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Lauren had recently tricked Li Na by agreeing to partner with her on a version of the patch, Lauren’s game-changing biomedical invention. But with my help, Paragon surreptitiously launched the technology, winning the race to rule the global healthcare market.
Apparently, Li Na didn’t intend to let Lauren enjoy her victory lap.
I didn’t know what else to do, so I fired up the coffeemaker while Lauren paced and cried. “This is my fault. I don’t know what I’ll do if they hurt her—”
“Don’t think like that.”
She stopped. “I have to think like that. My poor sister…” She shook her head when words seemed to fail her.
I wished there was something I could do to comfort her, but as long as Hannah was missing, there’d be no comforting Lauren. Other than me, Hannah was all she had.
We stayed in the kitchen for the rest of the morning, fielding calls from the police, the FBI, the hospital, our attorneys, and our security teams.
Wesley was alive but in critical condition.
No one knew where they’d taken Hannah.
Lauren continued to pace, two hectic spots of color in her cheeks. She wasn’t crying anymore, but she also wasn’t talking. “Babe, we should probably eat something. This is going to be a long day.”
“She’s probably dead,” she said flatly.
“She’s not—”
Lauren whirled on me. “I know you’re trying to make me feel better, but stop. Please. I just want…I just want it to be yesterday. I want to go back. But I can’t, so I need to prepare myself for the worst.”
Her phone buzzed against the island, and she lunged for it. She tapped at the screen and then stood there—I could see her hands shaking as she read.
“Lauren?”
“It’s Li Na. She sent me an email.” She shoved the phone at me.
It seems I finally have something that you want. I’ll be in touch.
I clutched the phone hard, on the verge of shattering it. “I’m sending this to Dave and Leo—to see if they can trace it.”
Lauren nodded, her face a pale mask.
“I called my brothers. They’re on a flight. They want to help.” She hadn’t met Levi and Asher, and this wasn’t how I’d planned on introducing them, but since they ran a private security company, there was no time like the present.
“Are they…familiar with this sort of thing?”
/> “Yes—Levi’s ex-military. His company handles all sorts of cases, including high-profile kidnappings. He’ll know what to do.” I couldn’t wait for them to get here. Waiting to hear back from the police and the FBI was making me crazy. They were telling me nothing, probably because they had nothing to tell.
But Levi would get results. That was why Betts Security was widely recognized as one of the top security firms in the country.
Lauren licked her lips. I poured her a glass of water, and she stared at the clear, level liquid. “I’m going to let her have it,” she said after a minute. “Li Na, I mean. The patch. My company. I’m not doing this anymore. I can’t. I’ll email her back when I can formulate a coherent thought.”
“Okay.” It would’ve seemed crazy for her to say that even yesterday, but this was new territory. “I understand. I’ll help you do whatever you need.”
“I can’t lose Hannah. I would never… I could never…”
I put my hand over hers and squeezed. “I know.”
“Do you really think she’s still alive?”
“Yes—Li Na isn’t going to hurt her right now. She wants your technology, Lauren. She knows that your sister is going to give her the bargaining power she’s been looking for. Li Na’s a lot of things—and completely fucking crazy is at the top of that list—but she’s not stupid. She did this for one reason: to get you to crack.”
She threw up her hands. “Well, she wins.”
