Another Life (Book 3)

Chapter 15

TW// again? Unfortunately, yes. Some contents in this chapter can be a trigger. Please be advised, this is a completely fictional story, but if it gets too heavy for you, feel free to skip ahead.

"Steph—"

"Please—"

"You are not coming," I tell her for the third time. I'm trying to keep my cool but I can feel it slipping away from me. "None of you are."

I'm trying to track Lee, but I can't. Gracie's scared and crying. Somebody took her daughter from her, again. Sierra is just trying to keep the remaining kids happy and calm. Mom and Vivienne are trying to comfort Grace while Sloane is badgering me about going on what could very well be a suicide mission.

"You're making me feel helpless. I can help." She says again. "I'm not disabled."

"Sloane LaRue," I breathe with a deep sigh. "You are not helpless." I take her face between my hands and she holds on to them. To me. I can already see the worry in her eyes. I can feel her angst mixing with my own. She just wants to help, I know that. But, "You are pregnant and sick. Bringing you with me will not help me because you're my weakness right now. I need you safe, I need this baby safe, and if I take you with me, I'm risking all of that. A child for a child. No. You are going home to rest in bed."

I kiss her forehead as I stand up. "But—"

She starts, but this is not up for negotiation. Not even Sierra and Grace are coming. After what I saw happening in the vision, it's better to have none of them with me. They're all safer this way. I shake my head at her protest and turn away. "Can somebody talk to her? Please. She won't listen to me, and—I can't..."

The urge I have to pull all my hair out right now is enormous. I pace back and forth in the parking lot trying to track Lee again but I'm still getting nothing. Her signal is glitching. Not offline, not online either, just stuck in a weird limbo. Useless. Absolutely fucking useless!

The first thing I did was call Harvey. He's back at HQ canvasing this entire city but he has nothing for me yet. It's only been forty minutes but she could be anywhere. Maryland, Virginia, DC. Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey. She could be right under my nose. But I wouldn't know. I'm sure she went through the spinning doors. She went out behind Wren, before Grace. I made sure not to leave any of them behind, so where the fuck is she?

I can't even feel her. Within ten minutes, I was disconnected from her like a bad internet connection and all I can hope for is that she was alive.

The screeching of car tires alerts me and as I look towards the entrance of the parking lots, I see a black SUV approaching. It comes to a stop at my feet, the door flying open. Andrew hops out tossing me the keys. I catch them with one hand as they head for my face. "CCTV shows that somebody took her from the airport." He says as he walks up to me. "It was a woman. Dirty blonde hair, slim build. We didn't catch her face, but she was wearing a dark brown leather coat, distressed jeans, a black sweater, and black combat boots."

"Okay...but when did all of this happen and I didn't see?"

"Spinning doors. Wren walked out Grace walked out but Irelee never made it out. The woman blocked her, chloroform, and they went right back in."

"So, they're still here?"

"No." He shakes his head.

"We searched every single security camera in this place. They all conveniently went out just right after they re-enter the airport. There are no signs of them."

"So, we have no leads." My throat is already clogged. "Perfect."

"We have an Amber alert out for her," Andrew says giving me a sympathetic look. "It's not much but it's something. I can come with you on this case, LaRue. You need some backup."