Page 24 of Girl Lost
He should have listened. Should have been more careful. This wasn’t the way. Captured. Helpless.
No. Nothelpless. Never helpless. Never hopeless.
Stryker forced himself to take a deep breath. Then another. Slow. Steady.
Control your breathing. Control your mind.
He had to figure out where he was. And most importantly, how to get out.
Luna. Was she safe?
He’d thought he had more time, had planned to—
A sound. Faint, but there. Stryker held his breath. Strained to hear. A creak. Metal on metal. A door opening?
Footsteps. Slow. Deliberate. Getting closer. His muscles tensed involuntarily, preparing for ... what? He was bound, drugged. Defenseless.
No. Focus. Gather information. It’s all you can do rightnow.
Light pierced the darkness, a thin sliver that felt like a knife to his eyes. He flinched against the sudden brightness. A silhouette blocked part of the light. Tall. Lean. Male, most likely.
The figure moved closer. Details came into focus. Thin face. Glasses. Neatly combed hair with touches of gray. He looked ... ordinary. Like someone you’d pass on the street without a second glance. More like an accountant than a kidnapper. He should know this man but couldn’t quite place him.
A scraping sound. Something being placed nearby. Metal legs on concrete. A table? His pulse thrummed. What was coming next?
Breathe. Stay calm. Don’tshow fear.
“You were warned to stay away.” The words came soft. Almost gentle. Paternal. “To mind your own business. I’ll never understand why people don’t listen.” He made atsk tsk tsksound.
Stryker swallowed, his throat dry and scratchy. Recognition flickered through his foggy mind. The man in black from outside the gym who’d growled at him to back off. The warning had been delivered then. Now came the consequences.
“Why are you doing all this?” He sounded weak. Pathetic. He hated it.
“Well, that’s ... that’s a longer story than you and I have time for right now.” A smile. Empty. Macabre. “I’m afraid I have other, more pressing matters to which I must attend.”
A rustling sound. Something being unrolled. Then the glint of metal caught Stryker’s eye.
Scalpels. Forceps. Clamps. Tools meant for healing, about to be used for harm.
He had to stay calm. Had to think.
Don’t let him see you break.
“You see, some of us know our purpose.” The man picked up a scalpel, testing its edge. He leaned in close. His breath hot. Fetid. “I, for one, choose not to waste valuable time—or resources—when it comes to fulfilling my purpose.”
The scalpel traced along Stryker’s skin. A feather-light touch that promised pain. He drew back as much as his restraints would allow. “Stop playing games. If you’re going to kill me, do it. If not, just tell me why you’re keeping me here. Tell me what you plan to do.”
At this, the man lifted the scalpel away from Stryker’s face. “I already have what I want.” He didn’t smile, but his eyes gleamed with amusement. “I have your heart.”
9
CORBIN STILL DIDN’T GET IT.One minute Luna was walking away,furiouswith him. The next,she was all but throwing herselfat his boss,begging to be part of his case. And now? Now, thanks to her and a top-secretphone call between their bosses,Luna Rosati was his temporarypartner. Until further notice. Direct orders from Commissioner Tinch himself.
The sting of Luna’s rejection back at the fire was deeper than any burn the flames had left. Okay, so maybe “I’m sorry” wasn’t the most eloquent apology. And maybe the timing was off, what with the house still smoldering behind them and paramedics tending to a burned Salas. But at least he’d said it. He should get a little credit for that.
Salas though ... Corbin had seen the burns, the blistered skin. Heard the man’s screams as they loaded him into the ambo. They’d walked into a trap. Plain and simple. If it hadn’t been for God’s grace, they’d all be dead. But it didn’t change the fact that Salas was lying in a hospital bed, fighting for his life.
The Millie Beach Sheriff’s Department interrogation room was small, cramped, and smelled like a mixture of urine and bleach. Corbin’s nose wrinkled at the stench. He could feel Luna’s presenceon the other side of the one-way mirror, watching him. Watching Abercorn.
