With his stethoscope, he listened carefully in silence to Hannah’s lungs as she rested, then her heart. “Sometimes when the body gets pushed too hard, it just shuts down. She sounds good. How long has it been since she slept or eaten a good meal?” He pulled her tired eyelids up to check for dilation with a penlight.
“She’s been in and out of bed the last few nights at least. Not sure how long before that. She’d lost a bit of weight since I last saw her, so her eating has been off for a while.”
Mark looked up at me with downturned eyebrows. “You must like this one. I’m happy for you man.”
“What? Why do you say that?”
He stood from the chair, pushing it back into place, using his long legs as leverage. “I know you’re not a medical doctor, but you know biology. She’s fine! But you wanted to make sure… that says something. Where did you guys meet? How long—”
“She’s just a friend. So, you think everything will be okay?”
Mark smiled, then buried his stethoscope back into his bag. “Your ‘friend’ will be fine. If she doesn’t come out of it within 24 hours, give me a call. Until then, just keep her comfortable. And when she wakes up, make sure she rehydrates. What caused her this much stress?”
I brushed my thumb beneath my chin. “Oh…” I’d never been a very good liar. “She’s visiting from out of town after a death in the family.”
He nodded along with me, but I could tell he knew something wasn’t right. “Well, I’m sure she’s just had an anxiety attack. She’ll be okay. It looks like you could use some rest yourself though bud. Give Sophie a hug for me. Where is she anyway?”
I stood to meet Mark at the bedroom door, “She’s with my parents for a few days. I’ve been busy at the clinic.”
“I see. Well, give me a ring if you need anything else.”
Nodding, I followed him to the front door. “Sorry to bother you with all this. I appreciate you—"
“Don’t worry about it, you’ve helped us out many late nights with Cali. Good luck with whatever ‘this’ is.” He smiled, “You could use a nice girl in your life again. I hope this is more than friends.”
I looked down, then back up at Mark as I leaned on the edge of the door. “Thanks. Appreciate it.”
Closing the door, I made my way back to the bedroom, and for a bit, laid in the shadows next to Hannah. At first, I’d planned to lay there to keep an eye on her, but somehow in the night, amidst the throughs of sleep, my arm ended up draped over her shoulder, my body spooning hers into my warmth. It was 4:02 when I woke to that scenario and I haven’t fallen back asleep since. Instead, I’ve sat like that for close to 45 minutes. In those 45 minutes, I’ve smelled the lavender in her hair, and let my hand linger much too long on her bare arm. All of which only made me angrier about the phone call with Matteo.
He was so sure of himself, so selfish with everyone else’s time and energy. I looked up at the ceiling, then back towards Hannah. Matteo didn’t deserve one more second with her. All he ever did was twist things until she believed them. That’s all he knew; he’d been manipulating people his whole life. Stewing was only making me angry, and now I had to move. I pulled my arm from beneath Hannah, and rolled to the side, crawling up out of bed quietly. For a moment, she stirred and I thought for sure she was finally waking, but she rolled back into the sheet without opening her eyes and returned to her dreams.
As I watched Hannah settle back into stillness, I thought of Sophie’s storybooks and wondered if true love’s kiss would really work? If a simple, soft show of affection would wake Hannah and make her mine forever. The idealism of this daydream was enchanting; however, in reality, a bit creepy and probably not at all what she needed at this point. I turned away and closed the door quietly. I needed to get back to work on the basement cameras anyway—even if Matteo was the worst human on the planet, Jake deserved to know what was going on with his daughter.
I turned on the computer, and began working codes, though no combination was allowing access to that feed. The only access I was able to find was a zipped folder on their mainframe marked ‘00’. I clicked to unzip the file. Inside, more files, each with a number 1 through 48. I double-clicked on ‘1’. Inside, a video, a young girl in a basement—no older than 18. She’d been cleaned and dressed in a short black dress, her hair brushed down silky smooth, her face swollen with fear, despite the fearless red lipstick she wore. Her feet were bare. Her arms chained to the wall. She pulled at the chains but seemed to have very little energy. In the background, a distorted voice instructed the girl to turn slightly, then bend so the photographer could video the full shape of her body. I felt sick and clicked off the file. There was no need to click the others, I’m sure they were all the same—a commercial of sorts, with young girls as the product for sale.
