Chapter 25
Chapter twenty-five
Cal
Idon’t like the vibe in the lobby. Everything about this whole God-forsaken fancy pants hotel feels wrong now that Rose is gone.
Rain continues to pelt the windows as distant thunder from the fading storm shakes the glass.
The entire lobby is now swarming with police.
The EMT’s insisted that I go to the hospital for my wounds, but I refused.
I’m not leaving this hotel until I have answers about what Niko did with my Rose.
On top of that, her mom is still missing.
And I’m one hundred percent sure Maggie and now Niko are involved with both.
The betrayal Rose must be experiencing has to be unbearable. My aching heart throbs along with my bandaged shoulder, but sitting idle isn’t an option. Every minute that passes is another she’s gone. And in danger.
Today wasn’t supposed to go this way. The circumstances were utter chaos. But for a few hours, she was back in my world. We’d made quiet promises to each other. To see what might happen once this was over. And now, the thought of losing her again twists my gut, sharp and relentless.
But it also ignites something in me. Because if Rose is out there—hurt and terrorized—then I’ll tear this city apart to bring her back.
My phone chimes from my back pocket. It’s Denny. I answer. “I’m waiting for security,” I bite into the phone. All niceties are gone.
“Good. My ETA is about ten minutes. Nothing yet?”
“No.”
“We will find her …” He trails off as the elevator dings, and Mr. Hawkins rushes across the lobby toward me, face pale.
“Denny, hang on. He’s approaching now. Don’t hang up. I’m putting you on speaker.” I hit the button.
“Detective … thank … goodness … you’re still here,” he says, breathless and relieved.
“Yeah.” I stand, ignoring the pain. “I have my superior on the line as well. Tell me you’ve got something.”
He nods, practically becoming an asthmatic right before my eyes from the sprint here.
This urgency is a good thing, though. I like this guy and will settle for zero incompetence when it comes to finding Rose.
“We’ve been reviewing the system logs. The entire hotel’s network—security cameras, elevator controls, card readers—it’s all been compromised. ”
My gut tightens. “You mean, like what? Hacked?”
“Yes, sir. Someone’s been inside our system for weeks, rerouting feeds, locking cameras, falsifying timestamps. This was a pretty extensive and calculated attack that was hidden really well. We still would be in the dark if it weren’t for this storm and the outage.”
“You hearing this, Denny?” I ask into the phone.
“Loud and clear.”
Mr. Hawkins gestures toward the computers behind the front desk. “We recovered one partial feed before the rest cut out again.”
I follow him around the counter, my nerves on edge.
The monitor comes to life, the image grainy but clear enough: Niko, half-dragging, half-guiding Rose down a narrow corridor.
She’s struggling, fighting. He yanks a rag from his back pocket and covers her mouth with it.
Her fight slowly fades. Then she goes limp in his arms. He carries her out of view.
Something ugly detonates in my chest, hot and blinding. I lock my jaw, forcing myself to breathe. “Where is that?” I snap.
“Old maintenance wing,” he explains. “Hardly anyone goes there. It’s not on the public floors.”
My pulse spikes. “Get me there. Now.”
“Wait for me, Cal!” Denny warns through the phone. I ignore him.
“There’s one more thing,” Mr. Hawkins bites out as he types on the keyboard. The feed for the hallways of fifteen floors fills the screen, each with its own box. They cut out and then back in again due to the unstable connection. But one is blank.
“Why is floor fifteen blacked out?” I ask, pointing to the screen.
“We are trying to get the feeds back up and out of the hands of whoever is doing this. But this floor. We’ve been unable to connect to it. But we managed to find something.”
My stomach bottoms out. “What?”
He swallows. Hard. “Our surveillance is still weak, but we regained access to our booking system. The person behind this made it appear as if every room on that floor was booked. So if someone online, including our front desk, attempted to reserve a room with us, the system would default to another floor. That floor has been unoccupied for three days. Except for two adjoining rooms.”
“How do you know this?” Heat crawls up my neck as his words stoke the fire under my skin.
“Like I said, we regained access to a few things. Room access being one of them.” He moves over one workstation to another computer and types. “Here’s a log of the room entries on that floor for the past three days.”
I scan the screen, and two-room numbers repeat over and over.
Room 1518 and 1520.
