Page 31

ARES

I pressed the phone to my ear while Preston yelled unintelligibly. Resting my arm over the car’s open doorframe, I stood in the athletic parking lot after practice, trying to calm him down so I could understand him.

“I don’t know what to do!” Preston shouted for the third time.

I waved to Nick, our rookie defensive end who’d been killing it on the field lately, when he shouted see ya later. “About what, P? You’re not giving me any details.”

“They took her!” he shouted, and everything in me went cold.

But I had to make sure. I kept my voice level, despite my rising panic. “Who is ‘they,’ and who is ‘her,’ bud?” I tried again to make sense of what he was upset over as I climbed into the driver’s seat and turned the engine over.

“Miss Sinclair!”

He had my undivided attention. “What about Brielle?”

“Some guys took her away in a car.” He sounded like he was hyperventilating .

I needed him to calm down so I could get the information. “Give me details. Where are you?”

“At your condo. I tried calling a bunch of times, but you didn’t answer, so I came here.”

Fuck. “I had practice.” I put the car in gear and forced myself not to slam my foot on the accelerator while in the athletic lot. “I’ll be there in a few minutes. Just hold tight.” I hung up and called Kylian.

When he answered, I relayed what Preston had told me.

“I don’t have all the details yet, but I think the mafia has Brie.

Can you grab Liam from the weight room and meet me at home?

I think we’ll need help from Liam’s sister.

” She was a detective and our best bet to get Brie back, if I understood my nephew correctly.

My palms were sweating as I gripped the steering wheel tightly. Every red light had me swearing at the delay. Five minutes later, I flew into the underground parking lot and slammed the car into park. Soon after, I burst through the door into the condo.

Preston paced in front of the island. “What took you so long?”

“Fucking lights.”

I grabbed his shoulders to hold him in place just as Kylian and Liam shoved through the door so hard it slammed against the wall. Before I could say anything, Liam held up his hand, his phone pressed against his ear. I hoped he was talking to his sister. We needed help fast.

When he hung up, he leveled me with a grim expression. “Fiona wants to meet with us.”

I nodded then focused back on Preston. “Tell me everything.”

“There were three of them, all wearing suits.” Preston shifted from one foot to the other, still in his football clothes.

His hands threaded behind the back of his neck in a tight grip while he scrunched his forehead, remembering.

“Oh, there was a wicked scar over the older guy’s eyelid, and it drooped a little.

The other two looked like they answered to him, big guys with a lot of muscle.

One of the muscle guys grabbed her. When she screamed, the muscle holding her covered her mouth then shoved her in the car. They got in and took off.”

“Did you get the license?” I asked as Liam and Kylian crowded around us.

“No. I couldn’t see the license plate. It was too far away. It happened in the school parking lot, and I was headed to the locker room after practice.”

“Did anyone else see? Your teammates?” Kylian asked.

“No. I was later than everyone else ’cause I stayed back to helped Coach pick up stuff on the field. And he didn’t walk with me ’cause he got a phone call.”

“That’s okay,” I tried to reassure him. “You did amazing. Did you tell anyone else?”

“No. I didn’t know what to do.” His gaze leveled with mine. “But she’s your girlfriend. I thought you would know.”

“What? How, um…?” It so wasn’t the time for that conversation, but I guessed we were having it. “How did you know we were seeing each other?”

“I have eyes.”

“Does it bother you?”

“No.” He huffed and rolled his eyes. “She’s cool.”

I ruffled his hair before dismissing the impressively short talk. Preston wasn’t upset about that, but he was about what’d happened to Brielle. We all were.

I told them what Brielle had shared about her dad taking a loan from the mob and that we intended to get the cops involved.

“Wait.” Liam whipped his phone from his pocket, his fingers flying over the screen until he clicked on something. “Is this the guy you saw, P?”

Preston’s eyes widened, and he nodded. I peered over at his phone and saw who my nephew had confirmed took Brie— Anthony Canino . He was into all kinds of bad shit.

“How did you know it was that guy?” I flicked my gaze from Liam’s phone to his face.

“Remember when I went to my sister’s apartment last week to surprise her with takeout?

” Kylian and I nodded. “She was on the phone, so I started setting everything up, but I had to move stuff on her table to make room. There were case files, pictures, and notes spread out. One of the pictures was of Anthony Canino. I recognized him from the article a while back when he was arrested but then his lawyers got him out of all the charges.”

“Didn’t Fiona stop you?”

“Yeah, when she was off her call, but I managed to read some of it. They’re doing a raid at the casino the Canino family owns.”

“Why would she take that stuff home with her?” I’m no expert, but wouldn’t she leave the plans or information or whatever at the precinct?

A gleam lit Liam’s eyes. “I asked her the same thing. She said there’s a leak at the department, and guess who she suspects?”

I shrugged.

“The police chief.”

