Page 27 of Deadly Hope

Marisol: Me? I’m not the one with the hot bodyguard detail...

Olivia: He’s a CLIENT!

Marisol: Not *technically*...

Olivia: Pushing?

Marisol: A little Just saying...

Olivia:

Marisol: That’s not ano...

Olivia set her phone down,ignoring the last message, but couldn’t quite suppress a smile. Trust Marisol to try normalizing all this with inappropriate flirting. Her gaze drifted to the clock. 10:05. Her smile faded.

Ben was late.

Ben Prado was never late.

She pulled up his file on her tablet, though she hardly needed to. The man had elevated punctuality to an art form, arriving precisely five minutes early to every session for eight months. And yet … no text. No call.

She texted Marisol, but her friend quickly replied that there were no new messages on the main office line.

The waiting room beyond her door remained emptily pristine.

Something was wrong.

Her phone buzzed again, an unknown number. Olivia hesitated, then answered.

“Dr. Kane?” The voice was female, tight with barely controlled panic. “I’m so sorry to call—I know I shouldn’t—I’m Eileen Prado. Benjamin’s wife.”

Olivia sat straighter, therapist mode engaging even as her stomach tightened. “Eileen. What’s wrong?”

“I just got back from Chicago. The conference ended early, so I thought—” A shaky breath. “The house is empty.”

“Empty?”

“Like, empty-empty. His clothes, his medals—you know how he keeps them in that special case? His laptop, too. Everything’s just ... gone.” Eileen’s voice cracked. “He was doing better. During our couple’s session you said he was doing better.”

Olivia’s mind raced through her last session with him. Ben, finally discussing the incident, his hands white-knuckled but voice steady. The breakthrough they’d been working toward for months. And now ...

“Eileen , I’m going to help, but I need your permission to involve my security team. They can check the house, maybe find something that would?—”

“Yes, anything. Please. I’ll text you our address. Just ... find him.”

The line went dead. Seconds later, her phone pinged with the Prados’ address.

Her finger hovered over her phone. Professional boundaries blurred with client safety in her mind, but Eileen’s permission made the decision easier.

Olivia: Client missing. House cleared out. Need eyes on site.

Axel: Address?

Olivia: Coming with you.

Axel: Not advisable.

Olivia: Not negotiable.