Page 49 of Knight's Fall

Wings’ heart started pounding. “Olivia, can you stay here and keep trying to call her? I’m going to see if I can find her.”

Olivia’s smile faded as she lowered the phone from her ear. “Do you think she’s hurt or something? That’s why she’s not answering?”

“I don’t know, but I’m going to look for her. If you reach her, tell her to call me, okay?”

Olivia nodded, already redialing Courtlyn’s number. “Yes, of course.”

“I’ll go with you,” Dex offered.

“No, it’s okay. Stay with Olivia. If I can’t find her, I’ll call for help.”

Before they could protest, he turned and headed in the direction where he’d last seen Courtlyn. He didn’t bother to call her name. Something told him not to announce his approach, and he trusted his instincts in times like these. He was probably foolish for imagining the worst, but he’d seen too much in his experience not to jump to those conclusions.

Prove me wrong, Court. Prove me wrong.

His body burned with the need to see her. More than anything, he wanted her to step from the shadows with some crazy reason why she hadn’t responded to their texts or answered their calls. The farther he walked with no visible signs of her anywhere, the chances of that happening were less and less.

Courtlyn had told him some time ago that most of the people in their neighborhood were older, and that was evidenced by the darkened houses he walked passed. The hour was late, but not too late for most. However, it seemed his neighbors had already turned in for the night. He doubted any of them saw Courtlyn or the Corgi.

He finally heard a sound coming from his right. He paused to listen, but the sound was too faint for him to register what it was. He kept his steps light as he continued toward the noise.

He heard it get louder, and he hoped he was on the right track. Then he knew he was because he recognized the ring tone. He couldn’t tell where it was coming from. Not caring that it was leading him to someone’s property, he walked toward the sound and kept vigilant.

The sound stopped, and he stopped. Then it started again, and he figured Olivia was calling over and over, waiting for Courtlyn to answer. She was hurt. He could feel it. And it had to be bad for her to let her phone ring repeatedly without answering.

When he saw the flash of the phone screen in the distance, he sprinted toward it, dropping to knees to search for the phone in the grass. Once he had it in his hand, he looked all around him, but he couldn’t see her. He finally swiped the phone screen to answer.

“Oh, my God, Coco. Where the hell are you?”

“Olivia, it’s Wings. I found her phone, but she’s not here. I’m about two blocks from her house on this side street. Hudson Street, I think the name of it was. Do you know if she’s friends with anyone on this street? Maybe she walked to their house.”

“I’m her friend, Wings. Just me. If she knows anyone around there, it would be just to wave and say hello in passing. Just knock on the door of the nearest house. Ask them if they’ve seen her.”

“I’m at a house. Dark in color on a big lot. Looks neglected and has a sign in the front. Maybe a real estate sign, but it’s too dark to see.”

“I know that house. It’s been vacant a while. Coco said she thought the owners might try to rent it if they didn’t get a buyer soon. But if you found her phone, she has to be there close, right? Dex and I are coming to you. We’ll help look for her.”

“Yeah, okay. Bye.”

There was no point now for Olivia to wait for Courtlyn to come home or call. She wouldn’t have disappeared without letting one of them know where she was.

He shouldn’t have agreed for them to split up. If they hadn’t, he would have been with her to protect her from whatever it was that happened. He went through every scenario he could think of, but he ended up with nothing to explain where Courtlyn had disappeared to.

He put her phone in his pocket and pulled out his from the other one. The call didn’t take long to connect.

“Courtlyn’s missing. I need you.”

He hung up, knowing nothing more needed to be said. Backup was on the way, and his team would know how to get to him.

He’d seen them accomplish miracles before. He needed them to do it again. Only this time, it was for him and the woman he loved.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Wings presented an imposing figure. His feet were planted hip-width apart, and his bulging arms crossed over his muscled chest. His hair framed his face and brushed against his shoulders. His eyes narrowed into slits, concentrating but not really seeing.

He’d retreated into his mind, his senses heightened. He tuned out the ambient noise. No one existed around him.

He heard what Courtlyn must have heard as she walked the street last night. He pictured what she had seen as she searched for her neighbor’s dog. He smelled the faint scent of honeysuckle that must have permeated the air as Courtlyn chased after the dog that was determined to elude her.

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