Page 59 of Stolen Omega

Of course he’s calling her. He does everything by the book, and the book says her parents are more important than the police in a situation like this. It’s fucked up. My mate has been stolen by strangers and they’ve had enough time to get far enough away that we might never catch up.

He calls the team next, asking everyone to get out in their cars to search the city.

He gives each guard a section to search and orders them to report back if they find the van or if they witness anything that could be related to the kidnapping.

Then, he tries Castle again. And again.

“Fuck,” he curses as he hangs up.

“What do you think they did with him?”

He shakes his head. “These woods are pretty deep. If they left him out here somewhere, I don’t know how easy it’ll be to find him.”

“What if he’s part of it?”

“Part of it?” he asks, frowning at me.

I shrug. “I know you think he’s an honest guy or whatever, but he’s also one of the only people who would have known Zelena would be in that van.”

I can tell by how white his face goes that he didn’t even consider it.

He brings up Castle’s file on his phone.

“Holy shit,” he mutters.

“What?”

“He lives in Silver Grove.”

I blink at him. “Silver Grove? The town we’re driving toward right now?”

“That can’t be a coincidence.”

“So, we have a lead?”

“We have a lead,” he agrees, his voice tight.

“I’m assuming you have to share every lead we find with her parents?”

“Protocol,” he mutters.

“I know you don’t like to break the rules, but I think if there was ever a time to bend them, it’s now.”

He nods slowly. “They know there’s a good chance she’s been taken to Silver Grove. They’re calling the cops. Police will be looking for her there, and in the city. We don’t have to tell her about Castle. At least, not yet.”

The ground starts to get a little smoother and straighter, which allows me to drive a bit faster.

“I can’t believe Castle would do this,” Archer admits, a hint of anger bubbling up under his shock.

“People are capable of anything, under the right circumstances.”

The end of the dirt road is in sight now, and it’s also the end of our drive through the woods.

“Start directing me to his house.”

“It’s straight ahead for a few more miles before we come to first left turn.”

I up my speed, heading for the straight stretch and starting to see streetlights up ahead in the distance. I can see that first left turn. The gentle slope downhill and the sudden presence of lights makes it visible even from this far away.

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