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“I’ll follow you,” Lach said, sliding into his luxury sports sedan.
Toth peeled out of the parking lot, Lach close behind him. He plugged Dare’s address into his GPS and followed turn-by-turn directions as he wove out of the industrial district, through the downtown core, and onto the interstate. He drove on autopilot, his mind a million miles from the road and on one thing only: Sav.
He never should have left her. Never should have fucking assumed they were untouchable in the warehouse or that Danny was capable of protecting her. He’d reduced forces when the stakes were at their highest, and his stupidity might have just gotten Sav killed.
Jesus. The odds of her being alive were slim to none. Whoever had shot Danny hadn’t intended to kill but to render him defenseless while his daughter was taken. Toth’s mind worked at warp speed. With Brett dead, there were a few possibilities. Brett’s men wanted vengeance, Brett had been working for someone else, or, the most unlikely, Red Eyez was a threat.
He hadn’t had the chance to question Danny about why he’d pegged Red Eyez as the culprit, especially if Danny was dealing with Brett. He had to look at this from all angles and not assume it had everything to do with Brett and Lionsgate, although they were the most likely suspects.
The GPS chirped for him to take the next exit. The area was quiet. Large one- and two-story homes dotted the subdivision. Towering pine trees filled the spaces between and behind the houses, making the area seem even more secluded.
The automated voice told him he was at his destination. A brick-and-siding house sat at the end of a long double-wide driveway. Anticipation fired through Toth. Lach’s headlights shone in his rearview mirror as Toth rolled to a stop.
He leaped out of the car, not waiting for Lach. A second later the slam of Lach’s car door echoed in the night. Toth knocked on the solid wood door. The sound of hurried footsteps reached his ears and the door was yanked open.
“Come in,” Dare said, stepping back.
A warmly lit foyer greeted him. Sweeping, wide-planked hardwood floors stretched through the main floor and a staircase climbed to the second level. Toth and Lach removed their shoes and stepped onto the blue-and-taupe-colored area rug.
A woman padded in from the living room, her brown hair pulled back into a high ponytail and her eyes sharp and concerned. She wore an oversized black sweatshirt that looked big enough to be Dare’s and neon-pink yoga pants.
“This is my fiancée, Tess.” Dare brought his hand to her back.
Tess smiled and shook Lach’s hand then Toth’s. “Dare told me your girlfriend is missing. We’re happy to help.”
Girlfriend?
The word, so simple yet so fucking heavy, hit him right in the heart. Part of him wanted to correct Tess, but the fact of the matter was that it felt right.
Except she’s not your girlfriend, dumbass.
Ah, well. Things to sort through in his head later.
“Thanks.” He ignored Lach’s curious glare—surely wondering if Toth was banging his sister—and shifted his gaze to Dare. “We need to hurry.”
Dare waved him into the open-concept dining and living room. A large fireplace was the focal point, and pictures filled frames on the wall. Two laptops and some foreign devices were set up on the dining room table.
“What’s all this?”
Tess pulled out a chair and sat then gestured for Toth to take the one beside her. He brushed away the offer. No fucking way could he sit.
She curled in her lips as if she understood.
Dare turned the screen to face Toth and Lach. “I managed to hack Sinners Cartel’s security footage. Hope you don’t mind,” he said dryly, looking at Lach.
Lach grunted. “Saved us some time.”
Dare pointed to three men in balaclavas. “These guys stormed in at 9:22 p.m.” He lifted his wrist and glanced at his watch. “Fifty minutes ago.”
Angst chewed a hole in the lining of Toth’s stomach. He clenched his jaw as he stared at the masked men he’d slaughter later. “Fast-forward,” he commanded.
Dare’s eyes darkened, but he did as Toth asked, moving the clip at a quick pace to show the men bursting toward Danny’s office. Toth’s body was visible in one of the frames, unconscious on the floor. Shame filled him. He’d let two chumps take him down, and in those brief moments, Savannah had been snatched. Had he fought harder, just stayed fucking conscious, they wouldn’t have succeeded.
But they had. Because he’d failed. Hate collided with self-pity, and he balled his hands into fists to stop himself from putting a hole in the wall. With every breath, it was an effort for him to keep his fury in check.
The next few seconds showed one of the men carrying Savannah over his shoulder. “Where’s the other guy?”
“Dad’s office,” Lach said. “He was shot in the neck. Dead when I got there.”
