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Lane watched silently.
“Maureen’s the second vic. And you’re the third. At least, that’s what we suspect.” Memphis pursed his lips. “Probably more. Aren’t there always more?”
Alina rubbed her temple again. “How can we figure out the first vic?”
“Oh, we already know who she is.” He flashed a shark’s smile. “Who she is and where she is. Are you impressed?”
Actually, dammit, Midas was. Memphis had just saved him a shit-ton of legwork.
“Kiera Thatch. Also from a wealthy family, close to your age, and, from what we can tell, Kiera vanished for three days before she finally turned up again. Of course, her family never reported the abduction, but we received a tip from a concerned friend.”
That concerned tip was sure helping them out. “When did you get the tip?” Midas asked, unable to keep the suspicion from his voice.
“Before you let me know that you’d just rescued your charge from a cabin in the middle of nowhere.” Flat. “Didn’t exactly take me long to put the pieces together. That’s one of the reasons I hauled ass so fast to get to your side.” Memphis’s gaze dipped to Alina’s wrists. “Kiera was treated at a hospital for abrasions around her wrists and ankles.”
She tugged down the sleeve of her blouse. The long sleeves had covered her bandages, so the tug wasn’t necessary. But at the movement, guilt spiked in Midas. Was I careful with her hands? No, fuck, he hadn’t been. He’d just been a greedy, horny bastard.
A low sigh escaped Memphis. “The police tried to follow up with the family after her hospital visit, but they were shut down. The…friend is the one who was concerned. You see, Kiera has since refused to leave her home. She has guards with her all the time. And she’s been seeing a shrink. She fits the victim pattern that the Ice Breakers are establishing. She made it home. Maureen didn’t. And then, of course, there’s you.”
Alina reached out to touch Midas. “You’re telling me that these men are just—they are serial kidnappers?” She turned her head toward Midas. “That fits with what they told me,” she said. “Remember, the redhead revealed that someone had gone home? It fits. Kiera could have been the one he meant.”
“Yeah...” Memphis sawed a hand over his jaw. “It fits with what we’ve found, too. The Ice Breakers have been able to place Shayne Preston and Fallon White in the areas where both Maureen and Kiera lived. Normally, I don’t buy that proximity equals guilt—”
Lane grunted. “Yeah, because that shit can be wrong.”
It had certainly been wrong in Lane’s case.
“But with the new intel we uncovered about Fallon, we have to assume the worst.”
Lane’s nostrils flared, but he’d gone back to being silent.
Midas waited.
Memphis just looked all intense and somber, a look the guy did all the freaking time.
“Well?” Midas pushed when the silence stretched too long. “You gonna tell me or just stare at us all day?” Because he already had plans spinning in his head. First step, get the surviving vic to talk. They had to make sure that she actually had been abducted, and the only way to do that? A one-on-one chat with her. And while she might have shut down anyone else who tried to get close to her, he had a feeling she’d talk with Alina.
Because Alina had been through the same hell.
“So…” Memphis rolled back his shoulders. “I happen to have a question or two of my own. Let’s start with this one. How did you come to be on this case, Midas?”
“Oliver recommended me to her father.”
Memphis and Lane shared a long glance.
Wonderful. Now those two were doing the silent communication bit? He’d thought they were pretty much enemies. Now they acted like besties. “Look, I already tried to reach out to Oliver—twice—but he’s off on some tropical isle with your sister.” Midas pointed at Lane. “Oliver is great at profiling, and I want his input, STAT.” So, yeah, he was gonna interrupt his friend’s honeymoon.
“I talked to my sister this morning,” Lane revealed. “Told her about the case. Oliver heard me. He…didn’t know anything about Alina. Or about you protecting her.”
“What?” That made zero sense. No, Lane was misinformed. “Oliver told Alina’s father to hire me. He’s the whole reason I’m here with her now.”
Memphis’s expression turned extra grim.
Shit. What now? “Memphis?” he barked.
“That new tech whiz I told you about who is working with the Ice Breakers? The woman is all about finding patterns and links. She found a link with Fallon White.”
“Don’t keep me in fucking suspense, spit it out. A link to what?”
