Page 19 of No Mistake

He parked and they took the stairs up to Chloe's apartment. Ryan’s radar went off as they approached her door. A bad feeling welled deep in his gut. Operators relied on gut instincts, and his was telling him this wasn’t looking good.

Sophie knocked on the door. “Chloe, it’s me, Sophie, You in there?”

No response.

“Do you have a spare key?” he asked gently.

Sophie nodded and took the key from her pocket. Hands shaking so bad, she struggled with the lock. Ryan covered her hand with his, taking the key.

“Let me.”

Unlocking the door, he opened it just a crack. His gaze took in splintered wood and the broken chain. He stopped and took his gun from the waistband of his jeans. Sophie gasped.

“What is it?”

Ryan looked at her. “Wait here.”

“But...”

“Sophie. Wait here.” The command in his voice did the trick. Sophie nodded.

Slowly opening the door, gun ready, Ryan entered the apartment, thanking the universe that now they were Onyx, they were always armed. Immediately, his gaze went to the overturned table and smashed lamp. Nudging the door closed behind him so Sophie couldn’t see, he moved forward, guard up. A magazine and book were strewn across the floor, together with cushions from the sofa. Chloe had fought with someone here. Moving forward, he found a cellphone on the rug next to the sofa. He swept the other rooms, which appeared untouched. Shit, it looked like someone had forced their way in and taken Chloe.

He opened the apartment door. Sophie looked around him. Her expression shifted as she saw the mess.

“Oh my God!” She tried to get past him, but he grasped her arms stopping her.

“Chloe’s not in there.”

“I want to see.”

“No. Sophie, listen to me.”

She looked up at him and his heart broke at the despair in her eyes.

“If you go in, you could damage evidence.”

“Evidence? What... oh God... you think someone took her!”

He hesitated. He wouldn’t lie to her.

“Maybe. Her phone is there. There are clear signs of a struggle. The chain on the door is broken.”

Sophie turned toward the door and the damaged chain. “This can’t be happening, I should have known. The first time she didn’t call me back, I shouldn’t have waited.” She struggled in his arms, getting hysterical.

“Sophie, stop it!”

He shook her gently, getting her to look at him.

“We don’t know what happened and we will find her. I promise.”

They would find her, but whether she would be alive was another question. Tears rolled down her cheeks and he gathered her against him.

“We need to call the police,” she muttered between sobs.

Yeah, they did, but he hated handing this over to local PD. No disrespect to them, but Chloe would be just another missing woman. One of hundreds already missing in this city.

“Before we do that, let me call Dex.”

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