Page 2 of Fighting Shadows
If they can’t, then I’ll do it myself in any way possible, even if it means my death, because I’d rather it be the end for me than ever allow his filthy hands to touch me again.
Chapter 2
Zander
20 hours…
“Find her! I don’t care what you have to do to make it happen. I want my daughter found!” Kelvin barks down the phone to his PI, spittle sprays from his mouth as his face turns red, and a vein protrudes in his forehead as he loses his shit.
The tapping of Sebastian's fingers on his laptop as they fly across his keyboard fills the room, his face the most concentrated I’ve ever seen.
It’s been twenty hours since she was taken, and we can’t find a lead. The one we did have was lost at a petrol station south of us.
We’re exhausted. None of us have slept, and we don't dare to if we miss something vital in the search for her.
Dominic paces restlessly by the front door, convinced she will walk back in at any moment. No matter what we say to him, he won’t listen to reason.
Tobias is using his skills in tracking; he walked out the door the moment Kelvin arrived, and we haven’t seen him since. Only the occasional text to let us know he’s alive to ease our concerns with a minor update on what he’s found, which is always small, but he’s making progress.
Atlas is bone tired. His eyes are red-rimmed and unfocused as he uses every moment to search for our girl. He’s out with teams and her dad, never listening to any of us when we try to tell him to sleep.
He’s lost. We all are, but the thoughts of what she could be going through are driving us all to the brink of insanity. It’s just a matter of time before one of us breaks first.
“Has he slept yet?” Mrs. Moore appears with a cup of tea in her hands.
“Nope. Don’t think he will until we find her either,” I say.
“Silly boy. I’ll try to talk some sense into him,” she tuts.
“Try to talk some sense into Dominic, too, please! He’s impossible!” I shout after her retreating back, her steps purposeful as she strides towards her very tired-looking son.
Pulling my phone from my pocket, my hand tightens when the wallpaper of Autumn and me in the Japanese garden shines back at me. She looks so happy in it, and I can’t help but feel we won’t get to see that girl again for a while once we get her back.
Shaking my head, I unlock the screen and pull up my messages with my parents. I'm desperate for an update on their safe house cameras and to know if they noticed anything about the car she was taken in.
BossLady
We have his license plate, but
he switched them at the petrol station.8:10 AM
Me
Fuck! Were you able to find
8:15 AManything at all?
My fingers tap restlessly against the side of my phone as the three dots pop up and then disappear again. Anxiety thrums in my chest as I stare at the screen, hoping Mom has something for me to hold on to.
With every minute that ticks by without news of her, devastation runs through my veins. I’ve watched my parents do this job for years, watching as my mom breaks when they lose someone.
Once the abductor gets them to a second location, we only ever get the person back two ways. Dead or mentally not here anymore and at the hands of Charlie, I don’t know what one we’ll find when we do find her.
“Demon boy! I swear to Jesus, if you do not stop pacing a hole in my floor, I will hit you!” Mrs. McKay scolds him with a wooden spoon in her hand, poised and ready to strike if he doesn’t listen.
Lifting my eyes from my screen for a moment, I watch as he barely glances at her. The only sign that he even heard her is the twitch of his wrist, the knife in his hand ready to strike.
“Dominic!” I bark, trying to get his attention. His eyes are lifeless as he stares at me, but he doesn’t speak.
