Page 27 of Axel (Reed Hawthorne Security #6)

Axel

I check my phone again. It’s not like Savvy not to respond to a text. Maybe she got caught up in something. I leave work and head to her new office. Tonight is supposed to be our first official date. The only detail we haven’t worked out is what time I’m picking her up.

A normal person would wait for her to text me back. But I’ve been in protection mode too long to ignore my gut, and it’s telling me something’s wrong.

As I approach the building she works in, I spot her car parked on the street out front. I relax a little. She’s probably busy, and I’m overreacting. I continue inside because now I want to see her.

When I enter her new office, I’m greeted by a woman who fits the description Savvy gave of Maggie.

“I’m sorry, but we are closed,” she says.

“Maggie?” I ask.

“Yes, have we met? ”

“No, I’m a friend of Savvy’s. Is she here?” I glance around but don’t see her.

“No, she had a showing today.” She checks her phone. “Although that was hours ago. She must have gone home.”

That doesn’t make sense. “Her car is out front,” I say.

Maggie goes to the window. “That’s odd. Maybe she took the other car home.”

“Other car?”

“Yes, the company car.”

“Oh. She wouldn’t leave her car here and do that,” I say.

“No, she wouldn’t,” Maggie agrees.

“Hello,” a woman behind us says.

We both turn around.

“Susan, this is… I’m sorry, I didn’t get your name,” Maggie says.

“Axel. I’m a friend of Savvy’s. It appears she had a showing earlier today and hasn’t returned.”

Susan’s brow furrows. “That’s odd. Did she return the car?”

“No,” Maggie says.

“Let’s check where she is then,” Susan says as she pulls out her phone.

“Do you have tags on the car?” I ask.

“No, in the key fobs. I had an employee who kept losing them, and they are not cheap to replace, so I decided to attach an AirTag to each one. It’s on the keyring, so it’s no secret.

” She stares at her phone. “Well, that’s odd.

She’s not far, but it’s not a commercial area, so it wouldn’t be a showing. ”

My stomach drops. This is not good. “Give me the address.”

She rattles it off, and I type it into my phone. I run out of the office, calling Reed as I head to my car. I explain what’s going on and give him the address.

“I’ll get one of the guys to meet you there.”

“Sounds good, but I’m not waiting,” I say.

“Understood.”

I end the call and drive over the speed limit until I reach the address, which is more upstate. There’s a dilapidated mailbox at the end of the driveway. I decide to park on the street instead of the driveway so no one hears me coming.

As I make my way down the dirt path, the house comes into view. Most of the windows are boarded up. There are no cars in the driveway, but the dirt has been disturbed, so someone has been here recently.

The front door has a padlock on it, which is odd. I head around to the back of the house. The windows on this side aren’t boarded up. And in fact, one is broken. The window is low. It must lead to a basement.

I get closer and then freeze. There’s blood on the frame. Fresh, bright against the rusted sill. My stomach drops. Not a lot, but enough. Too much.

Then I spot the key fob in the grass.

“Savvy?” I call in through the window. I peer in, but no one is there.

She’s gone. Did she escape? Was she recaptured?

I turn around, and the property is surrounded by trees and underbrush. She likely wouldn’t risk getting lost in the woods. Well, that’s if she’s thinking straight. Who knows what has happened to her?

“Axel?” Moose calls from the front of the house.

“I’m here,” I yell.

He finds me.

“How did you get here so fast?” I ask.

“I was actually in the area when Reed called. Any sign of her?”

I point to the ground. “There’s some blood, and I found the key fob.” I hold it up. “She’s gone, and we have no idea where she is or how badly she’s hurt. Dammit!”

We run back to the front, and I race down the driveway to the road. Moose is right behind me.

A man steps out from the house next door and glares at us.

“Hey!” I shout. “Did you see a woman run through here?” I pull up the one photo I have of her as I move closer to him. I hold it up. “Her?”

He stares at the photo, then shakes his head. “She missing or something?”

“She was kidnapped and taken to that house, but no one is there now.” I point in its direction.

