another number, speaking rapidly, demanding an update on the guard’s status.
The terse, clipped conversation only ratcheted Nick’s anxiety higher. A moment later he hung up.
“My man following Kate is not answering his phone or the radio. His last check in was at 0900.”
Ice flooded Nick’s veins even as fire burned in his chest. A missing guard.
Kate missing. This wasn’t coincidence. He headed for the door, but again Zach grabbed him, stopping him.
“You aren’t going anywhere until you suit up.
Better safe than sorry. David, you too. Change, grab your weapons.
We’ll meet back here in ten,” Zach growled.
Nick opened his mouth to protest, fear racing through him like wildfire, burning away rational thought.
He needed to find Kate now, but common sense kicked in—barely.
Zach was right. He needed to prepare for whatever they found.
If Kate were in trouble, he would need his weapons.
The thought of what he might need to do made his jaw clench so hard his teeth ached.
He spun and raced to his room to gear up, his hands moving on autopilot, donning his tactical clothes and weapons as fast as possible—though not fast enough, never fast enough—before racing back to meet his brothers again.
The weight of his vest, the press of his weapons against his body, should have been reassuring.
Instead, they only reminded him of what he might face.
Zach stood, legs splayed, earpiece in, talking on his phone. He was always the first one ready. Always prepared. Nick envied that icy control right now when his own emotions threatened to tear him apart from the inside.
David came running in behind him, tablet in hand, also wearing an earpiece. “Her phone is not pinging. It’s either turned off or destroyed.”
Destroyed. The word hit like a physical blow.
Nick’s breath came shorter, faster. He paced back and forth, his mind, his body, a whirlwind of emotions.
Fear, anger, and desperation all mixed, threatening to overwhelm him, a tsunami building in his chest. He couldn’t just sit here and wait. He had to do something. Anything.
“What?” Zach’s voice interrupted his spiraling thoughts, sharp and focused. “I’ll be right there.”
Zach’s gaze snapped to Nick’s as he disconnected his call, radiating grim determination.
“Early this morning, David identified the guy who went after Kate at the spa from the video—a maintenance staff member. My guys tracked him down and just picked him up. They’re taking him to the security office. Let’s go see what he has to say.”
Nick smiled, a feral expression he could feel stretching his face.
“Can’t wait to have a friendly chat with him.
It looks like we’ve returned to the island.
” The promise of action, of doing something, eased the pressure marginally.
This bastard would tell them everything he knew, one way or another.
Zach nodded, equally grim, as they headed out to Zach’s SUV. The leather seats were cool against Nick’s back as he slid in, a stark contrast to the heat of rage simmering under his skin. Zach's phone rang halfway there.
“Speaker,” Nick barked, not caring how he sounded.
The clipped, professional voice on the other end brought no relief.
“Zach, we identified the trail Miss Danvers took, and I’ve sent guys along it. So far, no joy. There is one location where the dirt is a bit churned up, but we’re not trackers. We don’t know if it means anything or not.”
Nick’s fingernails dug into his palms. Churned up. A struggle? Had she fought? Of course she had. Kate wouldn’t go quietly. The thought filled him with equal parts pride and terror.
“Location.”
“South loop, about a hundred yards past the viewpoint.”
“I’ll be right there.” Zach disconnected the call and swung the SUV around, the tires squealing, heading off on a maintenance track. “This will take us closer.”
Nick nodded, jaw locked tight, unable to trust his voice. Every jolt and bounce on the rough maintenance road sent fresh waves of impatience through him.
About half a mile down, Zach stopped, and the three brothers piled out, Nick and David following Zach through the underbrush.
Branches caught at Nick’s clothing, scratched at his exposed skin, but he barely noticed.
His entire being was focused on finding any trace of Kate.
They came out by the viewpoint, and Nick’s eyes swept the area, searching for—what?
Blood? Her body? He shoved the thought away violently.
Nick paced along behind as Zach strode down the path, heading toward his man waiting down the trail. Every muscle in Nick’s body coiled tight, ready to spring.
The guard straightened up, almost military sharp. “Sir. I didn’t realize you were on-island. I found this area. As you can see, the surface is churned up, but I don’t know what it means.”
Stay back. Nick watched as Zach prowled forward, studying the ground like a book to be read. He kneeled at one point, his fingers hovering over something Nick couldn’t see, before leaping up and prowling into the trees, following something only he could see.
Screw that. Nick’s patience snapped like a rotten rope. He followed, needing motion, action.
Drag marks on the trail. Zach paused about ten feet in, examining the area, although Nick saw nothing but disturbed leaves and soil. He strained his eyes, trying to see what Zach did.
Someone was lying here on the ground. Footprints.
One set coming in, one going out. The one going out is deeper than the other.
Carrying something. Zach’s mental voice was analytical, detached.
Look around for anything that Kate might have dropped, assuming it was her.
If someone took her, she would have put up a fight.
The image seared into Nick’s mind—Kate unconscious, being carried by some faceless bastard. His hands shook as rage and fear warred inside him, making his vision blur at the edges.
Nick moved in the opposite direction to David and began searching, his movements jerky and desperate, moving plants and leaves aside, looking for anything that might be a clue, even as his thoughts continued to churn.
Where was she? Was she hurt? Was she conscious?
Had she been—No. He couldn’t go there. The possibilities were too horrific. His breathing came harsh and ragged.
“Found something!” David called over.
Nick’s head snapped up, hope flaring painfully. David squatted by a bush, holding the leaves back. Underneath lay a silver earring, glinting in the dappled sunlight like a tiny beacon. He looked up at Nick when he ran over. “Do you recognize it?”
Nick studied it, his hand trembling as he reached for it, hope and fear twining through his stomach like serpents.
The delicate silver felt cool against his fingertips.
“I’m pretty sure it’s Kate’s. She wore a pair like it at the fire pit the other night.
” He could picture her so vividly in his mind’s eye, the firelight catching on the earrings as she laughed at something David said. The memory hurt.
Zach stood, brushing dirt from his knees.
“Let’s follow the trail.” He prowled off, every movement purposeful.
Nick glanced at David, and they both fell in line behind Zach, a grim procession.
They went about three hundred feet, pushing through increasingly dense undergrowth, before exiting the woods onto a side maintenance road.
Zach closed his eyes briefly—the only sign of his frustration—before meeting Nick’s. “Trail’s gone. He probably had a vehicle waiting. Let’s go to Security and see what our maintenance man has to say. They just notified me they’ve arrived.”
Nick followed without a word, his gut twisting tighter with every step, like someone was wringing out his internal organs. Despair coated Nick’s tongue like sawdust, dry and choking. The trail was cold. They had nothing. Kate was missing, and they had nothing.
Zach's voice softened. “Nick, we’ll find her.”
Nick nodded mechanically, disconnected from the churning storm within him.
His mind whirled with fear and doubt. Would they be on time?
The question echoed endlessly. Had she been harmed?
What were they doing with her? Why did they take her?
Each question was a fresh cut, bleeding him out from the inside.