Lost in Silence (The Lost Series Book 1) (23 page)

Alice

“I can’t let you go alone,” Zero informs me as I walk out the door.

“Sure,” I roll my eyes. These guys were driving me crazy and I was getting tired of the interrogations. It was a short trip between Missy’s and Hudson’s, less than five minutes if I hurry. “I don’t know what the big deal is. I’m just going down the street. Ten minutes tops.”

I can see the struggle in his face. He doesn’t want to let me go by myself and normally he wouldn’t. There is a flicker in his eyes before he speaks.

“Alright, text me when you get there and when you’re on your way back, the moment you get into the truck. Lock the doors behind you, both going in and coming out. If you see anything suspicious, you call me right away, in fact, keep your phone in your hand and your finger on the button just in case,” he brow wrinkles, worry dimpling their lines. Shit, I couldn’t believe he was really going to let me go by myself.

“Seriously, Zero, I’ll be fine,” I smirk.

He looks at me, gray eyes serious, daring me to challenge him. “This isn’t a joke. Do you think I want to play babysitter? Sweetheart, I’ve got better things I could be doing right now, cases I could be working on to make me some money. Instead, I’m doing my brother a solid and making sure his woman is here in the same condition as she was when he left her. If it means I have to turn into a stalker to make it happen, then so be it.”

Shit, I just poked the wrong bear
. Speaking of Bear, I could really go for the strong and
very
silent type about now. Zero was normally calm and collected. This was a side of him I hadn’t experienced yet. Makes me wonder who peed in his cheerios.

“I promise, if anything seems out of place, I’ll call,” I show him my phone in my hand, the keys to the truck in my other hand. The guys taught me to drive last week and I took every opportunity I could get to put myself behind the wheel. It was exhilarating and I enjoyed the independence I gained from it. I climb into the truck before he changes his mind, throwing him a smile over my shoulder.

I take off down the road with a smile still on my face. All I could think about was tomorrow. Hudson would be home. I couldn’t wait to see him.

*****

Zero

Ten minutes my ass!

The house was dark when I pulled up exactly twenty minutes after Alice pulled away from Missy’s. She sent a text when she arrived, a text when she was inside and the alarm armed and five minutes later, she sent a text she was on her way out the door. It’s been ten minutes since her last text and Hudson’s truck is still parked in the driveway. I briefly think about the afternoon Dizzy and I spent teaching Alice to drive, and shake my head. It was a good thing I didn’t have to add driving instructor to my resume, I wasn’t exactly a patient teacher. Alice was in tears by the time Dizzy showed up, I’d never seen him so serious before. Thankfully he was able to calm her down and finish the lesson.

I climb out of Missy’s car, worried there weren’t any lights on and no sign outside the house of Alice. Testing the front door, I note it’s locked. I put my key in the lock and turn the knob, the alarm beeps as the door opens. It was armed. I punch in the code disarming it. My heart picks up a notch and I look around the room.

“Alice?” I call out to the dark house. She isn’t in her usual spot, Hudson’s chair. Her purse was flung over the couch, the truck keys on top of it. I turn towards the hall and notice a soft light glowing from the bedroom door. Maybe she’d decided to take a shower. After straining my ears, I don’t hear any running water.

“Alice?” I call again, walking down the hall. The door is ajar but I hear no movement. Pushing it open, I see her duffle bag open on the bed. A few pieces of clothing hang out of it, as if something had caught her attention. My eyes travel around the rest of the room. Nothing seems out of place.

They stop on the bathroom door. I swallow hard and my stomach clenches tightly. It takes me three strides to cross the room, the door is already open. I reach in and flick on the light, my heart stops at the sight.

Son of a bitch!

My cell phone is in my hand and I’ve dialed without thinking. The line rings twice before King answers.

“I fucked up. He got her.”

Hudson

My assignment wrapped flawlessly. We were able to makes our arrests with enough evidence the major players would be locked away for a long time. The FBI made it look like I had died trying to escape since they weren’t going to need me on the stand as a witness. This turn of events left me free and clear of any blowback.

What I found interesting was the role Devlin played in this investigation. An agent for the DEA, he was placed into the ring a few years prior to me. He knew of my status but it was decided long before I arrived that I wouldn’t be informed of his.

He was one of the good guys, like me. Despite the orders he’d passed down from the top, he did his job. I worried about him. It isn’t easy coming back from a job like this and he’d been in longer than me. I told him about King’s operation and exchanged numbers. I didn’t think we’d hear from him but I hope he will surprise me again.

I stepped out of the airport into the cold Chicago night air and take a deep breath. The city wasn’t anything like Oregon but it was where Alice grew up and where her family lived. I probably should’ve waited, even spoken with her before taking this step, but she needed to find herself again. Breaking Erik’s hold was only part of taking herself back, she needed her family.

