Page 47 of Strike Fast

Reeling, he started the ignition and somehow drove home, though he didn’t remember getting there. His phone rang twice more during the drive, both times Tess, and both times he ignored them. He felt a hundred years old as he climbed out of the car and headed for the elevator in the underground garage.

A few paces from his door, he got a text. Out of habit he glanced down, expecting to see a message from Tess begging him to call her back.

Autumn’s frightened face looked back at him instead.

He jerked to a halt, staring at the screen, for a moment wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him. She was dressed in her ball uniform, her cap covering her hair, her deep blue eyes wide and her expression pinched.

Before he could react, a message appeared below it.

Missing something?

Reid’s heart slammed into overdrive, the surge of adrenaline making him shake all over. What thefuck?

Another message appeared.

Nobody fucks with Carlos Ruiz. We’re going to do exactly the same thing to her as we did to the reporter you rescued.

His stomach pitched at the threat, a thousand horrific images bombarding his brain. He’d seen the state Victoria Gomez had been in. Could guess what they’d done to her, and what would have happened if she hadn’t escaped that night.

By sheer force of will, he stopped picturing those animals raping and torturing his daughter. He called the person back, his chest heaving as he waited for whoever it was to pick up, white-hot rage burning inside him.

No answer. No voicemail. Just that ring droning in his ear.

He hung up and dialed the detective, wanting to scream. “It’s Carlos Ruiz, aVenenolieutenant my team’s been after,” he ground out. “Someone just texted me Autumn’s picture and threatened her using his name.”

“Hell,” the detective muttered. “Where are you?”

“My place.” Fuck, he was gonna puke. Right out here in the hall. He couldn’t move, all his muscles locked tight. Carlos fucking Ruiz or someone affiliated with him had Autumn.

“Sit tight. We’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Reid lowered the phone and brought up Autumn’s picture again. Acid churned in the pit of his stomach as he stared at her frightened little face. She was all alone with that monster, praying for a miracle. Probably hoping her daddy would come rescue her.

A strangled sound wrenched from his throat as he stared down into those terrified blue eyes.I’m coming, baby girl. Daddy’s coming.

Except he couldn’t do shit, because he didn’t know where she was.

What he did know was what Ruiz and his sickening excuses for men were capable of doing to a woman. To do that to a nine-year-old girl?

His knees gave way.

Angling his body so that his back bumped against the wall to keep him from pitching over, he allowed himself to slide to the carpeted floor, the phone clutched tightly in his hand. As the scalding hot tears burst free at last, he covered his head with his arms and sobbed as he succumbed to the overpowering tide of grief.

Chapter Thirteen

“You did what?” Carlos stood in the hotel room with his encrypted phone to his ear, his entire body stiff, hardly able to believe what he’d just heard.

“You wanted me to find an opportunity. So I found one and acted on it,” Javier answered, his tone both defiant and a little annoyed, as though Carlos should be more grateful for what he’d done.

Carlos dragged a hand over his face. “How old is she?”

“I dunno. Young. Elementary school age.”

Madre de Cristo.Taking a federal agent’s daughter in broad daylight, in front of the fucking mother. It was a miracle they hadn’t already found Javier and killed him. “And you’re going to do what with her?”

“Make a statement.”

He pulled in a calming breath before responding. “You’ve just put us in the crosshairs of every federal agency. Do you even realize that?” He needed to do some damage control and shore up security. Fast.

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