by Roxy Wilson
Devyn shuddered at the thought of his anger. Although she saw no evidence of it, she felt pretty sure his temper would be formidable. The pain of losing Justin pummeled her, hard and sharp. She couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the urge to rip out the IV attached to her arm to go and search for the boy. Something told her it wouldn’t be such an easy thing to do. Whoever planned the kidnapping was fast and they planned it well.
Where was Simon?
Who found her?
When she was wheeled into the hospital, she asked if she could get her phone.
“In a while, miss.”
It took an hour and a whole lot of begging and pleading before she got access to her purse. Devyn snatched out her phone and placed a call to Simon.
He picked up on the first ring. “What happened?” he demanded before she could say anything.
She explained it all to him. “Have you found Justin?”
“There isn’t any trace of him.”
The shock sent her reeling. Devyn gripped the bedrail hard as she contemplated the consequences of what happened. “Who found me?”
“I did. When you didn’t come back, I went in and found you lying in the corridor. After calling for backup, I ran ahead and checked every inch of the building but he was nowhere and neither was the guy who took you both in.”
“Shit! Has anyone called Keran?”
“I did. He’s on his way back as we speak.”
She didn’t know what else to say. “Keep me posted.”
After she ended the call, Devyn broke down. Justin was snatched away from her. Where is he? Is he safe? What did they intend to do to him? My God! When Keran landed back here, all hell would break lose. She had no doubt he would rip the city apart, brick by brick, to find his son. Devyn was sure he wouldn’t rest until his boy was found again, but until that happened, she would keep praying for Justin. All she wanted was for him to be safe and to not be scared. He was just a little boy, and he’d been torn away from the people he knew.
Where the hell did they take him?
And what would they do to him?
Such thoughts plagued her mind all night as she was forced to remain in the hospital because of the fear of concussion. The next morning, she was visited by police officers who wanted to record her statement. She gave them the full account. “Have you found him yet?”
“There has been no sign of him.”
“But there was CCTV there. I saw cameras in the hall. Surely, you can find some clues as to where he was taken.”
“The corridor you were in had no cameras. He was likely moved out from one of the back entrances that were supposed to be closed, but we found the door open. We’ve seen footage of you both entering the building but from that moment on, there are no clues.”
She bit her lip. Tears pricked at the back of her eyes. What was going on? This was so unfair. “Why him?”
“We’re assuming he was kidnapped because his father is a rich man and can pay a ransom. So far, there have been no attempts by the kidnappers to contact Mr. Underwood or any of his employees, but…for Justin, it would be better if there was a ransom demand.”
When children were kidnapped for ransom, there was a great likelihood they returned safely. She knew such facts because her previous employer had also been filthy rich. “But there was so much security in that place. How could they have smuggled a child out without anyone seeing anything?”
“It was well-orchestrated, ma’am. We’re working on several leads,” one of the police officers replied.
Their words didn’t reassure her. Justin was in trouble, and there wasn’t a damn thing she could do to help him.
“If you find anything or remember something that can help us with this investigation, please don’t hesitate to call us.” The officer handed her a card. “And we would strongly urge you not to leave the city until we’ve found Justin. We may need to interview you again.”
She dropped it into her bag. “Sure,” she said in a weak voice. “I’ll be at Keran’s house if you need me.”
“Are you going there now?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll drop you there since we have to ask some questions of the people who accompanied you both to the concert,” the officer said.
She felt grateful for the ride. “I’ll just take a few minutes to change.”
Devyn returned as soon as she was done, and they drove her to the place she’d had such wonderful moments with Justin. The sight of the house brought tears to her eyes again. She should have been back here last night with Justin. She failed him, and she failed Keran. What would he say when he came back? Surely, he would blame her for the kidnapping. She expected that. It’d been her job to keep his son safe. She’d promised him she would take good care of the boy. When she got out of the car, Devyn went inside with the officers.
Everyone on Keran’s staff looked visibly tense and somber.
She took a shower and changed clothes as the ones she had on were the same ones she’d worn to the concert. When she came back down, the police were gone. She went and found Simon. “When is Keran expected back?”
“Within an hour,” he said.
She longed to ask him more questions, but she could see he was busy with other people. There was some kind of a command center already set up in Keran’s study. Perhaps they expected the kidnappers to call. She hoped they would get the call soon, because Keran would be happy to pay any amount of money for his son. Justin was his first and last priority, as he should be. He would do anything to get him back.
She paced the living room floor. She couldn’t sit still, couldn’t concentrate on anything. All the senses in her body were focused on the sound of the car that would signal Keran’s return. Finally, she heard it. Devyn wanted to run outside but she couldn’t manage it. Her feet were frozen to the ground.
He came inside and looked at her.
The sight of him brought fresh tears to her eyes. How could she ever make up for this awful mistake? Because of her, his only child was missing. If he killed her for that mistake, she would gladly accept his punishment because she deserved it.
