Page 133 of Barinov

“Forgive the intrusion, boys,” he says lightly. “Family disagreements.”

He strides over to Bella’s body slumped at the base of the chair. Crouching down, he tilts her chin up so her tear streaked face is visible on screen. Her steel eyes are glassy, red, and dazed.

“She forgets herself sometimes,” he murmurs, brushing his thumb reverently across her cheek. “Don’t you, my sweet Izzy?”

Bella’s eyes widen. Her head nods too fast, too desperate. The collar around her neck finally stops glowing. The absence of the shock sending her falling back in relief. Luca catches her and pulls her in tight against his chest, cradling her like one would a sick or wounded child.

“I’m sorry,” she sobs into his shirt.

“Shhh,” he coos, smiling as he runs his fingers through her hair. “You’re alright. I’ve got you, my love. I’m sorry I had to hurt you.” His lips brush her sweat-slicked forehead. “Forgive me?”

She nods, flinching slightly at his touch.

His emerald eyes never leave Bella as he lifts the remote toward Zeke and clicks. The glow around his neck fades. Zeke collapses face-first onto the ground, breathing heavy.

Luca’s sick smile widens as he glances back toward the camera. “I think we’ll pause this masterpiece for now, Cade,” he says, looking straight at me. “This family needs a little quality time together.”

He holds up the remote once more. Bella’s tear-stained eyes flick to the camera, just once.

And then they’re gone.

Chapter 32

LEX

Fayetteville, Arkansas

About to lose my shit.

42 days since Bella’s kidnapping.

We’ve been sitting at this damn lakehouse marinating in waves of sheer panic and red-hot rage for six days.

Six days staring at a black screen just waiting for it to flicker back to life. Six days of sitting on a couch that now smells like beer and sweat.

And six fucking days of looking out over a lake that is way too peaceful. Apparently, nature doesn’t give a shit that our girl is gone. If it did, the water wouldn’t be this perfectly calm.

I, on the other hand, am not calm. How the hell can I be?

Each time that tv screen flickers from the power cycling or whatever, my heart slams like it’s round one at The Pit versus Tattooed-Dragon-Dick. Adrenaline spikes, my muscles lock up, and I’m halfway to my feet before I even think.

But it’s never him.

Only static and a deafening silence that makes my ears ring.

Cade and I both look like shit. Neither of us have slept for more than a couple hours at a time. Haven’t left this damn living room except to piss or grab another bottle. My knuckles are split to shit from punching the fireplace when the screen glitched yesterday.

We thought that was it. We thought he was back.

He wasn’t.

Roman is the only one still here with us. The guy looks just as shitty as Cade and I. Just as worried, maybe even more. He spends most of his time pacing on the dock, rubbing his chest and looking out over the water blaming himself for his daughter getting taken by a psychopath.

He keeps saying that he should have seen it. Should have known who it was all along. That he should have stopped it. Sabine tried to talk him off the ledge before she left, but it was useless. I don’t think he’s going to calm the fuck down until we find Bella.

I guess we’ve got more in common than I realized.

Everyone else headed back to New York a couple days ago when Laing called. Something about having a lead on his sister or some shit. I don’t know, I tuned them out.