Page 44 of Silver Sanctuary (The Silver Springs #3)

Twenty-Six

“ S o, you guys are going away this weekend?” Mae asked.

They were busy having an impromptu girls chat in the middle of the gym at Montgomery Defense.

Lily and Sloane were sparring, while Mae stood next to the ring, stretching.

Lacy laughed at how many times Gage and Gunner walked out to watch their partners and coach them.

Although, from the eye rolls and shooing motions they got, Lily and Sloane didn’t seem to want them around.

“We are.” She knew she was smiling like an absolute fool, but the next few days were going to be so exciting.

“Nash and I are taking her out of school early today. With my mom and Adam getting released after the sheriff’s department questioned them, we just need a break.

And Embrie’s had such a tough week, with that birthday party from hell, and kids at school bringing up her hair, Nash thought it would be fun to go into Dallas and just spend the weekend exploring and doing some fun things together as a family. ”

“That’s so sweet. I bet she’ll love it.”

“I don’t know how I got so lucky. Nash booked us a suite at this fancy hotel.

He’s going to take us to dinner on the rooftop, and Brie can’t stop talking about the dress he picked out for her.

I’m getting choked up just thinking about it.

We’ve never had… no one has ever done anything like this for us. ”

“Don’t forget to pack swimsuits,” Sloane added, sliding under the ropes and pulling at the Velcro around her protective gear. “Hotels normally have a swimming pool. That’s a top-tier experience for kids.”

“Thanks, Sloane. I’ll definitely make sure we pack them. I can’t even remember the last time I went swimming.”

“It’s so clear that he loves the both of you.” Lily’s hand rested on Lacy’s arm. “Something about settling down and being a dad just makes these guys fall to mush.” Lily laughed.

“It’s so true. I love seeing it.” Lacy’s back pocket buzzed, making her jump. Her stomach sank as she recognized the number flashing across the screen. “Sorry, that’s the school. I’ve got to grab this.”

The girls nodded as she slipped over to the corner of the reception area. The windows were letting in such beautiful, strong mid-day sunshine that Lacy closed her eyes for a second, soaking in the warmth.

“Hello?”

“Mrs. Caldwell, this is Ms. Tillman. I was under the impression that Embrie wasn’t leaving until after lunch, but she’s missing her science exam with you pulling her out earlier than we discussed at the beginning of the week, and I will not be available to make this up with her.

She will take a zero on the quiz for this disruption. ”

Lacy squeezed her eyes shut, trying to understand what Embrie’s teacher just said.

“Ms. Tillman, I’m going to need you to back up, please. Embrie should still be in class. I haven’t come to the school to pull her out.”

“I… the main office called down an hour ago saying her gu ardian was here to take her for the day. Is it possible someone else came to get her?”

Her stomach cramped. “No. That’s not possible. I am her only guardian. My husband and I are the only ones listed on her form, and he’s here at his place of business with me. Doesn’t the office check? They should have a record of who signed her out.”

Lacy turned around, her girlfriends stepping closer to her with concern written all over their faces.

“It’s best if you come down to the school. I’m sure it’s a simple misunderstanding.”

“It’s not a misunderstanding if you don’t know where my daughter is! Or who has my daughter!”

“I’m going to contact the main office. I’ll make sure they’re waiting for you and we will get things sorted. I’ll have someone contact you if the problem is resolved before you arrive.”

“The problem?! My daughter is missing and you think this is simply a problem—” The call ended abruptly, startling Lacy.

She turned, registering calls from all three women somewhere in the background.

But there wasn’t time to answer them. She had to get to Nash.

He would fix it. He would make sure Embrie was safe.

Her legs nearly buckled as she made her way down the hall, but by some miracle she kept putting one foot in front of the other. All the things that terrified her, all the things she stayed up at night worrying about, and the worst happened while she was supposed to be safe at school.

Just a few more steps, Lace. Get to Nash. He’ll get her back. He’ll make sure she’s safe.

She passed Gage’s office, not stopping to acknowledge him saying “hello” as she walked by.

