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SEVENTEEN
“I’ve got this, Brice, if you have plans.” Sandra would rather be left alone to muddle through her thoughts. She had some ideas of how to track down Olivia before getting her phone traced.
“I’m not going anywhere until I know your daughter’s safe and sound.”
“Of course you’re not,” she deadpanned.
“You act like I bug the living hell out of you, but I know it’s all an act.”
“Is it, though?” The flicker of a smile, despite her resistance. She couldn’t let her barrier down. It seemed to work well for their camaraderie.
He pointed at her mouth. “I caught that. Just the tiniest of smirks.”
“You need your eyes tested, but could we pick this up another time?”
“Nope. What can I do to help?” His voice held a serious tone, and his eyes were marked with concern.
There was one thing she dreaded doing, and she feared verbalizing it. “I’ll get back to you.”
“Sure. I’ll be right here.” He lowered himself onto her desk again.
“Don’t even think about it.”
He popped back up and went to his desk. She called the concierge desk at her building, and when Earl answered, she said, “It’s Sandra Vos.” She’d typically addfrom the penthousebut not with Brice listening to every word. Earl would recognize her by name anyhow.
“Yes, ma’am. What can I do for you?”
“Did you see Olivia this afternoon, early evening?”
“I did not.”
So where the hell…“Thank you.” She hung up before Earl could say anything further and rubbed her forehead. An epic headache was rolling in.Where are you, baby?
“Sandra.”
She jumped as Brice bent over and said her name into her ear. “What the?—”
“I’m not even going to ask about that phone call.”
“Good.”
“What is it I can help with?”
There would be no more putting it off…“We need to call the hospitals in the city and see if she’s been admitted.”
“Sure. Olivia, right?”
“Uh-huh.” She mentioned her name to him a moment ago and at least a hundred times since Penelope’s call.
“I’ll handle it.”
She shook her head. “We’ll split them up. I think there are a lot.”
As it turned out, there were seven general hospitals in DC. Brice took four, leaving her three. For every call Sandra made, she cringed as she waited for the nursing staff to come back on the line. Every passing second was like receiving a fresh sting from a bee. When they returned to the line to say they had no patient by that name and hadn’t received any unidentifiedfemales of Olivia’s description, Sandra wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or not. It didn’t exactly mean that Olivia was safe.
When she finished her calls, she sat back in her chair and looked over at Brice at his desk. He shook his head, a subtle smile on his lips, and thanked the person he was on the line with. “That was the last one for me. I’m guessing you learned nothing either?”
She shook her head, not able to bring herself to admit it out loud. Where did this leave her? She couldn’t just sit here going mad. “I’m trying Avery again.”And now I’m announcing my next move to Brice… Dear God, if you’re up there…She selected the girl’s name from her contacts and listened to the line ring.Once, twice, three?—