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“Or out of the city,” she added.
It was a possibility I had to consider as well. Staying calm was how I would find him. Seraphina pushing me didn’t help the situation. I sighed. There were no ransom calls. I had hit one dead end after another. I had received the report from my security team. The sweep outside the office building where Crew disappeared came up empty. There wasn’t a single piece of viable security footage off the street or entryway cameras.
“If they left New Orleans with Crew, we’ll find them. They are still close by.” I was clinging to threads of possible truths.
“What if they’re out of the country?” She was spiraling too quickly. Her mind had already let her imagination take her to the worst places. The darkest outcomes. I had to pull her back.
“No,” I snapped. “There hasn’t been enough time for that. They’re here. I promise I’ll find the people who have him. Okay?” I tried my best to smile at her even though forming something happy on my face was incongruous with everything going on in my head. “We have to think through this. Calmly,” I emphasized. Panicked thinking wouldn’t make the discovery happen faster. It was more likely to lead to a mistake.
We were cooped up at the stables. I didn’t know who had access to the stable grounds, but the Corban compound was far worse. I trusted no one. I assumed everyone was a suspect. Everyone here knew Crew. Everyone in New Orleans knew Kennedy. There were no allies I could turn to. I had hesitated to bring my security into the equation, so I did so without details. They didn’t know I was looking for Crew.
Our eyes met when Seraphina’s phone rang. Was there a chance the abductor would call her instead of make contact with me? She shook her head. “Just Brandon. What do I do?” There was already panic in her voice.
Fuck. I wanted the kidnappers to reach out. These things were always about money. Wh
y couldn’t they go ahead and name their price? They knew I’d pay the amount no matter how high it was. I’d do anything for Seraphina right now.
“Answer it. And act like everything is fine,” I warned her. “Nothing is any different. Remember that. He has no idea what you’re going through. You have to keep it that way.” She nodded cautiously. I didn’t know how she was going to go home tonight and play the role of adoring wife in the state she was in. If she didn’t, the consequences could be worse than what she was already up against.
“Hi, hon,” she spoke gently into the phone. I wondered how she was able to transform her emotions so quickly. It was the first time I had witnessed my sister’s deceptive nature. I was impressed. “What’s going on? What have you been doing all afternoon? Did you play golf with your dad?” She turned her back to me and looked through the blinds while she listened to Brandon.
I nodded to her that I was going to step outside while they spoke. She pressed the phone against her cheek with one hand, the other rested on her stomach.
The humidity clung to my skin as I walked into the sun’s path between Seraphina’s apartment and the first row of horses. I stopped in front of a stall. The horse bowed slightly. I lifted my knuckles, prepared to rub its nose, but the horse turned quickly, and I dropped my hand as if I had spooked it.
I turned my back to the horse as one of my sister’s stable hands strolled past. He carried a saddle and whistled to his slow pace. I nodded at him.
Telling Seraphina that Crew was missing was one of the hardest things I had done. Her reaction gutted me. I felt all the emotions she did. The dread. The despair. The loss. But I didn’t have the luxury to show how it affected me.
Before I could walk out into the driveway, Seraphina grabbed my shoulder.
“Knight.”
“What is it?” I searched her eyes. “Did you learn something?”
“No. Brandon wants me to meet him at The Table. How can I do that? I can’t leave. Not with Crew out there. I can’t go to dinner. I can’t even eat.”
“Is that normal?” I asked.
“What?”
“Do you meet Brandon at the Castilles’ restaurant regularly?”
“All the time,” she answered.
“Good. That’s good. You need to go.”
“And sit through dinner with them? Are you crazy? How do you expect me to do that?” Her voice squeaked.
“You’ll do it because it’s what Crew needs you to do. Nothing is wrong. Do you understand?” I didn’t know how to tell her without scaring her more than she already was. She had to go to this dinner.
She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to steel herself. “How?” Her bright blue eyes opened, glistening with tears. “I’m supposed to sit there while the Castilles talk about their cut in the livestock business. While Brandon’s mother talks about what gaudy piece of art she wants to buy for her hideous gallery. And then listen to them make fun of my horses and the stables? Laugh about how moody I am now that I’m pregnant. I can’t. There’s no way.” Her hands had moved to her hips. “How can you ask me to do that? Answer me seriously.”
My brows furrowed. “If it meant saving Kennedy’s life, I’d do it.” I almost thought I heard my father’s voice passing over my lips. I’d never spoken to her like that.
“Then you should come with me,” she answered. “Help me through the dinner.”
“No. Someone has to be available for the call when it comes in.” I was holding on to the hope of a ransom call for Crew’s sake. My phone should have already rung by now. “Dinner with the Castilles isn’t time I can afford to be distracted. This is serious. You can handle dinner. I saw you at your wedding.”
