Page 130 of Death Wish

Silence, then, “You’re right. Looks like they’re heading toward less populated areas.”

“White has to have a place ready. He can’t just rent a place with Simone in tow. He has a plan, Z.”

“I already looked for properties associated with his name or his family. Nothing. The family isn’t rolling in money, Jesse.”

“Maybe not, but White’s tied to the drug trade. I didn’t see signs he was a user, and he was in Mexico to talk business with the drug cartels.”

“I still need a name.” He paused. “Hold.” Zane’s voice filled the cabin, ten minutes later. “I might have a place to start. I’ll let you know if I find anything.”

“What happened, Z?”

“Simone and White stopped to put fuel in the tank and buy food.”

Something in his voice clued Jesse in. “Something’s wrong. What is it?”

“He’s becoming more aggressive.”

“What does that mean?” he demanded. “What did he do to Simone?”

“Slapped her and he’s been groping her while she’s driving. When she told him to knock it off, he hurt her. I don’t know what he did, so don’t ask. I can only tell you what I heard.” Zane’s anger, though, said enough.

“Are they still moving?”

“Yeah. One other thing.”

“What?”

“He’s not feeding her or giving her water.”

Fury burned through Jesse, distracting him from pain and fatigue. “Why not?”

“He wants her to get on her knees and beg for it or he won’t give her a thing and only if he feels like it.”

“Brainwashing,” Sawyer spat out. “The creep is trying to brainwash her.”

“Won’t work,” Zane said. “She’s a strong woman. She hasn’t said a word since he told her about his condition for food and water.”

Jesse frowned. “Her tactic will backfire as White becomes more irrational.”

“Yep.”

“All right. Thanks for telling me the truth, Z. Keep me updated on whatever you find on a location.”

“You’ll be the first person I call.” Zane ended the call.

Sawyer glanced at him. “Finding the location is a long shot, Jesse.”

“I know. If Zane comes up with something, though, we’ll plan a rescue. Otherwise, we’ll have to wing it.”

“What else is new? We wing it all the time.”

“Yeah, but this time, Simone is the victim. This isn’t business as usual for me.”

“For any of us. She’s one of our own. We’ll do this right and get her back, Jesse.”

Yeah, they would. But how many injuries would White inflict on Simone before Jesse and his teammates arrived?

“Rest,” Sawyer said. “The best way to help Simone is take care of yourself. For the moment, she’s holding her own. That will have to be enough. We’ll take care of White soon.”

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