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Without waiting for a response, he disconnected the call and dialed Laura. He reached the first floor and swung into the foyer. A ringing phone greeted him. Laura’s bag sat on the side table where she’d left it, her phone obviously inside, but she was nowhere to be seen. He disconnected and shoved his device in his pocket.
“Laura?” he yelled, praying for her to prove him wrong and walk down the hall. But she never appeared.
He ran into the kitchen, heart pounding. She wasn’t there, but the back door stood ajar.
They hadn’t opened the door when they’d searched for Mrs. Collins, which meant someone had recently used it.
Isaac.
Anger turned his blood hot, and he sprinted out the door, spinning in a circle to see every single inch of space around him. “Laura!” He screamed her name, willing her to appear.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
The sirens grew louder, closer, and he ran back inside. Each footstep echoed the panic tightening his chest. Two medics made it to the front door carrying a stretcher along with a medical bag as a deputy cruiser pulled into the driveway.
“The victim’s at the base of the stairs on the second floor,” he yelled as he passed them. He wanted Mrs. Collins to be okay, but right now, he had an even bigger problem. One he needed Deputy Owen Wells for.
Frowning, Owen stepped out of his cruiser. “What happened?”
“Laura’s missing. I swear, if Isaac has her, I’ll kill the sonofabitch.”
Owen held up his palms. “Slow down. First, threatening to kill someone in front of a sheriff’s deputy isn’t the best decision. Second, I thought I was here because a woman was pushed down the stairs. I need you to start from the beginning.”
Cade shoved a hand through his hair. He didn’t have time to go through everything from the freaking beginning. His gut told him Laura was in trouble and time was running out. As quickly as he could, he recapped what had happened for Owen.
Owen gave one, brief nod and worked his jaw back and forth. “Any idea who pushed Mrs. Collins?”
He gave a derisive snort. “Is there any question? It has to be Isaac. Dammit, we’re wasting time. We have to find Laura. She wouldn’t just disappear. Especially when she left my side to call for help.”
Commotion turned him back to the front of the house. The medics carried Mrs. Collins on the stretcher and hurried toward the ambulance.
Owen pushed the button on the side of the communicator attached to his shoulder as he moved toward the medics. “I need a few uniforms at 725 Grand Pine Road. Missing woman in potential danger. Need to locate Laura Metcalf, blond hair. Blue eyes. Five foot, two inches. Suspected to be with Isaac Heck.”
Cade followed, his pace clipped. Each sentence pierced him like a knife. Police shouldn’t need to be called. Laura shouldn’t be missing. If he’d done his job, none of this would be happening. Laura would be beside him. Not gone with a man who’d hurt her time and time again.
But this time would be different. He’d move mountains to bring her home. And when he did, he’d never let anyone hurt her. Never let anyone take her away from him again. He’d love her every damn day like she deserved to be loved.
But first, he had to find her.
20
Cade watched helplessly as the ambulance disappeared down the street. Owen barked orders to deputies, who fanned out in search of clues to Laura’s whereabouts. All the chaos and terror created a buzz in his brain. A fog that settled over him, making his vision grainy and sounds of the day distant.
The sun still shone bright, the clouds fluffy and white like they’d been drawn by a child. Everything should be right—should be perfect on a day like this.
But things were far from perfect. Everything was wrong. Very, very wrong.
The ringing phone in his pocket pulled Cade from the dark pit of panic assaulting him with every worst-case scenario. A beat of hope made his pulse race as he answered the phone. “Hello? Laura? Is that you?”
“Hi, Cade. It’s Brooke. Is everything okay?”
The concern leaking through the speaker shook his senses, and he lowered himself onto the porch steps. Dammit, he needed to get a grip. He wouldn’t do Laura a lick of good byfalling apart. She needed him now more than ever. “Laura’s missing. Police are searching for her.”
“What? Where are you? What happened?”
He pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to put his frantic thoughts together. “We stopped by the food pantry. Mrs. Collins was hurt, and while trying to get help, Laura went missing. The back door was open. I know Isaac has her. He pushed an old woman down the stairs and waited until we got here so he could grab her.”
“Are you sure it’s Isaac? There’s no one else it could be? Sometimes if we make up our minds before we have all the facts, we miss things right in front of our faces.”