“Holy shit. That’s not good.” Kylian pushed off the island where he was leaning, a scowl marring his features.

“No kidding.” Liam snorted. “Fi will be here soon. She said she was in the neighborhood when I called and has a few minutes to hear what happened.”

That made things easier. I didn’t want Preston to have to go to the police station to ID the guy if we didn’t have to.

“She’s here,” Liam said. “I’m gonna meet her, catch her up to speed with what we know. Be back.”

Preston looked a little pale. I motioned for him to take a seat on one of the bar stools. Time moved slowly as we waited for Liam and Fiona. My skin felt stretched too tight, the sensation driving me crazy. I needed to do something—to find Brie. I hated feeling helpless.

The door opened, and Liam entered with Fiona. She was a small woman with dark-brown hair secured in a low bun. He slung his arm tightly around her shoulders as he introduced her to Preston, the only one she didn’t know.

She grunted from Liam’s too-tight hug and knocked his arm away, then focused on me. “Liam tells me you think it was the mob who took your girl?”

“Yes.” I grabbed Liam’s phone and told her about Preston IDing Anthony and also about Brie being nabbed from the Linwood Prep parking lot.

She asked Preston to recount what happened, and when he was done, I filled her in on the rest. “It has to do with her dad. He took out a loan or something, and he’s in jail, so probably not able to pay.”

“Well, if it was the Canino family, we’ve had surveillance on that crime organization for months.

I’ll pull any video footage from the school’s parking lot.

I appreciate the information, but now you boys need to head to the station and make a statement.

But only talk to Officer Fieldings. No one else. Are you clear on that?”

“Yes. Fieldings. Got it.” I committed his name to memory.

“Oh, and do you have a picture of the girl?” Fiona asked.

“Her name’s Brielle Sinclair.” I knew Fiona didn’t mean anything by calling her “the girl,” but it bothered me. I pulled my phone from my pocket and found a picture I’d snapped of her a few days ago.

Fiona took my phone and studied the image.

“Have you seen her, you know, since you’re surveilling the Caninos?”

“It’s hard to tell. We think several girls were brought into the casino, but we couldn’t identify anyone.”

“So, you guys saw them and didn’t do anything? ”

“It’s not like that.” Fiona squeezed my forearm. “We know how they’re being brought in. It’s a loading dock, and they put them in crates while the girls are unconscious.”

“Still, if you know, why aren’t you stopping it?”

“We are. We only just got the lead on this information. Executing a takedown takes weeks—months—of investigation, coordination, and warrants. Lucky for your girl, Preston saw the abduction. That’ll help move things along.”

“They have betting events at the casino, don’t they?” Liam narrowed his gaze at his sister.

I didn’t like the way he said that. “What do you mean by betting events?”

Kylian and I moved closer. From playing together for the past four years and being friends, an innate intuition made magic happen on the field, extending into our everyday lives.

They knew I was about to lose it. I hated how helpless I felt.

I wanted action—to storm the place and get her out, taking down anyone who opposed that goal.

“You little snoop.” Fiona frowned and smacked Liam on his shoulder.

“That’s classified information.” Fiona’s glare left her brother, and she wiped the emotion from her face to address me and Preston.

“Try not to worry. The best thing you can do is go to the station and give a statement, ID Anthony Canino.”

“What will you do to get her back?” I pushed.

“Things are underway. After you stop at the station, go home. You’ll help more if you’re out of the way and waiting for a call from Brielle when she’s safe.”

We wrapped things up and thanked Fiona for talking to us.

She pulled Liam aside and said a few words before they said their goodbyes.

That left Preston. Rather than sending him home, I called Mom and told her he would hang out at my condo while I talked to the police—because I refused to let him go there if the captain might be a mole—not that I had any actual intention of dropping in, either, even if Fiona trusted this Officer Fieldings.

I met Kylian and Liam’s determined stares.

It was enough to know that we were on the same page.

My friends knew my thoughts without me having to say a word.

It was just like that with the three of us after so many years of playing together on the field.

I ruffled Preston’s hair, trying to ease his tension as best I could. I didn’t want him walking home, and after a quick text to my mom, neither did she. In a half hour, she would be off work. Preston would hang tight until then.

“Stay here.” I pointed a finger at him. My stern voice left no room to argue. “Nana’ll be here soon.”

“No. I want to go to the station too.”

I cupped the back of his neck and bent so we were at eye level. “You can’t, bud. I need you safe, and that’s not where I’m going. Think of Nana. She already lost her daughter. She wouldn’t survive something happening to you too. I wouldn’t either. Please, do this for me.”

His eyes turned glassy, and he sniffed then cleared his throat. “Let me know everything’s okay.”

“I will. You did good, P.” I grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him in for a bear hug. Fuck, I love this kid so much. “I promise.”

We were out the door two seconds later to get my girl back.