Page 66 of Knot Innocent

“Three plus me. I’m going to call the police.”

He starts for the door, but I grab a fistful of his shirt to keep him from leaving. “You can do it right here.”

My phone is out, and I’m calling Knot as I make my point clear to the doctor.

“Knot,” the powerful CEO answers.

“Sir, Birdie’s gone. She’s disappeared from the eye clinic. No one has seen her for at least fifteen minutes, and no cameras cover the exam areas or rear exit.”

Knot is quiet for a full five seconds. I know because I held my breath and counted the whole time. “I’ve got to make a call. Do not hang up this phone.”

He must pick up his desk line, as in seconds, I’m listening to another call on speaker. A woman’s voice answers, “I’m going to assume this isn’t a social call.”

“I need your help, Cle.”

“You’ve got it. Link me up with Birdie, and let’s get started.”

“I can’t,” he chokes. “That’s what I need your help with. Birdie’s been taken, and we have no idea how or by whom.”

“Not exactly,” I call out. “I found out last night that the flowers sent to Birdie were from the bastard. She didn’t say anything sooner because she thought I sent them.”

“What told you the flowers came from Birdie’s stalker?”

“Birdie did.”

I notice the doctor hanging up his call to emergency services, and I finally let him go. As he scrambles back inside, I continue, “We checked the florist that delivered them, but they’re old school. Their only online presence is some pictures on social media. Birdie couldn’t find any digital retail records. I called the place this morning. They understood our concern but didn’t have any information to ID the sender and have no cameras.”

“What about a message, a card?” Cle asks.

“The message was dark when you consider it came from an unknown. I had Birdie put it in her desk for us to take to the cops when I returned.”

“Hang on. I’ll get it,” Knot says.

He rushes out of his office, leaving Cle and me on speaker. “Who are you?” she asks, not wanting to miss an opportunity.

“Bastien Laurent. Former SEAL. You’re Cle Maxwell, right? I’ve heard about you through my old team and boss, Tim O’Reilly.”

“Tim’s a good man.”

Knot returns at that point, cutting our get-to-know-you session short. “I got the card. It reads, ‘It should have been you from the start.’”

“I can see how the message could be construed if she thought it came from a lover,” Cle offers. “What do you think it means?”

Knot sighs. “I have no idea.”

“I think I do.”

The possibility has been eating at me since I spoke with Birdie last night. I didn’t share it then because I knew she would have lost her mind in the search if I did. Now, I regret keeping my mouth shut.

Since it’s academic now, I sacrifice Birdie’s privacy to save her life. “There’s something the two of you need to know, but I need you to swear it won’t go any further.”

“As long as secrecy doesn’t keep us from finding her, you have my word,” Knot vows.

Cle echoes his sentiment, so I tell them what happened the night Amelia Quarles was raped and murdered. Afterward, Cle asks, “What do we know about this guy?”

“Never caught,” Knot reports.

“So, we’re thinking this bastard wanted Birdie, and when he couldn’t get her, he took Amelia instead?”

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