“That house is abandoned. Haven’t seen anyone around it in years,” he says.

“Thanks,” I say as I return to Moose.

We return to the back of the house again and study the broken window closely. There is blood on a sharp piece still attached to the frame.

“Looks like she broke out to me,” Moose says. “And then…” He squats down outside the window and looks around. Then he points to his right. “I’d go that way.”

He walks to the edge of the lawn and through a bush. I follow him. On the other side is a dirt path.

“How did you know this was here?” I ask.

“I saw it when I squatted down.”

The path leads us to the next property. The lights are on, and it appears someone is home. I knock on the door, and when a woman answers, I show her Savvy’s photo and ask if she’s seen her.

Again, no luck.

“She might keep walking until she sees something she’s familiar with,” Moose says. “Let’s go back and get your car and check every road through here.”

I nod, and we jog back down the path and toward the vacant house. We spend the next few hours looking for Savvy. But we don’t find her, and now it’s dark. Finally, I take Moose back to the house so he can get his car. He’s going to find us some food while I continue the search.

As we approach the house, headlights shine at us.

“I think there’s a car down there.”

I drive toward the house and spot the car. There’s no one in it. I block it in.

The padlock is no longer on the door, and it’s wide open. We exit my car as quietly as possible. A large container of bleach, along with a hacksaw, sits in the doorway.

The thought of what those are intended for makes me sick. We need to get this guy. And check to see if Savvy was recaptured and inside .

I move to the left of the door, and Moose goes to the right. I’m about to motion for us to go inside when I hear a man’s voice.

“She couldn’t have gotten too far. I’ll go back after I clean up everything here.”

Thank God, he didn’t find her.

He steps out of the front door and notices me. “What the hell?”

Moose grabs him from behind. The man reaches for his waistband.

“He’s got a gun!” I say.

The moment he grabs it, I kick it out of his hand. He wasn’t expecting that, and it falls to the ground.

Moose gets him down and holds his arms behind his back. The man struggles but is no match for Moose’s strength.

“Where is she?” I ask.

“Who?” he asks.

Moose pulls his arms back a little farther, and he cries out in pain.

“You know who!”

“I don’t know. She escaped.”

I know he’s telling the truth because that’s what he said on the phone. Which means I need to get back out there to look for her.

I search his pockets and find a wallet. Inside, I find credit cards.

“Marco,” I say.

He found a way into the country, and he found Savvy.

“What do you want to do to him?” Moose asks .

The man whines. “You’re hurting me!”

I don’t buy his act for a minute. I’ve seen this guy’s record.

“Don’t let up,” I say to Moose.

“Not planning on it. But it would help if you could grab some wire ties. I have some in my console,” Moose says. “It’s unlocked.”

I grab the ties and hand one to Moose and use the other to bind Marco’s ankles together.

Hopefully, Savvy found somewhere safe to hide. With so many houses around here, maybe she found someone willing to help her out. Or she might have found someone not so nice.

No, I can’t think like that.

“My trunk can fit him so you can search for Savvy,” Moose says.

Actually, that’s a good idea. “Sounds good.”

The man is still on his stomach, but now that his ankles and wrists are bound, he’s easier to manage. I grab his legs, and Moose grabs his arms. We get him into Moose’s trunk, and he closes it. The man is yelling at us to let him out, but we ignore him.

“Now let’s find Savvy,” Moose says.

I stare at the trunk. I want to break his face. But Savvy’s still out there. Priorities.

I nod. “We need to call Stevens and let her know about Marco.”

“I’ll drive your car so you can look. She has to be close. He’ll be fine in there for a while. ”

I turn to his car as well. It’s a cool evening, so I’m not worried.

“All right. Let’s go.”

I call Stevens as we drive back to the road. It goes to voicemail. I let her know we have Marco and to call me.

We drive around slowly, turning down every road. I call out for Savvy every couple of blocks. I really hope she’s hiding off the road and can’t hear me. My fear is she’s lost a lot of blood and has passed out. I have no idea how injured she is.

No, I need to stay positive. She’s close. I can feel it. I hope I’m not too late.