He walked over. Dark circles ringed his eyes. It was obvious he didn’t sleep a wink since he got the news. There were lines on his face that weren’t there before, and even his eyes looked dull and lifeless.
“I’m so sorry, Keran. I-I don’t know how it—happened. There were too many of them, and there wasn’t anything I could do to stop—”
Much to her surprise, he pulled her into his arms.
Putting her head on his shoulder, she gave vent to the emotions that plagued her ever since she lost Justin. Devyn cried and cried. She simply couldn’t stop.
Finally, he ran a hand over her hair and stepped back.
She wiped a hand over her face.
“We’re going to get him back.”
She nodded. “But—”
“No buts, Devyn. We’re going to get my son back. The only thing I want from you is to be strong. Be strong for me, and for Justin. He needs us, and we’ve got to pull ourselves together, so we don’t make a mistake.”
“I shouldn’t have—”
“Whatever happened is done. And we can’t change the past, but I’m going to get my son back, and for that I’m willing to do anything. I’ve got to go and talk to the men. Get some rest and we’ll talk again later.” He turned to leave.
Devyn collapsed on the couch. Although it shocked her that he didn’t seem to blame her, she’d always known he was a fair man. Not many people would have been able to see that she was genuinely sorry for what happened. She shouldn’t have taken him inside on her own .They were always meant to be followed by a bodyguard. If Simon was there, he might have been able to resist long enough for her to get Justin out.
Perhaps.
She would never know how it would have gone down if she’d acted different. As Keran said, it was done and they needed to focus on the future. She would do her best to do so and soon, they would have
Justin back. It was impossible for her to accept another scenario. Nothing else would do.
Not at all!
Chapter Eight
Losing his son was the worst thing that had ever happened to him. He’d worried about it ever since the boy was born, but time and time again, he told himself it was a fear all parents had and there wasn’t much he could do about it. Now that it had come true, he wished he’d done more to protect Justin. He shouldn’t have left him, but the deed was done now and he would have to pay the price for it.
While he sat with the men, revisiting the details of the crime scene, he was reminded of a broken down Devyn. She was truly devastated over this loss. Initially, he felt upset with her but during the course of the flight, he came to recognize she’d been a victim too. They hurt her, and she had to spend a day in the hospital. She wasn’t trained to fight and he couldn’t expect her to do something like that.
Simon of course failed him and was terribly sorry about it.
Regret won’t change what happened, but Keran believed in giving second chances. “You didn’t check to make sure the man was carrying an authentic pass,” he said to the bodyguard. “That was your first mistake.”
“I know, sir.”
“The second mistake was to allow the man to dictate terms. Since he wasn’t letting you go with Justin, you should have asked to speak to his manager, or else try to get in touch with someone from my office who would have spoken to someone. It was a setup, straight from the start, and you failed to recognize it.” His voice was cold.
“Yes, sir. I offer my resignation.”
“You’ll do no such thing. What you’ll do is put in all your effort into finding my son, and you’ll help me bring him back home, and if we manage to do that, you’ll redeem yourself. Is that clear?”
Simon stood straighter. “I will do that, sir. That’s a promise.”
“And that’s all I expect.” Keran turned his attention to the Head of Security who’d gone to Switzerland with him.
Martin was tall, bald, and grim. He was responsible for security of Keran’s companies as well as the house. “Have the lab tests come back from Devyn’s blood analysis? What was the drug they was used?”
“Not yet. The hospital is cooperating but they need one more day to get the results.”
Keran nodded. His mind was sharp, alert. Rather than getting overwhelmed with grief, he’d made every effort possible to push his emotions to the back of his mind. His son needed him and this was the best way he could help him. “Once they do that, find out who manufactures that drug, where is it sold, and see if we can track the purchase down.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I want copies of the CCTV footage. We’ll go over it minute by minute and Simon will try to identify the culprit,” he added. “If we find him in the video, we can find out if he talked to someone. See if you find anything else that will help locate Justin.”
“The police want to talk to you.”
“Call the lead detective and ask him to either come to the house or else I would be happy to go to the police station, whatever they prefer. Offer them our full cooperation, and ask them if they’d object if we hire a private agency to find Justin. I don’t think they’ll mind, but I don’t want them to raise an issue later on.”
“Sure, sir.”
He stood. “I want those copies of videos within an hour. We’ll watch them—a million times if we have to. I’m just going to talk to Devyn, and then I’ll be back.”
“Sir,” Martin interjected. “We did run background checks on Devyn, and she was clear, but with your permission, I would like to go through her…activities for the last few days. We could check her computer usage as I’ve learned she has been using the one in the library and also see who she has been talking to.”
“You suspect her?”
“She’s the newest member in this household. It would be foolish of me not to at least consider that she might have something to do with this.”
