hear what was happening. It was eerie quiet. I can’t be certain, but it sounded like a body was being dragged.”
Clutching my hair, I froze.
“I tracked her phone to her father’s house. I’m on my way there now. Talk to you soon.”
Shrugging on my coat, I stormed out of my office, halting at my secretary’s desk.
“Macy, I am leaving for the day. I left Haven Enterprises on the conference call. Inform them an emergency arose. Call Bryson. Tell him he needs to contact Haven’s CEO.”
“Right away, sir.”
I called Harry back. “Harry, was Kara at her dad’s?” My voice was filled with panic.
“I found her phone underneath her dad’s truck in the garage. There was no sign of her anywhere.”
“Fuck,” I roared as I ran out the side door in route to my truck.
“Collin?”
“Yeah?”
“I found a trickle of blood by her father’s truck. I don’t know who’s blood it was.”
I slammed my fist on the steering wheel.
“Do we know if Peter is still in Fairbanks?”
I had a bad feeling he wasn’t.
“I couldn’t reach the contact we hired. I called a Marine buddy of mine who lives in Fairbanks and asked him to go to Peter’s grandmother’s house to see if he was there. He wasn’t. His grandmother claims she doesn’t know what time he left a few days ago. At this point Kara and her father are missing.”
“I’ll ask Eric to help us find Kara and her father. He’s known Peter for years. Maybe he knows where he could have taken them.” I hopped out of the truck at the private side of the airport.
“I should arrive in forty-five minutes. I’ll use my own helicopters to search the mountains of Talkeetna.”
“Sounds good. See you soon, Collin.”
“Bye.”
The moment Kara and I reached a decision to live in Alaska part time, I leased two hangers at the private airports in Talkeetna and Anchorage. Getting to my family quickly was a priority.
I couldn’t wait to be on the ground in Talkeetna. Forty-five minutes felt like two hours. My pregnant wife was missing. It was too harsh a reality to wrap my mind around. I kissed her lips and rubbed her belly just this morning. Our baby girl was due to arrive later this month.
Don’t think of the worst, Collin. Remain positive.
The second the helicopter landed; I was on the phone. Harry was there to pick me up.
“Dr. Barnes speaking.”
“Hello, Chrissy, this is Collin. How are you?”
“I’m fine. Is Kara all right?”
I sighed. “Actually, she’s missing.”
“What?” she gasped.
“Yes, I need Eric’s phone number and address. Harry and I believe Peter kidnapped Kara and possibly her father.”
“That fucking asshole. I want to kill him. One second, I’ll text you the information.”
I waited for the info to appear on my cell.
“Collin, is there anything I can do?”
“Yes, can you and Michelle ask shop owners when they last saw Mr. Riley? And if they’ve seen Peter.”
“Absolutely, I’ll talk to the sheriff first.”
“I’ll contact the sheriff. Don’t worry about that. Talking to the folks in town would be a big help.”
“Not a problem. Keep me posted.”
“Will do.”
I ended the call.
Didn’t need to involve the sheriff at this time. I planned to kill the bastard for kidnapping my pregnant wife.
**P**
Eric, Harry, and I trekked toward the mountains that were two hours away from where Mr. Riley lived.
“Eric, was this a place Peter frequented?”
“Not to my knowledge. When we were kids, Kara, Peter, and I hung out in the caves up here. Our parents weren’t aware we hung out in the caves. Peter wouldn’t hurt Kara.”
“Eric, I don’t think he would either, but he might harm her dad.”
He gawked through his binoculars. “We should reach the caves in an hour. Time isn’t on our side. It’ll be dark around four thirty.”
I sighed, gripping my backpack straps, I kicked the snow.
Something orange caught my eye.
I picked up the snack food. “These are Kara’s favorites.” I walked further uncovering more cheez-its.
A smile curled my lips. “My baby’s trying to send us a message.”
Harry and Eric smiled.
Eric smacked my shoulder. “She’s a smart woman.”
“Yes, she is.”
We continued on. “I’ll have the choppers fly this way in thirty minutes. I don’t want to spook Peter.”
“Good plan.”
**P**
We finally arrived at the caves two hours later. That was one hell of a walk. Nothing we couldn’t handle. I was worried about my wife. Sending the choppers too soon could cause someone to get hurt. Harry was a trained soldier. He could give Kara and her dad medical attention if needed.
Eric peered through his binoculars from behind the