Chapter 139

Cara’s POV

When I open the front door the next morning, expecting to see Noel, I’m surprised to find that Colin, Ryan, and Aidan are standing, speaking with Noel on the other side. When they all see it’s me, they turn toward me at once.

“Cara,” Colin says. He starts to take a step toward me like he wants to hug me. I take a step back, shying away from his touch. It’s not that I don’t love my brother, I do. And it’s not that I don’t want his comfort.

It’s more that I don’t want any comfort. Not right now.

There will be time for comfort and tears and whatever else when Mia is found. Until then, I must be strong, both for myself and for Ethan. And for Alaric too.

I can see how he is working himself to the bone, not sleeping or eating, not resting.

He blames himself. And in my anger and fear, I blamed him too, even though I know that he truly had nothing to do with this. That kidnapper is the one to blame. He waited for a weak moment in our defenses, then sneaked onto the grounds and took advantage of Mia attempting to follow her brother.

It was all a tragedy of errors. But Alaric alone isn’t too blame. To blame him would also mean blaming Ethan and myself.

And no amount of blame would bring Mia back.

A flash of hurt crosses Colin’s face, though he hides it quickly enough. “Are you okay?” he asks me.

“Not yet,” I tell him, hoping he and everyone else will understand. My own feelings are secondary. Once we find Mia, I can break down. But not before. “We have to find Mia.”

The men all seemed serious before, but now their faces harden further. Everyone was ready to do their best to bring my little girl home. They all loved her, and I could see their dedication to the cause in the fierce looks in their eyes.

We all seemed to make a silent agreement. We would find Mia, and we wouldn’t rest until she was home.

Eamon’s POV

Landon was set to return to his travels, planning to stay only for a couple of weeks after the event. But, after hearing what had happened, he decided to stay with Bloodymoon pack to help me.

At first, he wanted to go with our brothers to the DuskWood, to help the search for Mia, and to be there for Cara. But I asked him to stay with me.

Landon, with his travels, has a keen eye for seeing the truth in people. He can also sometimes spot details that are missing to the rest of us.

Landon knew about the attempted assassinations on Cara’s life, but he didn’t know that I suspected those instances were connected to this kidnapping until I shared with him. With this suspicion, I deduced that uncovering more about our assassin would help to uncover the truth about the kidnapper.

Now, Landon and I work hard, chasing down leads to uncover more about the assassin. We’ve gone through all the hotel records in the area. Landon believed checking their cameras at specific times of day that correlated with the attacks on Cara would help narrow down the search.

Today, he walks into my office with a few printouts under his arm. All of us have been feeling the strain of Mia’s absence, but for the first time since her disappearing, Landon had a look of hope in his eyes.

“Did you find something?” I asked, standing up from my chair.

“Yes, but I don’t know if it’s anything.” Landon comes closer.

He’s trying to temper my expectations, I can tell. Truly, the hope in his eyes tells a different story. He fully believes that he has something.

I’m ready to hear it. “Show me,” I say.

One by one, he places photos down on the desk between us. They are blown up photos from a security camera. In them, there is a single man walking through a hotel lobby. He is mostly unassuming, looking like any other traveler.

But there is something in his gait. And… there… Landon places down the final photo. There is a dark shadow near the man’s belt. It could be anything – a cell phone, a pager perhaps.

Or a gun.

“I’ve crossed referenced all other hotel guests,” Landon says. “This one’s movements are the only ones to line up with the moments Cara was terrorized. And they do all line up. And then there is this.” Landon taps on the dark spot at the man’s belt.

“We can’t jump to conclusions in this,” I say. “We can’t be wrong and accuse an innocent man.”

“The name he gave the hotel registry was fake,” Landon says. “He paid with a stolen credit card.”

Okay, that certainly is suspicious. But even so, we can’t go accusing people. We have to be certain before we can act.

Besides…

“If he gave a fake name and paid with fake credit, how can we hope to find them?” I ask.

That seems take the wind out of Landon’s sails. He deflates slightly, but still seems determined, like he’s thinking hard about it. Given enough time, I’m certain he’ll come up with a solution.

Unfortunately, we don’t have any time.

But, there is a solution. “We need to get this photo to Alaric. Perhaps he can cross reference with his own team. Maybe they’ve seen this man, or recognize him. It’s possible someone might even know him.”

Granted, this could be a loose end, but it’s one worth seeing to the end. This entire investigation is grasping at straws. With so few leads, we can’t ignore any, even the ones that may not lead anywhere.

With Mia’s life in the balance, we need to be sure.

“Get Alaric on the phone,” I tell Landon. “Tell him we are sending over some photos…”

Landon immediately picks up the phone from my desk.

Alaric’s POV

Alaric waits, his cell phone in his hand, for the photo to come through. He has no idea what to expect. Landon downplayed the importance of the photo, saying it could be nothing. The man in the photo could be innocent in this, even if he was guilty of fraud.

Yet, I couldn’t help but feel the adrenaline course through me at the possibility. Maybe this is just the break we need.

Landon and Eamon wouldn’t do anything lightly. If they think this might have potential, then I need to take this seriously.

For Mia, I will take anything seriously.

Then, slowly, the phone chimes with a new text. I open the text thread, and click on the photo.

It downloads impossibly slowly.

Inch by slow inch the photo comes into focus.

I click on the photo and then zoom closer.

The man in the photo comes into focus.

“Son of a…” I curse.

The phone rings. Eamon is calling back.

I click accept and bring the phone to my ear.

“Eamon,” I say.

“Do you know him?” Eamon asks.

“Yes,” I tell him. “Eamon, this is the man who was once my Gamma. He plotted against me five years ago and was exiled from DarkWood pack.”

“You have a name.”

I do. “George.”