Page 21

CHAPTER 21

“Where could he be? Where could they have him?” Brooklyn demanded. Breath stuttered out of her fast and harsh. Too fast. Blood seeped down her cheek from when she hit the ground. She went towards the two men on the ground, but Ethan stopped her. “Brooklyn, let me handle this.”

“Where is he?” she yelled.

Ethan held her and signaled to Cooper, who came and gripped her arms. “No,” she yelled. “I want to talk to them.” She shook Cooper off and then tried to shake Ethan off, but he grabbed her by both shoulders.

“Let me handle this. Cooper is going to take you to the truck and examine the cut on your face, okay? You don’t want Liam to see you this way. It will scare him. He wasn’t above begging for her cooperation. “Please, honey. Go with Cooper.”

She put her hand to her face and then stared at the blood on her fingers. She immediately quieted and allowed Cooper to lead her away.

Ethan walked over to where the two thugs lay on the ground. The shorter guy was dead, no question, but the taller guy still breathed. Ethan squatted next to him. The man’s gaze followed Ethan.

“Where’s the boy?” Ethan asked.

The man blinked but said nothing. Blood pooled underneath him. Clearly, he didn’t have much time left. They hadn’t bothered to call an ambulance. They wouldn’t make it in time. Ethan knew it but he hoped the guy didn’t.

“I’ll call an ambulance. I’ll get you help but you’ve got to tell me where the boy is.”

The man stared at him and then gave a weak smile. “Not going to make it…” he said as blood came out of the corner of his mouth.

Ethan’s stomach dropped. He had no bargaining chip. “Tell me where the boy is.”

The man opened his mouth again, but no sound came out.

“Tell me,” Ethan demanded. “Do you have the boy? You’re gonna die out here because your boss sent you without the proper backup. It’s on them. You are gonna leave your family in the lurch because of your boss. Why protect him? You’re gonna die.” Ethan held the other man’s gaze. “Where is Liam?”

The man closed his eyes, which made Ethan’s heart clench, but then opened them again. His lips upturned at the corners as if he hadn’t a care in the world. Maybe he didn’t anymore.

“What does it matter now if you tell me? You’re already dead. No one can touch you.” But she’s suffering,” He pointed to Brooklyn who was sitting in the front seat of the SUV, shock written across her features. Cooper dabbed her cheek with a cotton pad from the first aid kit. “Do one good deed before you leave this world. Where is the boy?”

The man’s eyes flicked toward Brooklyn and then came back to Ethan. He opened his mouth. “Gone.”

“Gone? What does that mean?” Ethan’s heart hammered against his rib cage. He dropped his voice. “Do you mean dead?”

The man’s breath hitched but he opened his mouth again. “No. Escaped. Out there…somewhere.” The man held Ethan’s gaze for a moment longer before his eyes turned vacant, no longer seeing anything, at least on earth.

Ethan stood. Rusty and Bellamy came over. “Did he tell you anything?” Bellamy asked.

“He said that Liam escaped. He’s somewhere in this park.”

Rusty rubbed his jaw. “Well shit, that’s better than dead, but it’s nighttime. There have to be over ten thousand acres to search. We need to call in backup and the authorities.”

Ethan nodded toward his truck. “Let’s look at the map.” They all walked back over to the truck and Ethan pulled out an iPad with the map of the preserve on it. He handed it to Bellamy and then went around the door to talk to Brooklyn.

Cooper applied some antibiotic ointment to the reddened scratch and then stepped out of the way.

Brooklyn’s eyes filled with unshed tears when she met his gaze.

He leaned in. “Hey,” he said as he gave her a hug. “Liam’s alive. He’s okay.”

She pulled away. “Is that what that man said? That Liam’s alive?” Her face filled with hope.

“He said that Liam escaped into the preserve.”

All the light in her face died. “But… how will we search thousands of acres… he’s only…” her voice barely above a whisper.

“Yes, but you see those four dogs behind you?” He pointed to the dogs who were lying in the dirt waiting for orders. “They are the best in the business. We’re gonna find Liam. They’re gonna help us.”

He gave her shoulders a squeeze and then went back to the front of the truck. “Cooper, call Nova and fill her in.”

“Way ahead of ya.” Cooper pointed to his phone. He was already talking with her.

Good, that meant the authorities were officially notified. They could get on with what they needed to do. Nova would run interference for them.

“There are a couple shacks in here. I come hiking sometimes,” Rusty said by way of explanation.

“Yeah,” agreed Bellamy. “I know the ones you mean.”

Rusty pointed to the map. “I think this is the most likely one for them to hold Liam in. It’s accessible by an old dirt road and it’s not too far from here. Makes it the most appealing.”

