Page 113 of The Deals We Make

I dial her again. It rings through to her voicemail.

I try two more times. Then, I call Catalina.

“Cat,” I say, without giving her time to answer. “Go down the right side of the house. There’s a black box near the side door that looks like a power box. Inside it is a lock box. The pin is two, three, nine, seven. Tell me when you’ve got it.”

“On it,” she says. “Gimme one second. You worried about something, Vex?”

“She has a stalker.”

“Fuck,” Catalina says. “Forgot about that for a second.”

I hear Switch talking to Sophia, checking she has her weapon with her. I had no idea Sophia carried, but I’m glad she does. Even with her mobility issues, she’s a better shot than everyone else, with the exception of Cat.

“Got the key,” Cat says. “Which door?”

“The rear. The alarm panel is by the front door. The code is one seven zero one.”

She opens the door. “There’s no beeping. The alarm isn’t on.”

I pray that it means she’s home and fell asleep or something, but seeing I told her to keep the alarm on when she’s home, it’s a bad sign.

“Are you armed?” She usually is, but seeing this was a social visit between girls, I need to be sure.

“Yes.”

It’s the only reassurance I need right now. “Search the place. Look for signs of trouble. And be really fucking careful.”

“I’m on it.” I hear her tell Sophia to stay on the phone with Switch.

I look to my brother, who has obviously heard what Catalina is doing, as he puts Sophia on speakerphone so I can hear if anything happens.

Music in the clubhouse makes it hard to hear.

“Niro,” I yell. “Turn that shit off for a minute.”

He does as I ask.

“Vex,” Cat says, out of breath. “They came in through the kitchen. There’s clearly been a struggle of some kind. The rug is all bunched up, like someone was dragged across it. And you have no power in the house. No lights. Nothing.”

Switch’s piercing whistle to get everyone’s attention makes me jolt.

“See if you can find any clues as to what happened. I’ll call you back,” I say.

The trackers.

I run to my office, the one space that has helped me find so many who are missing. While my equipment whirs to life, I pull on my glasses and check her location on my phone.

Her phone says she’s still at the house. The tracker in her locket says she’s on the move.

I check the camera feeds to my property, and all of them are knocked out. All I get are black screens from every angle. I flip to my parents’ house and get a perfect feed. So, it’s just my property that’s affected.

My heart races even faster. It’s deliberate.

And smart.

King pushes the door wide open. Clutch and Switch are right behind him.

“What happened?” King asks.