 The drive to their house didn’t take as long as I thought and I found myself standing on the porch around seven in the evening. I briefly contemplate my decision to come back in the morning, before knocking on the large mahogany door. I was under a time constraint, especially if I wanted to be home on time tomorrow.

 A shadow passes over the small window next to the door, a woman peeks through the lace curtain before I hear the click of locks releasing the door. It opens and the woman peers out at me, I swallow hard, my mouth suddenly dry. I blink and shake my head, are my eyes playing tricks on me?

“Can I help you?” she asks, her brow puckers just like Alice’s would and I realize who I’m looking at. Her mother.

“Good evening, I apologize for calling so late but I’m looking for the Michaelson family,” I know I’ve found them without a doubt.

“I’m Jeanette Michaelson,” she informs me, pushing her shoulders back and standing straighter. She’s wearing a pair of dark jeans, a red top and her hair is pulled back into a messy bun. She looks nothing like the woman I imagined.

“My name is Hudson Rivers,” I stick my hand out towards her, she doesn’t take it. Instead, she crosses her arms and frowns deeper at me. “I’m a friend of your daughter.”

Her frown blanks, she pales. Her arms unfold and they reach out for support. I step forward, catching her just as her legs give out. She’s a feather of a woman, all limbs and no weight. Like Alice.

“She’s dead isn’t she?” she chokes, struggling to pull air into her lungs. “That son of a bitch killed her, didn’t he?”

“No,” I say quickly, supporting her as she makes her way to a bench in the entry way. I cringe because she thought I was here to give her bad news. “She’s not dead.”

“Is she hurt? I don’t understand. Who are you? Why are you here? Where is my daughter?” her voice grows more urgent with each question. I squat down in front of her and look her in the face. Her eyes, although they are brown, are much darker than Alice’s eyes.

“Alice is safe. She’s not hurt. She’s staying with my sister, in Oregon, tucked away from anyone looking to hurt her,” Jeanette’s eyes widen with understanding. Her daughter was safe but her life was still threatened. “She’s been on the run for a few months.”

“She got away from him?” her question answered a few of my own. They did know who Alice was with but I knew from the fear in her eyes, they didn’t know where she disappeared to. Something told me they cared about their daughter, more than Alice believed.

“Yes, she got away,” I can’t help the surge of anger that flows into my veins. I know she said everyone tried to warn her about him but still, her family should have done more. “Seven months ago.”

 Jeanette’s eyes close and she takes a deep breath. A moment of relief washes over her.

“Seven months?” her eyes open and she frowns deeply again. “Where’s she been? Why hasn’t she called?”

“She was afraid this would be the first place he’d come looking for her and she didn’t want to put you in danger,” I explain, watching the frown disappear. A line of sadness settles into the lines of her face. “She’s been running, unable to stay in one place for too long. He’s always one step behind and she’s had to look over her shoulder the entire time. She’s been in Oregon with me for a month. Erik found her at a ratty motel in Los Angeles and I helped her escape. My sister and I gave her a safe place to live while the police track him down.”

“She shouldn’t have worried about our safety, she could’ve come home,” she insists, as a tear rolls down her cheek. She brushes it away. “I could’ve kept her safe.”

“She wasn’t willing to take the chance,” I touch her arm, wanting to comfort her. I recognize the grief pulsing around her, she missed her daughter. “She doesn’t know I’m here and she’ll be pissed when she finds out.”

“You’re going to tell her you were here?”

“Not exactly,” I stand up and step back. “I was hoping you and Mr. Michaelson would join us in Oregon. I know she misses you all and whether she believes it or not, she needs her family.”

I look around, speaking of her father. I hadn’t noticed another person anywhere in the house. “Your husband, Alice’s father…”

“Is dead,” she cuts me off. She clasps her hands together and stares down at her nails, pretending to pick at them. “Two years ago.”

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, my voice low. I find it odd Sneak missed this piece of information. “I didn’t know…”

“Of course you didn’t.”

“Alice’s grandfather?”

“He’s been better,” she tilts her head. Something behind me catches her attention. I turn my head and see a picture across the room, one placed in line of sight for anyone entering into the house to see. I walk over to it and pick it up.

In the photo was of a younger version Alice and an older man. They pose perfectly for the photo. He’s staring down at her with tenderness and love. She holds up a beautiful brandy colored violin in her hands, a smile bigger than the sun plastered on her face.

“A Stradivarius, original,” Jeanette explains, taking the photo from me. “It was a gift from Carter, her grandfather. He was so proud of her.”

“This was when she was acceptance to Juilliard?”

