"Copy that. Mobilizing now. We’ll find her, Jace."
I end the call and push through the last of the crowd toward the oak tree where we had met earlier. My brothers are already converging there, their faces tense as they scan the area. Crewe reaches me first, his expression hard.
"I saw it happen," he says without preamble. "Dark jacket, average build, moved fast. He had help. Another guy cleared a path. They headed toward the back dunes. I tried to cut them off but the crowd was too thick."
Colt appears next, his usual grin gone. "What the hell happened?"
Banks and Mack join us a second later, their eyes sharp and ready. I look at all of them, the shock and anger I feel reflected in their faces. Then Billy steps out of the shadows near the tree, his expression grim but steady. Seeing him there with all of us still hits me like it did the first time tonight. We finally found him. And now we have another person to rescue.
"Sadie's been kidnapped," I say, my voice pained and threadbare. "Crewe saw it happen. Vanguard Helix grabbed her in the crowd. We need to rescue her. Now. They’re onto us, and they’re not waiting. Sloane from Sunbreak Security is putting the whole event on lockdown and sending out an 808 to all his guys. He’s mobilizing a team and we’re setting up a small base at the end of the pavilion to locate her."
My brothers exchange looks, the tension between us shifting into focused determination. Crewe nods once. "We fan out from here. Cover every exit and path to the dunes. If they took her that way they couldn’t have gone far yet."
Colt cracks his knuckles, his voice tight. "They picked the wrong night to mess with our family. We get her back. And then we finish this."
Banks stays quiet but his eyes say everything. Mack already has his phone out, probably pulling up maps or security feeds. Billy steps closer, his hand landing on my shoulder for a brief second.
"We do this together," he says quietly. "No more losses. We find Sadie, we get Nash and Sin, and we end the threat. That is the only way any of us gets a normal life after this."
I nod, my chest tight with a mix of fear and resolve. Sadie’s out there somewhere, taken because of us, because of this mess my family has been in for years. But she’s strong. And she has us now. All of us. I pull out my phone again and text Sloane our exact location at the end of the pavilion. He replies almost immediately that his team is on the way and the lockdown is active. The music continues from the stage, but it feels distant now, background noise to the real mission.
We move as one toward the far end of the pavilion, away from the main lights and crowds. The area’s quieter here, with fewer people and more shadows. Crewe starts directing positions while Mack sets up a small folding table from somewhere, probably pulled from one of the vendor areas. Banks keeps watch on the perimeter. Colt stays close to me, his presence steady. Billy stands at the edge, his eyes scanning the dunes like he’s done this before. Which he probably has.
Sloane arrives a few minutes later with two of his guys, all of them in dark jackets with earpieces. He nods at me once, all business. "Lockdown’s in effect. No one leaves without being checked. We’ve got eyes on every exit and camera feeds pulling now. We’ll locate her."
I look at my brothers and my father, the team we have become in the space of one night. The shock of finding Billy is still there, but it’s hardened into something sharper. We have a missing woman who means more to me than I ever expected. We’ve got two brothers still out there somewhere. And we have a company to take down so that Billy can finally stop running and we can all have something like a normal life again.
"We start the search from here," I say, my voice steady even as my mind races with images of Sadie in that pink dress, her hand slipping from mine, the fear she must be feeling right now. "Sloane's team has the tech. We’ve got the numbers. We find her. We bring her home. And then we finish this once and for all."
The music from the stage fades into another song, but none of us are listening anymore. I have to get her back.
24
Sadie
I come to slowly, my head heavy and my thoughts thick like they’re moving through water. The first thing I feel is the rough fabric against my cheek and the hard surface beneath me that jolts with every bump. I’m in a vehicle. A van or truck, from the way it sways and the low rumble of the engine. My wrists are bound behind my back with something tight and unyielding, probably zip ties or rope, and my ankles are tied too. I try to move, to shift my weight, but every motion sends a wave of dizziness through me. Whatever they used to knock me out is still lingering, making my limbs feel disconnected and heavy. Fear rises sharp and immediate in my chest, cold and twisting. I try to scream, but my throat is dry and the sound comes out as a weak croak. No one answers. There’s only the hum of the engine and the occasional murmur of voices from the front seat that I can’t make out.