Denny isn’t here, but he knows me all too well. “Cal, stand down. That’s an order.”
I jam my finger onto the end button, hanging up on my boss.
“Give me a key,” I bark out.
He whips his lanyard from his collar and hands it to me. “Here, this opens every door in this building.”
I don’t hesitate and sprint around the desk with only one goal in mind.
Get to Rose.
“Do you need help?” Mr. Hawkins’s words trail after me, but I ignore him as I sprint through the lobby, my feet moving faster than my brain.
It’s unthinkable. Niko has Rose here. Right here in this hotel.
I’m not waiting around for help and backup to get organized. The storm outside echoes through the walls, pushing me faster and harder until I reach the main elevator. My finger repeatedly jams the up button as I look at the digital floor reader above my head. Both elevators are on the upper floors.
I slam my hand against the wall. “Damnit.”
No time. I pivot and shove through the stairwell door, pounding up the steps two at a time, using the rail to hurl myself forward. Pain flares in my shoulder, sharp and relentless as I pass floor after floor. Fresh blood seeps through the bandage. I ignore it.
Every second counts.
When I finally reach the fifteenth floor, my head is ready to explode and the dizziness starts. But I push that aside as I shove the door open, and the sound echoes down the hallway. With quick movements, I attempt to get my bearings. The hallway stretches out before me, long and empty.
Completely silent.
I draw my gun, the familiar weight grounding me as my finger rests outside the trigger guard.
To my right—Room 1501. Crap! It’s all the way at the far end. I control my steps, but move quickly. With all of my senses heightened, I angle my gun low, ready to fire. I’m tracking every shadow, every door as I tune into the smallest sound.
I reach Room 1518 first and press my ear to the door.
Nothing except for the low hum of the lights above me.
Two quick steps bring me to 1520.
That’s when I hear it.
Voices.
Then one cuts through clear enough to stop my breath. Rose.
“Maggie, please, no! Don’t do this!”
That’s enough for me. Adrenaline hits hard and quick. I draw in one steady breath, brace myself, tap the badge, and kick the door open.
My eyes sweep the room, fast and frantic. It’s dimly lit and heavy with heat and panic. Wires snake across the floor, monitors flittering with static and grainy feeds of the hotel. Diane’s bound to a chair, pale and trembling. Rose is too. With Niko standing beside her.
As soon as I step in, our eyes connect. “Cal!” she screeches.
I’m not able to find time to process what is going on because that’s when I see it. The gun.
Maggie. She’s in the corner, arm shaking but still steady enough to aim. She’s completely unhinged as sweat dampens the strands of hair plastered to her face.
“Drop the weapon,” I bark, drawing my gun.
She spins toward me, eyes blazing.
“I said drop it,” I repeat, low, controlled. “Don’t make me ask again. You don’t want to do this.”
For a second—just a second—she falters. But then, in one swift motion, her aim swings back to Rose.
Pointing the gun right at her temple.
I take the shot.
The crack explodes through the room, sharp and deafening. Maggie screams, spinning as the bullet grazes her shoulder just as I intended. The gun slips from her grasp, clattering to the floor as she crumples beside it.
Rose and Diane cry out, their screams breaking into a mix of fear and relief.
Maggie clutches her arm, blood slick on her fingers as she cries in pain. “You … you shot me.”
Before I can react, there’s motion behind me.
A blur.
Instinct kicks in. I whirl around, raising my gun.
Niko.
I was so focused on Maggie that I didn't even see him leave Rose's side. Maybe I should have waited for back-up.
Narrowing eyes snap to Rose, and I watch the realization slam into him. The betrayal, the shift, the way she clings to me with her gaze as if I’m the only safe thing in the room.
His expression curdles. “Liar!” he snarls. “You were playing me! You said we … you promised …”
“Niko, please.” Rose’s plea cracks, but it’s too late.
He lunges.
I fire, but he’s faster. He crashes into me, the force driving pain through my already wounded shoulder.
My gun flies across the room. He lands a hard punch—once, twice—each blow turning the edges of my vision white.
I grab his jacket, drive my knee into him, but I’m slower and weaker.
He hits me again, this time splitting my eye open.
I stumble, falling hard between the two beds, knocking the vintage alarm clock onto the floor.
My head slams against the floor, stars bursting behind my eyes. The world tilts and fades.
Then goes black.
Again.