I transferred the files onto a thumb drive, erased the hard drive on my computer, then left Hannah a snack, and water by the bedside with a note. ‘Eat and drink! I will be back in a few.’ I didn’t want to leave her, but I needed to meet Matteo and tell him I couldn’t be a part of whatever stupid stuff he was doing. I had a six-year-old daughter to think of. Matteo De Luca was on his own, and there was no way in hell I was letting Hannah go back to that son of a bitch.
Chapter Thirteen
Matteo
Kevin texted me first thing this morning asking me to meet him at the park. He didn’t say what was going on, only that he needed to meet me in an hour. I assumed if something had happened with Hannah he’d wanted to meet sooner, or told me to go to the hospital—but still, my mind wouldn’t stop jumping to that conclusion, knowing she’d been tired, stressed and not eating well.
When I arrived, Kevin was alone, already waiting on a bench near the riverside. I hated that he picked the park right in Reno, I’d have preferred something out of town, less obvious. I pulled the black baseball cap down, tucked my hands into the pocket of my hoodie and made my way towards the river.
“Where’s Hannah?” I said, walking up behind him.
He jumped, stood, then straightened. He looked tired; his blonde hair not neatly tossed to the side like it usually is. “She’s sleeping. She blacked out yesterday afternoon. I called a doctor. She’s fine.”
“Last night? What? She… why didn’t you call me then? I would have gotten a real doctor on it. Who did you call… some cat doctor? She needs to see someone with a real license.”
Kevin’s face turned a shade of red I hadn’t seen since I showed up out of the blue six months ago. “Hannah is fine. This isn’t about Hannah. This is about you. Do you know what you have gotten everyone into?” He looked to both sides, then lowered his voice. “I hacked into the ranch computers. They have over 48 videos… all with young girls… they are… they’re barely dressed, they have them bending and throwing their hair around… they are advertising them… to sell.” Kevin’s eyes were wide as he spoke. “I can’t do this. I don’t want anything to do with whatever the hell you’re doing.”
I looked down, then kicked my sneaker into the grass. There weren’t many people at the park, but the ones that were there seemed too interested in our conversation.
I lowered my voice. “How long ago were the videos? Did you bring me a copy of the files?”
He rolled his eyes to the side as though the details didn’t matter. “I have a file, but I don’t want to be tied to this.”
“I hear ya, I’m just trying to help this guy get his daughter back now… and I’m wondering if she was in the lineup.”
“You’re not trying to help anyone. The only reason you’re ‘helping’ this guy is because you’ve figured out a way to use him. Admit it! You’re a selfish prick.”
Punching him now would be time well spent, but I had bigger things to handle. Besides, he wasn’t altogether wrong. “Jake is going to help me and I’m going to help him. That’s how humans work.”
Kevin drew his eyes together and shook his head. “The guy's daughter is going to be sold
. Do what you have to do, just leave Hannah and me out of it.”
“There is no ‘you and Hannah’. And if you’d calm down for a second… I would tell you that I agree. I had no idea this was going on.”
Kevin’s perfectly straight nose turned up. “Whatever. So, what’s your plan?”
“I’m going to get Jake right now. I’ve paid a few people off to look the other way regarding the passport. I’m dropping Jake in Ireland to get some intel from locals and I am going to Italy to gather the go-bag. The plan is to meet him the day we go to Kings Ranch so we aren’t seen together. I don’t want to cause a stir in the area. My arrival needs to be a surprise. Is all that okay with you Kevin?” I said pitching my voice in sarcasm.
He stared blankly ahead. “And what happens when you get to the ranch?”
“Well, when I get there, I hope that whoever wrote to this Jake guy is who I think it is. If I’m right… then I think maybe I have an in, and this may have been this person's way of getting me out there at the right time to make some changes.”