Then Gunner’s. And Stone’s. Finally, she made it to his office.

His voice carried out into the hallway, even through his shut door.

Every maternal instinct inside her body was screaming at her to get to Nash faster–to yell for him.

To wrap her arms around him and beg for him to help her wake up from the nightmare that the day had become.

And yet, her mind wouldn’t let her. Because she knew as soon as she opened the door, the second he saw her, it would be true. Brie would really be in danger.

“I appreciate you hopping on this call. I want to make sure we’re utilizing our time at your facility the best we can.

That mock schedule you sent to us last week seems perfect.

My team and I have a pretty solid feel for the pacing now and I’ll shoot off an email either right after this call or first thing tomorrow with the small changes we need to make. ”

“Yeah, I’m happy it helped. Let’s see…” Nash flipped through the binder laid out on his desk.

“We’ve got your team working with the SAR unit those first two days.

Search and Rescue will have their canines with them, so it’ll be good for your team to get used to working with the animals.

I know you guys don’t get too many calls out there in the big city for search and rescue… ”

“If our team does encounter a mass casualty situation, I want them to be prepared—to have some training and knowledge behind what they’re going to see in the day to day.”

“Exactly. I know you’ve also been in touch with Hawk, who will be your lead floor instructor the week you’re here with us, and he’s got some really great scenarios he plans to put your guys through.

I’ll be out of town starting this afternoon through Monday morning, so you can just direct everything to him and he’ll take care of you. ”

“Great. I can definitely do that. We’re looking forward to this training session. Hoping to make it an annual thing for all the special ops teams. ”

“It should be fun?—”

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught his office door inching open.

“Nash?”

His eyes flew from the computer screen to his doorway, where Lacy was standing, and every instinct in his body went on high alert.

“Bryan, I’m sorry, something’s come up here. I’m going to have to reschedule the rest of this call. I’ll have Mae reach out once I know what’s going on.”

“Yeah, of course. Let me know what works for you, and in the meantime, I’ll work on looking through those additional files you sent over.”

“Thanks.”

Nash slammed his laptop closed, eyes assessing everything about Lacy—the red-rimmed edges of her eyes, the tears, on their way to spilling over her lashes, and the protective way her arms were wrapped around her stomach.

Her chest was rising and falling too quickly, her breathing on the edge of panic.

“What the fuck happened? Are you okay?” He stood so fast his chair tipped over, clanging into the wall as he made his way around his desk.

“She’s gone,” she whispered.

Nash’s hands went to Lacy’s face, his thumbs swiping away the tears that kept falling. “Lace? Talk to me. What’s going on?”

“Embrie’s teacher just called me.” Her breath hitched, but he couldn’t fit the puzzle pieces together around her panic.

“Okay.”

“Someone took her from school.”

His body froze. “What do you mean?”

“Someone signed Embrie out of school an hour ago . They don’t know who. We… we have to go. Someone took her from school. ”

Oh, fuck.

“Tracker!” Nash yelled, slipping his hand over Lacy’s as he pulled her down the hallway.

“What’s going on?” Gage was halfway out of his office by the time they made it to him.

“Someone took Embrie from school. We’re headed there now but I need?—”

“On it. I’ll have her backpack location to you ASAP.” Gage turned back into his office.

“Her what?” Lacy asked, her voice so small and shaky next to him, he didn’t hesitate to wrap his arm around her back for support.

“I had Gage give me a tracking device to put in her backpack. School is the only time one of us isn’t with her, Lace, and they have that rule about kids not bringing their cell phones with them into the building. In case something happened with your mom, I wanted to be prepared.”

“Oh, god.” Nash heard the small gasp from behind him and his eyes landed on Lily and Mae standing with the rest of the team as Sloane disappeared into Gage’s office.

“I’ll call the sheriff’s department,” Gunner volunteered. “I’m sure the school already notified them as part of their procedure, but it won’t hurt to get a call from us. And when Gage has the location of her tracker, we’ll meet them wherever it is.”

“Okay.” Nash nodded. “Keep us in the loop. Let’s go, Lace.”