I keep my eyes closed, trying to breathe through the panic. The concert. Gia Golding and Silver Langford singing together. The crowd pressing in. Jace's hand slipping from mine. Then the hands grabbing me, the cloth over my mouth, the world goingdark. They took me. I’m guessing it’s Vanguard Helix. The same people who have Nash and Sin. The same people who forced Billy into hiding all those years ago. And now they have me because I was with Jace, because I’m part of this now. My heart pounds harder against my ribs, and I focus on the feel of the floor under me, the way the vehicle turns and sways, trying to ground myself. I think of Jace. His smile. The way he kissed me before we left the safe house. The way he looked at me like I mattered. He’ll be looking for me. They all will.
The vehicle slows and stops. Doors open and close. Rough hands grab me under the arms and drag me out into the night air. It’s cooler here, the ground uneven under my feet as they half-carry, half-drag me forward. I try to open my eyes fully, but the world’s still blurry. An abandoned house looms ahead, dark and sagging against the night sky. Windows boarded or broken. The front door hangs crooked on its hinges. They pull me up the steps and inside, the floorboards creaking under our weight. The interior is dim, lit only by a single lantern or flashlight somewhere in the main room. There’s old furniture covered in sheets as dust motes swirl through the air catching the light. But I push past the visual details and focus on the two figures chained to the far wall.
Two men. Both chained at the wrists and ankles to heavy bolts in the wall. One has dark hair falling over his forehead, his face bruised but familiar in the way it echoes Jace's features. The other is broader, his expression grim even in the low light. Could it be Sin and Nash? It’s got to be them. My stomach drops with a mix of relief and fresh terror. They’re alive. But they’re here, chained like I’m about to be. The men dragging me shove me down next to them, forcing my back against the cold wall. I feel the rough texture of it through my dress, the way the fabric catches on something sharp. They chain my wrists above my head to another bolt, the metal cold and heavy against my skin.My ankles are secured too, the links clinking as they tighten them. The fear’s a living thing now, crawling up my spine and making my breath come in short gasps. I’m trapped. Chained in an abandoned house with two kidnapped men who are probably Jace's brothers. And no one knows exactly where I am.
Once the men leave, closing the door behind them with a heavy thud, I turn my head toward the two figures beside me. My voice comes out hoarse but steady enough. "Are you Sin and Nash? Jace's brothers?"
The one with the dark hair lifts his head, his eyes focusing on me through the dim light. "Yeah. I’m Nash. This is Sin. Who are you? How did they get you?"
"Sadie," I say, my voice cracking a little on the name. "Sadie Wells. I was with Jace at the concert. All your brothers were there. And your father. They drugged me or something. I woke up here."
“Our father?” Sin asks. “You saw him?”
I nod. “Yes, he’s alive.”
Nash shifts slightly, the chains rattling with the movement. His face is tired but there’s a spark of something like hope in his eyes. "How did you end up with Jace?"
I take a shaky breath, the cold from the wall seeping into my back through the thin fabric of my dress. The chains dig into my wrists every time I move, a constant reminder of how trapped I am. Fear sits heavy in my stomach, but I push through it. Talking helps. Keeping them calm helps. Keeping myself calm helps. "It’s a long story. I was in Halo City. My sister Anniston got into some trouble with Banks, and Jace was sent to protect me. We ended up in Sunbreak Harbor. We found your father.Billy. He’s alive. He faked his death years ago because of these people, Vanguard Helix or whatever they call themselves. They threatened your family so he disappeared to keep you all safe. We’ve been in Sunbreak Harbor looking for you both, and we found Billy."
Sin lets out a low laugh that turns into a cough. "Dad’s alive. Nash and I haven’t been able to figure out anything useful. Just that they rotate the guards every twelve hours. Two guards each time."
