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"Dylan, sit down and take a deep breath. We're going to get him. I promise you." Lukus was eerily calm. Hannah was tempted to believe his promise. He waited for Dylan to sit before he continued. "I'm going to take this with me and get photos of each page over to my tech guru to see what he can put together with the information inside. In the meantime, I don't think either of you is going to like what I'm about to ask you to do. If I thought there was any other way to proceed, I'd take it, but we're running out of options."
Hannah may not have known the man at all, but she could see regret in his eyes as he continued. "We need to get inside that warehouse, Hannah. We've talked to several employees and haven't been able to find anyone who knows anything about what is going on. You're our best chance."
Dylan was back on his feet, this time up in Lukus's face. "Are you nuts? You want to send Hannah inside that house of pain? Alone?"
She was shaking at the thought of even seeing Jake again, let alone going inside his lair, where she would once again be at his mercy. "You can have the journal. Use it, but that's all I can do. You can't ask me to see him again," she pleaded.
Before Lukus could reply, her cell phone was ringing inside her purse on the kitchen counter. It was Mia's ringtone. She was about to let it roll to voicemail until the memory of Jake leaving the shop with Lucy flooded back to her. "Damn. I need to get that."
She crossed to her purse and answered the call. "Hey Mia." A pang of regret hit her as she realized she was going to be leaving her life behind, including her friendship with Mia. Then her regret took a back seat as Mia cried through the phone.
"Lucy is in so much trouble, Hannah!"
With dread, she asked the question she already suspected the answer to. "What has he done?"
"I'm forwarding the video to you now. God, I hate to even ask you this, but he says he's going to hurt her if you don't give him back something you have of his. Please tell me you know what he's talking about and can give it to him?" Mia begged.
Hannah closed her eyes as she felt the blood pounding through her veins. Her ears were ringing and she looked down at her smartphone as it dinged the arrival of the video. Sensing something was happening, Lukus and Dylan crowded around behind her to look down at her phone.
The screen was filled with the sight of a crying Lucy, looking terrified. Davenport was smart. He couldn't be seen or heard, but his message still came through loud and clear through a hysterically sobbing Lucy. Her mascara had run, her hair was messed up. Only the straps of her bra were visible, indicating she had been partially stripped. Through her tears, they caught her message.
"Mia... you have to talk to Hannah. I'm not sure where I am, but I know this. If Hannah doesn't give back what she stole, I'm going to pay the price." Lucy glanced to one side, hesitating as if she were looking at Jake for instructions before continuing. "She only has a few hours. If she doesn't call her boss tonight, we are all going to be in a lot of trouble. Please, Mia. Talk to her. Convince her to do the right thing."
The video ended abruptly.
"Damn him. Once again, he was careful. She doesn't mention his name. She doesn't give specifics of location," Lukus said.
Mia was crying. "I know she's a pain, but she's my sister. I'd never ask you—"
Hannah cut her off. "It's okay, Mia. I understand. I've gotta go." She pressed 'end' on the call before her friend could hear her crying. It hurt that Mia was choosing her sister's safety over her own.
Just once, it would have been nice to be first on someone's priority list.
That was when she looked up to see Dylan was back on his feet, starting to pile items he thought she might want to take near her purse on the counter. Lukus, on the other hand, sat in the seat next to her and just stared at her, letting her mull over the video they'd just seen.
She pressed him for answers. "What is he doing to women in the warehouse?"
"Do you really want to know?"
"Not really, but I think if you want me to go inside, I have the right to know."
Dylan stopped to stare at them. "You arenotgoing inside there, Hannah. I'm not going to let you. There has to be another way."
Lukus looked up at Dylan, finally showing his anger. "Do you honestly think I'd send an innocent woman in there if I thought there was another way?"
"This is bullshit. You'd never let Tiffany or Brianna go inside there. Derek would never let Rachel near that lunatic. So why is it okay to send Hannah in?"
Hannah could tell Lukus was struggling to hold a tight rein on his emotions as he replied. "I didn't put Hannah in danger. She was already in danger. And she made her situation worse by choosing to take the journal. Like it or not, she is already a target. All I'm trying to do is capitalize on it."
Lukus reached for the iPad he had brought in with him. Within a minute, he was pushing the tablet across the table for Hannah to view. The picture of the woman being tortured on screen gutted her. Hannah threw her hands up to cover her ears, trying to shut out the woman's screams as the man on screen used a thick cane on her ass and legs, leaving instant welts. The cameraman zoomed in on several weeping droplets of blood. The woman begged for her tormentor to stop as the deviant methodically struck her again and again until she whimpered in defeat.
Both men stared at Hannah, waiting for her decision. She looked between them and back to the screen. She weighed her options, wishing she could go back in time and never talk to Jake Davenport—knowing that was impossible. She wanted to pack up and run away, but to where? She was broke, and starting over cost money. And could she spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder, waiting for Jake to catch up to her and Connor?
She closed her eyes, thinking until her head was throbbing. By the time she opened them again, she knew she only had one option that would get her life back. She looked at Dylan as she asked for more information. "If I do this, how will you keep me safe?"
Lukus answered her as Dylan became more agitated. "You'll be wired for sound and we'll rig up a small camera so you can capture evidence. We'll be listening in the entire time, and as soon as we get some evidence we can take to the police, we'll call them in."
Dylan was shaking his head, trying to convince her to say 'no' even as she gave her answer. "I'll go in, but only if you promise to come in and get me if he starts to hurt me."