“She told you,” her voice is distant but I hear her stand, her bare feet quiet on the wooden floors as she moves toward me. She stops beside me, her eyes curious.  “Her father didn’t want her to audition but she begged and pleaded for months. We never thought she’d get in. She was so young. Should have known age is just a number when it comes to talent. She was one of a kind and they saw it in her. We were able to push off her attending for a couple of years, that was Marcus’ doing. He wasn’t ready to let her go off into the world. Has she ever played for you?”

“I haven’t had the pleasure,” I nod, thinking about her fingers. I wasn’t sure if she even wanted to try playing again, the subject was sensitive. “What happened after she left?”

She takes the photo from my hands and sets it back down onto the table, adjusting its positioning before walking away.

 “Would you like some coffee?” she asks over her shoulder before disappearing around the corner of the quaint house. Images of a young Alice standing in this very room, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, danced through my mind. “I just brewed a fresh pot, decaf.”

I follow behind her, taking in the photos littered around the room and covering the walls. Nearly all of them were of Alice.

“That’d be great, thank you,” I call back, walking around the corner and into a cozy retro kitchen. It was if I had stepped back in time to the fifties. From the tile to the appliances, it was a bit eerie.

“Marcus’ doing,” she smiles, noticing my eyes wander about the room. “He wanted to keep this room original. I’ve been meaning to redo it but every time I try...it just feels wrong.”

“It’s lovely,” I take the mug of steaming Joe from her, careful not to burn my mouth with the first sip.

“Tell me Mr. Rivers, how close are you to my daughter?” I nearly choke on my coffee from the bluntness of her question. I contemplate keeping it clinical with her, after all I didn’t owe her an explanation but there was something about the playfulness in her smile that told me she already knew.

“Please call me Hudson.”

 “I’m sure she told you something about our family life,” she doesn’t shy away from the subject. “You should believe every word of it too, Alice doesn’t lie. Your being here proves you care for her Hudson, shielding her from the very people who fucked up in a big way not giving her the love and support she needed. If we had maybe we wouldn’t have lost her to that monster.”

 I can’t help staring. She wasn’t anything like the woman Alice described. She was reflective, remorseful and absolutely right.

“I’ve had a long time to sit and regret Hudson, a lot of time to figure it all out. I was a piece of shit mother to her,” she looks sad. “The truth is I don’t blame her for not coming home when she escaped. I wouldn’t have. But things are different, I’m different now and I want my daughter back.”

My phone beeps, alerting me to an incoming message. I reach into my pocket to check it. It’s from King.

KC:
Call me when you land.

My stomach sinks and clenches at the same time, something isn’t right. I need to make this call now.

“Excuse me,” I place my mug on the counter. “I need to step outside and make a call.”

“Of course,” she nods, carefully watching me. “You can use the back patio through that door,” she points, “if you want.”

I nod wordlessly and step outside. The phone rings once before he answers.

“Hudson,” King’s answers, his voice is cold and detached.

“King,” I pause waiting but he says nothing. “What happened?”

“Where are you?”

“I’m at Jeanette Michaelson’s,” I answer. King was the only one who knew of my plans today.

“I need you to get to the airport. I’ll have a jet waiting for you and her family...”

“What happened?” my voice is firmer than I felt inside.

“How many will be flying with you?”

“Kingston,” I yell into the phone. The door behind me opens, I know Jeanette is listening. I turn and my eyes clash fiercely with hers. “Where’s Alice?”

“She’s gone.”

“What do you mean she’s gone?” My body trembled, my worst fear coming to life. I know she didn’t run. Jeanette’s face is stone but she eyes already know what King isn’t saying.

“It was Erik.”

“You better have that fucking jet ready to roll by the time I get there,” the blood roared in my ears and I wanted to bury my fist in the paneling of Alice’s childhood home but I don’t. “Who was it?”

“Zero.”

“Tell that mother fucker to stay out of sight,” I bite, anger rolls through me making my stomach queasy. “I’m serious King, keep him out of sight. I won’t be responsible for my actions if he isn’t.”

“Get to the airport and we’ll deal with it when you get here.”

“Where did he get her?”

“Your place.”

“Son of a bitch,” I swear, my eyes meeting Jeanette’s questioning ones. I nod and she spins racing into the house. “How long ago?”

“About an hour. Your neighbors saw and heard nothing. We’ve canvassed the entire town.”

 “The woods behind the house?”

 “One set of footprints in and out, heavier as if he was carrying something on the way out,” he explains and we both know that something was Alice.

 “Twenty minutes King,” I hang up the phone, nearly crushing it in my fist. I didn’t care how, I was going to find that sick fuck and tear him limb from limb. I tuck the phone into my pocket and reenter the house, Jeanette’s waiting by the front door, bag in hand. I falter seeing Alice in her stance.

 “I learned long ago to be prepared for a day like this,” she refers to her bag and opens the door. I step out into the night, worry deep in my gut. She locks the door behind us and follows me to my rental. “I’m not losing my daughter again Hudson.”