Kevin rolled his eyes. “Yes, of course, this is all about you. Not rescuing this man’s daughter… but getting you… out there at the right time. I’ve heard enough. Good luck. I’ll let Hannah know.” He began walking towards the parking lot, but I hollered to stop him.
“Hey, give this to Hannah.” I handed him a note in a sealed envelope. “I want to call her before I leave, but she’s been so stressed, and I know she will send herself in circles with questions and worry if I call.” I looked him straight in the eyes, as he grasped the other end of the letter. “Make sure she gets this.”
He took the note from my hand. “Remind me again why we aren’t going to the cops?”
I pulled at the bill of my cap. “We don’t know who we can trust Kevin. If you go to the cops, you’re putting me, Jake, and this guy's daughter in serious danger.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t seem convinced but tucked a hand into his jeans and made his way up the ravine. I followed behind, giving him space. I wasn’t blind to how insane all this was. If I had a daughter at home, I’d have made the same decision. I didn’t blame him for not wanting to continue with the cameras. I blamed him for using this situation as a way to come between Hannah and me.
I followed Kevin until he found his truck, then made my way to the SUV I’d parked a few rows down. Jake was staying at a motel in downtown Reno, only eight blocks from the park. I put the SUV in reverse and pulled into the road, feeling the bump of the sidewalk as the tires lifted up and over its edge. In some places, Reno had an old Vegas feel with bright lights and casinos old and new dotted along the main drag. That paired with the backdrop of snowcapped mountains made the place almost charming. But once you crossed the river, another side of Reno ensued with dingy motels, broken, halfcocked neon lights, and shops that looked to be sure covers for illicit activity. I pulled into the cracked parking lot of the motel Kevin had put Jake up in, then knocked on the worn blue door marked ‘8’.
“Matteo,” he cleared his throat. “Wasn’t expecting you.”
I ducked into the doorway. “Jesus, Kevin couldn’t find you anything better than this?” Worn down was one thing, but the homeless drug dealers in the stairwell was another. And the smell coming from his room was that of decaying bodies. If I hadn’t been in such a hurry, I’d have checked under the bed.
He shades his eyes from the sun the filtered in through the open door. “I insisted on this place, didn’t want to take advantage of anyone. Are we leaving? You get the passports?” Vodka and rum tangled in the breeze surrounding him.
“We’re leaving now. What bags can I carry?”
“I didn’t bring anything… just this outfit.” He pulled at the oversized t-shirt, explaining the smell.
“Okay, well we are going to need you to blend in. So, we will get rid of this Buckeye t-shirt. We’ll grab you some clothes on the way.”
The frail man followed me to the SUV, piled in and buckled. “Nice rig ya got here… what’d this set ya back?”
I cocked my head. “I don’t know… $100,000 American, maybe.”
My eyes were focused on the road, but I noticed Jake's leg bouncing as he searched for small talk to fill the spaces in time before he gave up and blurted his true intentions. “So how does your letterhead become a part of my daughter's kidnapping?”
I straightened, lifted my chin, then adjusted my hands on the wheel. “It’s a long story. But basically, Kings Ranch blackmailed one of my most trusted advisors into planting cameras to record Hannah and I’s exploits and I think he has something to do with all this.”
“Why would he use your letterhead now? Is he trying to bring you there?”
“Maybe. That’s why I thought you were full of shit. I don’t know why he’d want to drag me into this.”
Jake nodded, and rubbed at the shadow growing on his face as though that were a good enough answer, then continued. “So how big is this operation?” His voice cracked when he spoke.
“It’s big, but they don’t know we’re coming. You’re going to spend tomorrow in town, asking questions… like a tourist who saw the ranch and has a lot of questions. I’m hoping some disgruntled ex-employee will spill something on them.”
He snapped his head towards me. “So you want revenge? Whatcha get out of helpin’ me?”
“Honestly—I was headed out there to take them down anyway. I want my fucking life back. These people have taken everything from me.”
“You have billions of dollars. You could hide.”
