Page 78 of In My Blood
Rafe’s phone started to ring, where he held it in his hand, and we both glanced down with hope.
“It’s Cal,” Rafe said.
“She probably turned up at home,” I surmised with some relief. It would be hell dealing with her when we got back. I didn’t envy Rafe that task, but the main thing was that she was safe.
“Cal?” Rafe must have put the call on speaker because he lowered the phone, holding it between us.
“Rafe! Cara’s gone!” Cal cried urgently, his tone laced with panic.
“What the fuck do you mean?” Rafe barked.
“I…I don’t know! She went upstairs to shower and change. I was in the kitchen, but I went looking for her when I got worried she’d taken too long, and she’s just gone! I searched the whole house. She’s not here!”
“Cal, take a breath,” I told him as he started to spiral. “Did you check in small places like cupboards and wardrobes? Cara told me she feels safer in small places when her anxiety hits.”
“No! I mean, yes. I…I knew that too. I checked everywhere she could possibly fit. Terza helped me too. She’s not in the house. She’s just gone!”
“Fuck!” Rafe balled his left hand into a fist and snashed it repeatedly into the dashboard of the car, until it was badly dented and Rafe’s hand was bleeding. I didn’t try to stop him because I wanted to do exactly the same thing.
“Have you checked all of the windows and doors are secure? Is there any way someone got into the house to take her?” I asked, but I was already turning the car around to get back to the house. Gia was most likely just out partying, but if Cara was gone, something bad had happened to her. I decided she was the priority, without a word from Rafe.
“I’m on my way to check the basement now. I checked all the other floors, but Terza said I needed to let you know right away. What should I do?”
“Go down to the basement and check the windows and door there first. We need to know what we’re dealing with,” I told him as calmly as I could, but inside I was filling with rage and terror in equal parts. Cara was mine. Whoever had taken her from me was going to die a very slow and painful death. If they harmed even one hair on her head, then I would make that death last for weeks, maybe even months. They would feel every hurt they put on her a million times over!
“Give me your phone. I’m calling Dante to check the cameras. He’s the fastest with that app,” Rafe told me. I pushed backwards in the seat so I could slide my hand into my tight jeans pocket and slip my phone out, handing it to him.
“No! Fuck!” Cal gasped.
“What? Cal? What happened?” I demanded.
“The door in the basement. The locks…they’re all open and the door wasn’t fully closed. Someone got through here,” he answered, and my blood ran cold.
I glanced to Rafe and we shared a brief look of fear before he got back to the task of calling Dante. I slammed my foot down. Let the police try and stop me.
ARRAN
“What is she fucking doing?” Dante roared, then I was jolted sideways in the driver’s seat as he slammed the palm of his handagainst the side of my seat so hard that something metal beneath me gave a loudclunkas it was broken.
“Stop! We willnae get back to the house to help if ye break the fuckin’ car!” I snapped at him. He’d been like this since Rafe called to tell us about Cara. His fist had already ploughed through the glove box, leaving the wee door broken into pieces inside the glove box now.
“She did this Arran! She ran from me!” he growled.
“What do ye mean?”
“She went to the office. Two minutes on Rafe’s laptop then the cameras cut out. She also tried to delete the footage for thirty minutes before that, but I had it on the back up. She disabled our cameras so she could get away from us! Why would she do that?”
“What was she doin’ before that? What was she tryin’ to hide?” I asked, trying to maintain my cool, and not fall apart completely like Dante already had. I told myself that Cara wouldn’t just leave. She knew what that would do to Rafe. Not to mention she was intelligent enough to know how much danger she would be in the minute she left the house.
“Nothing. She went into her bedroom for several minutes, then came out wearing a different jumper and looking panicked. She went straight to the office from there.”
“Something’s no’ right. Cara wouldnae just leave fer no reason. Somethin’ happened to make her do that,” I told Dante and myself.
“I won’t let her run from me. I’ll find her,” Dante threatened menacingly, and I didn’t miss the possessiveness in the way hespoke about her. He seemed obsessed with her, but I couldn’t say much about that either. I was becoming pretty obsessed with her myself, and the thought of anyone coming into our home and taking her from us made me feel extremely bloodthirsty.
“Just keep checkin’ the footage for anythin’ that looks outta place, We’re almost at the house,” I told him, deciding keeping him task focussed was wisest and safest for now. If I felt bloodthirsty, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know how Dante was feeling. He was a seriously terrifying human being when someone fucked with what he perceived to be his.
Rafe and Dario were just getting out of Dario’s car when I pulled up right behind them outside our place. Dante and I jumped out, and followed behind them until we were all inside.
