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It goes straight to voicemail.
I try two more times before giving up and call her father.
Richard Smith picks up on the second ring.
“Where’s Elise?” I demand.
He sounds startled. “She went to pick up her things an hour ago. She should be on her way back. What’s wrong?”
“Who went with her?”
“She wanted to go alone but I sent her in a car with my chauffeur.”
“Find out where he is and if he’s outside, he needs to go in and stay with her until I get there!”
I don’t listen to his alarmed questions and simply toss the phone to Lana to deal with.
I can hear the three men on my heels as I rush out, aiming for the stairs.
Elise’s apartment has never seemed so far away as I hop into my car with Caleb and Oliver on my heels.
The sleek black car is distinctive in front of the building and the slumped man on the ground outside stands out even more.
Oliver takes his pulse, stating grimly, “He’s alive.”
“That’s the chauffeur.” I glance up at the building. “There is a fire escape in the back. It has two entrances to her apartment. One from the kitchen and there is one from her room. Both windows are sealed shut so—”
Oliver takes out a sharp army knife from his jacket. “Don’t worry about me.”
Caleb just gives me a faint half smile.
We’re not going in at the same time. If Darren/Payden is inside then I want to cut off all his escape routes.
When I get up there, the door to the apartment is open.
Of course it is. That’s never a good sign.
My head is calm, fear for Elise making my movements slow and deliberate. One wrong move could cost me my whole world today.
I push open the door, softly, really glad it doesn’t creak.
The door swings back to reveal Elise sitting in the center of the room on a chair, the coffee table pushed back, almost as if she’s on display. Her face is white as a sheet but she looks calm.
We stare at each other and I note that her hands and legs are free, no marks on her aside from the fading bruises. “Elise, come here,” I say, quietly.
Her jaw is tense and she shakes her head, croaking, “I-I can’t.”
I don’t panic, keeping myself together. “Why not?”
“Because she’ll stab herself if she does.” Payden exits the kitchen, a cola in one hand, and a gun in the other. “I wasn’t expecting you to show up today. Maybe in a few days when you realized your little girlfriend was missing. And then of course, either you’d find her dead or half dead.”
I take in the gun and notice it’s cocked and has a silencer.
I circle the room.
Payden doesn’t move, amusement in his eyes. Once I’m in a position where I can see the back of the chair, I realize that there are two bands around Elise’s waist that are hooked onto some mechanism and a sharp pointed knife at her back. The end result is that if she tries to even stand, the knife will pierce her back, slicing through her heart.
Fear is a tangible emotion that’s making my mouth dry. However, as I look towards Payden, a glance in the mirror behind him shows me that my face is impassive, not a trace of emotion on it. “And just how do you expect to get out of this situation scott free?” I ask, my tone neutral. “If not me, then the police will come for you.”