“I could, but I’d be running forever. You ever lived a life always checking your shoulder?”
“Bill collectors count?” he scoffed. “I got a few of those that won’t leave me alone.”
“If the bill collectors want you dead, then yes.”
“You’d be surprised how far they go.” He rubbed at his nose, then readjusted in his seat. “You know these people better than I do. What are they doin’ to my Cora?”
I pulled back my head, unwilling to imagine what more Kings Ranch was capable of. “They had different plans for me, they wanted me dead. But Cora, they want alive… she’s just lost money if she’s...” I looked towards him, “We still have time.”
He’d taken to staring out the window. I cracked my own, hoping to disperse the stretch of alcohol that emanated off him, he turned towards the breeze.
“When my wife was still alive, she’d wrap Cora in a soft blanket and rock her in the chair near a window—singin’ Cora’s eyes heavy. My wife did this ‘til she was too sick to sit up, but Cora’d still crawl into bed next to her—singin’ to her ma until my wife’s eyes were too heavy to lift at all. That memory of them…” He took in a deep breath. “You just can’t begin to imagine what twenty years with someone is like. It’s beautiful and awful and hard… but shit… it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. That woman made me somthin’, without her… I think I died that day too. But I didn’t and Cora suffered for it. I gotta make this right. I gotta…” Panic took over his tone and he began catching tears with his rough, shaking hands.
“I’ll do my best. I have these videos now. We’ll file through them on the plane. Maybe that will give us something to work with.”
He stayed focused out the window and spoke monotone. “I want to see what they are doing to her. I want to know.”
I nodded, forcing past internal thoughts that told me that would be a horrible idea. I’d been there before. When Hannah was taken, I wanted all the information I could get, but I still can’t unsee it.
Jake nodded back in agreement, then changed the subject in apparent distraction from his turmoil. “This girl… Hannah… if you guys are together, who’s Kevin?”
“Her friend.” I nearly choked on the words.
“He seemed pretty close to her for a friend,” Jake said. “I’ve done a lot of dumb things, but I’d never leave my girl with a guy she had that much of a connection with. That’s just—”
/>
“I got it.” I chewed at the inside of my lip, biting back the sarcasm in my tone. “If I had any other choice… I’d be taking it. At least he will keep her safe.”
Jake shot me a look, I knew he was trying to distract himself, but I was too emotional for ribbing, and Jake was too emotional for my wrath.
“So, you sure you know who wrote this?” He lifted the crinkled letter he carried with him.
“Not sure, but confident. He’s been living on the ranch since they tried to frame me for his murder. He’s the only one that has access to anything like that. I think he wanted you to find me.”
“Anyone else tells me that story, I’d say they had too much. So we meet this guy at Kings Ranch on the 13th at 1:30 AM?”
“You’ll go. I’ll hold back and watch in case I need to ‘surprise’ them.”
Heavy rain dropped from the sky unannounced, and Jake shifted back towards the passenger window, taking to his thoughts as we neared the airfield. I’d opted to leave from the airport in Fallon, a small desert town about an hour from the city—figured there was less flash there than leaving from Reno. It had only been a moment, but I hated the silence even more than the teasing. When I was left alone with my thoughts, I did nothing but imagine the shape of Hannah’s mouth as it spread open with inaudible sounds of anticipation. These reflections usually relaxed me. But after that fun conversation with Jake, thinking of them only highlighted what a fucking idiot I was for leaving her with Kevin. And all I could imagine was how quickly she’d fall into his arms if I didn’t find a way home to her.
Chapter Fourteen
Hannah
If I’d been asleep for three days, I’d have believed it. My mouth was so dry my tongue would barely move. I couldn’t remember much of what had happened the night before, just that I was extremely tired. Though, now after what felt like weeks in bed, I was still exhausted. Lifting the covers, I sat at the edge of the mattress, letting the blood redistribute so I didn’t feel dizzy when I stood. I could hear Kevin in the kitchen, dishes moving in quiet rhythm, as the scent of fresh tea made its way throughout the house.
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