Bellamy nodded again. “I agree. The other one is too far into the rainforest for these guys.”

“Let’s go there and see if the dogs can pick up Liam’s scent.” Ethan grabbed the iPad and they all loaded into the SUV. They put the dogs in the back and headed toward the shack.

“We need something of Ethan’s, something for the dogs to get his scent from,” Cooper pointed out.

Ethan swore. They didn’t have anything and going to get something would just cause more delays.

“His sweatshirt,” Brooklyn said triumphantly. She pulled it out from behind her.

“Excellent,” Bellamy commented as Ethan braked in front of the shack.

“How do we know no one else is here?” Brooklyn said suddenly. “Could there be more Yakuza?”

“No. They are either out looking for Liam, which is highly unlikely, or if anyone else was here, they took off when Liam escaped. No one wants to be responsible for losing the kid.”

They all piled out and got the dogs out of the cargo space.

Cooper answered a call as Ethan went around to Mojo.

“Ethan, I’m gonna hang back so I can meet up with Nova. She wants Rusty there too since he was the shooter.”

The second Ethan let the dogs loose, Tucker and Mojo sniffed the air, their bodies tense, their instincts on high alert. The small, dilapidated shack before them looked as if it had been forgotten by time, its wooden walls rotting, paint long since peeled away. The single window was cracked, the frame splintered, and the door hung slightly ajar, swaying eerily in the humid night breeze. The scent of mildew and damp earth permeated the air, mingling with something far more acrid—fear, desperation, and sweat.

Ethan took a step forward, his gun clutched in both hands, as Mojo pushed inside first, his snout pressed to the floorboards. Brooklyn was right behind them, her breath coming in shallow gasps. She put her hand over her mouth as she looked around the ramshackle room. A battered cot sat in one corner, the thin mattress stained and sunken. Coils of rope lay discarded near the wall, remnants of Liam’s captivity. Scraps of food—crushed crackers, a half-eaten granola bar—were strewn across the floor.

Brooklyn’s fingers clenched into fists. They’d confirmed Liam had been here. Alone. Afraid. She swallowed convulsively as if to keep from being sick. Ethan focused on his dog, concentrating on what was happening. There would be time for emotion later.

Mojo let out a low whine before barking sharply, his tail stiff as he sniffed the thin blanket tossed carelessly on the cot. Tucker circled the room once more before both dogs turned sharply toward the back door, their noses to the ground. A deep growl rumbled from Mojo’s throat. Relief created a thin thread of hope in Ethan. The dogs had caught the scent.

Mojo lunged for the door, his powerful body shoving it open. The rainforest beyond was dense, an inky labyrinth of towering ferns and twisted roots. The dampness clung to Ethan’s skin, the scent of moss, decaying wood, and rain-soaked leaves cloying in his nostrils. The canopy overhead blocked any ambient starlight, casting eerie shadows that shifted with the wind.

“Go, Mojo,” Ethan ordered urgently.

Mojo shot forward, Tucker right behind him, their paws barely making a sound as they navigated the uneven ground. Ethan and Bellamy stayed in a close formation, scanning the trees for any movement, their hands never straying far from their weapons. Brooklyn kept pace with them, but Ethan remained worried. It was so dark and he was afraid if she took her eyes off him, she could get lost in the darkness.

The rainforest swallowed them, branches clawing at their clothes, roots threatening to trip them at every step. Sweat dripped down Ethan’s back as they pushed deeper into the jungle, the dogs darting ahead, weaving through the foliage. Minutes stretched, each one a suffocating eternity in the rush to find Liam.

After what felt like forever, Mojo let out a loud, insistent bark.

Ethan tried to stop her, but Brooklyn sprinted forward. She broke through the foliage and stumbled into a small clearing. A strangled cry wrenched out of her throat.

Liam lay curled against the base of a thick tree, his small frame unmoving. His wrists were bound in front of him, his face smudged with dirt, but he was alive. Mojo whined and pressed his nose against the boy’s cheek before licking his face.

Liam stirred, letting out a weak, disoriented moan.

Brooklyn fell to her knees beside him, gathering him in her arms and pressing her forehead against his as sobs wracked her body.

“Oh, Liam,” she whispered, holding him tightly. “We found you. We found you.”

Ethan crouched beside them, his hand on her back, sensitive to the trembles wracking her frame. Relief crashed over him in waves, but he didn’t let his guard down. Not yet.

Ethan tapped his earbud. “We got him,” he said, his voice rough with emotion.

“Thank Christ,” Rusty commented.

Cooper added, “I second that.”

Brooklyn pulled back slightly, brushing Liam’s hair from his face. “You’re safe now, baby,” she whispered. “You’re safe.”