Keran didn’t like it. If anything, he could see she was utterly devastated by what happened. But if he wanted his people to work hard, then he’d have to give them some leeway. It wasn’t what he wanted, but it was necessary. The sooner they eliminated her as a suspect, the quicker they could move on to the real target. “Okay. Do what you have to do.”
He would apologize to her for the intrusion later, but right now the only thing that mattered was that they find his son. He felt sure she wouldn’t have any objections to the methods they used. When he got out, she wasn’t in the living room. Keran went upstairs. After a brief pause, he knocked on her door.
She opened it.
He could tell she’d been crying for some more. Keran walked inside.
“Any news?” she asked.
“Not yet.”
She wrung her hands together. “Why haven’t they called? If they want money, they should have tried to make contact by now. The sooner they get in touch, the sooner we can get Justin back.”
“Maybe they knew I wasn’t in town and were waiting for me to come back.”
“You think they knew you weren’t there?”
He walked over to the window and looked out. From this position, he could see the flowers his son helped plant. Would Justin be back before they grew tall? Keran clenched his fists. He would make damned sure of that. “These people planned the whole thing, right down to the smallest detail. They wouldn’t have left anything to chance. Perhaps what gave them courage to move ahead with this plan was the knowledge that I wasn’t there. That almost never happens.”
“Yes, Justin told me it was the first time you left him alone. Oh, my God, Keran! How can you ever forgive me? I’ve lost your child. If only I was careful, if I’d taken more precautions—”
He strode over and enveloped her in a hug. “You did what you could. It was my fault that I left him. Simon was there, and he should have been more careful. In some small way, we’re all to blame but we’re going to do better by him next time. When he’s home, we won’t let him get out of our sight.”
“But the poor baby, what must he be going through?”
His heart wrenched at the thought. Were they treating him right? Had they given him food, a bed to sleep in? Did they know he liked a night light in his room? The questions were endless and he had no answers. He could only hope his son was alive and well and that they would find him soon. “He’s a strong boy. He’ll do fine.”
She wiped the tears from her eyes and glanced up at him. “Is there anything I can do to help you?”
“We have a team of people downstairs. The only thing I want from you is to be strong. Come downstairs. I want everyone to hear your statement again. Maybe it might give us some clues.”
“I didn’t see the men. They all wore ski masks.”
“But you saw the guy who ushered you inside. I want you to work with Simon and a sketch artist who’s coming in, and see if you both can come up with a picture for him. Or else, we’ll try to find him in the video. He’s our only link to those guys. If we find him, we’ll be able to get to them.”
“I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
He simply couldn’t resist anymore. Keran needed this. He dipped his head and kissed her.
Devyn didn’t make any attempt to push him away. Rather, her arms curled around his neck and she pressed her body against his.
Her soft curves fit perfectly against his hard length. It wasn’t desire that made him taste every nook and cranny in her mouth but rather the need to find some courage. Her warmth and her passion gave him some strength, and when he lifted his head, he felt better, albeit slightly. He didn’t offer an apology for the kiss. It was obvious they both needed each other. “I’ll see you downstairs in ten minutes.”
Silent, she nodded.
Both of them didn’t have the energy to figure out what was going on between them. The heat was there, but it was necessary for them to cling on to each other, because they needed the support. He went into his room. Although he
felt beyond tired, there was no way he could get some rest. The idea of sleep was impossible. Even if he laid down, he wouldn’t be able to close his eyes. Even if he trusted the police and knew they would do a damn good job, he wasn’t going to just sit idly by, waiting on their call while twiddling his thumbs. Keran possessed better resources, and he intended to use them to make sure his son got home safe and sound.
When he went downstairs after a quick shower and change of clothes, Devyn was already working with Simon and the sketch artist. He left them and checked his email. There was still no ransom demand. Why were the kidnappers biding their time? It would be in their best interest to wrap this up with as much speed as possible. The longer they waited, the more publicity this case would get and the greater the chance they would be caught. He expected to hear from them in a few hours. If they were keeping tabs on their movements in the house, they would have found out by now he was back.
Soon, soon. He just had to wait a little bit longer and he would hear from them; but this waiting was killing him. Keran began researching some good detective agencies. The more people he hired to look for his son, the greater the chance that he would be found in the quickest time possible.
“This looks a lot like him,” Devyn said in a soft voice to Simon who inspected the sketch the artist created.
Martin came in. “We’ve got a request from the police for Devyn to come in and work with a sketch artist. I told them we’re working on one, but they want to do their bit. Simon has worked with them already, but they want to work with Devyn separately and then compare the sketches.”
“Let them do what they want. Also, shoot them a copy of this sketch,” Keran replied. “I want you to arrange a car to take Devyn to the police station. Send a guard with her. I don’t want her alone for even a minute.”
“Yes, sir.”
She stood. “Are we going to be able to find that man with these sketches?”
“The police will issue a red alert for him, and we’ll also work on our own,” he said. “When you’re done, I want you to come straight home. It might not be safe for you to go anywhere.”