Page 75 of Recklessly Yours

“Yeah,” he said, peering up at me. “I dropped my key fob, and now I can’t find it.”

Crap, the guy was probably too drunk to drive. I couldn’t leave him here like this, whether he found his key or not.

“Here, I can help.” I set the bag of nachos down, then headed toward him, tapping the flashlight icon on my phone as I went. “Two pairs of eyes are better than one.”

Although it was only seven, it was already dark. We really needed to get some more lights put up out here.

“Thank you, Hattie.” He turned and searched near the rear driver’s side tire, while I squatted to peer under the front of the car.

“I don’t see it over here,” I said, pushing against my thighs to stand.

Halfway up, Josh stepped up behind me, and a chill ran down my spine. Before I could turn, he held a cloth over my mouth and cinched an arm around my middle, yanking me to my feet. I held my breath, knowing whatever was on the rag wasn’t good.

My phone fell to the ground, and he kicked at it, sending is sliding away from us. I fought against his hold, trying to scream, to kick, to fight, but he was too strong. He gripped my wrist, and when I wrenched it out of his hold, I felt the beads of my bracelet press into my skin.

Finally I had to take a breath, and then everything went dark.

Chapter Thirty-Five

DYLAN

My phone vibratedon my desk, and when Savannah’s name flashed on the screen, dread curled through me.

Before I could greet her, she said, “Is Hattie with you?”

“Why would she be with me?” That dread turned into a hard knot in my gut. “I thought the plan was for Brittney to pick you two up and head to my place.”

“Yeah, but Hattie’s not here. She walked outside a few minutes before I did, but neither of us has seen her since and she’s not picking up her phone.”

My heart lurched painfully, and I shot to my feet. “What?”

“I think Hattie might have gone out the side entrance, but she never made it to where Brittney was parked in the lot out front.” Savannah’s breath hitched. “Brittney says a car pulled out of the side lot and onto the street a minute or two before I came out.”

Ice ran through my veins as I spun and headed for the door. This wasn’t happening. It had to be a mistake. Aiden had Brian in custody and was getting ready to question him. She was supposed to be safe now.

“I’m on my way.”

I hung up without waiting for her to respond. I almost blew past the front desk, but as I passed, I figured I’d better stop. There was no time to waste, but if I was going to find her, then I needed backup.

“Send all available patrols to The Dock,” I told Chris, our desk sergeant.

“What’s going on?”

“Hattie’s missing.”

“Fuck.” His eyes widened. “You sure?”

“Heading over there now to figure out what’s going on.” I tapped the desk twice. “Send me some patrols.”

“Will do.” With that, I ran for my car. The whole drive over, I prayed this was all a misunderstanding.

When I arrived, though, and had Savannah and Brittney walk me through the several minutes before they realized Hattie was missing, it was obvious this was not a misunderstanding.

I sent Ethan and a few other patrols to scour the grounds surrounding The Dock, then retraced Hattie’s steps with Savannah.

“She picked up the nachos Ashley left us from the catering kitchen, and then she must have left out this door.” She pointed to the side door that was used for deliveries and staff. “Because we found the bag of food sitting on the ground behind the door.”

“Did you touch anything?”

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