Chapter 48

JASPER

D arting out of the revolving doors and nearly running over two of my biggest guys. Both standing there with stupid fucking looks on their faces.

"Where did she go?!" I screamed out of frustration. Frantically, I searched the street and tossed my head back and forth, hoping to catch a glimpse of her dress or a shadow of her figure.

"That way sir." one of the idiots pointed down the street. I glared at the two of them. Why would they let her leave on her own?

"I'll deal with you later," I snarled, running in the direction they had indicated. I continued running until I came upon an alleyway and paused, contemplating whether to proceed. Considering Harper's traumatic experience began in an alley, it seemed unwise to assume she would choose to go down one now, particularly tonight after having seen me with her captors.

I took three large steps past it when suddenly, something seized my thoughts. This was Harper we were talking about; she is strong, smart, and doesn't have a coward bone in her body. I turned on my heels and went straight down that alleyway.

Running down the dark path my phone started buzzing in my pocket. I grabbed it and held it tight.

I need to calm down .

I wouldn't find Harper before they do if I couldn't maintain my focus. Halting there, I bent over, hands on my knees, gasping for breath. The sound of footsteps approached from behind. I expected Max to be not far off, so it was no shock when a whistle from him caught my attention.

"Hey brother, what do you want to do here?" Max never used terms of endearment with me; it's just not in our nature. So, I knew his concern for finding Harper matched my own.

If they were to get their hands on her, there's no telling if she would make it out alive this time. Bile started to rise from my throat as I recalled the photos from the police report back when she was only a girl.

I shook my head, attempting to clear the fog to devise a strategy. Max put his hand on my shoulder. I looked down at my phone that was still vibrating in my hand and back to Max, Joseph's name across the screen.

"Joseph, I need men. We have to find Harper before…" I couldn't say the rest; it just wasn't an option.

"Sir, I've got men at all the places Max mentioned. Harper's home, the penthouse, the bookstore, the newspaper headquarters. What else can I do for you?" Joseph was good at his job and had covered all his bases.

"Keep me updated." I snapped before ending the call. Max let out a loud sigh. I glanced over to see him anxiously shifting his weight from foot to foot. I gave him a pointed look before questioning his odd behavior, but he beat me to it.

"Jasper, did Harper wear the diamonds tonight?" I looked at him like he had two eyes and nodded my head.

Where was he going with this?

If he intended to accuse Harper of stealing the diamonds and fleeing, I wasn't sure I could restrain myself from knocking him on his ass.

"Why?" I snapped with more aggression than I intended.

"I know where Harper is," Max stated matter of factly.

"I just need to get to a computer."

I stomped over to Max, clenched my teeth, and growled, "Explain."

"Okay, before I do you got to know that I have your best interest at heart." he started and took a couple of steps back before continuing.

"You seemed to be falling for Harper and given her background I just thought maybe putting a tracker in her jewelry was a good idea." he paused a minute to read my reaction. My eyes widened not because I was upset but because for a moment, I felt a glimmer of hope in finding her before something awful happened to her.

"I just need access to a computer, and as long as she hasn't removed them, I'll be able to track her location within minutes," he finished, his expression unreadable.

We weren't far from the penthouse, about five miles closer than the office so I picked up my cell and dialed Hector.

* * *

As I pulled into the penthouse, I noticed four of Joseph's men stationed outside the building. I jumped out of the car the moment we stopped in the parking garage and made my way toward one of them.

"Has she come here?" I rushed out before stopping in front of a tall muscular man. He must've been new because I hadn't seen him before tonight. Joseph mentioned hiring extra hands due to the threats that were made. Thinking ahead .

The guard shook his head with an apologetic look on his face.

"No sir. all is quiet here."

Max and I got on the elevator and as the doors closed behind us my cell phone pinged with a photo message from an unknown number. I was quick to open it. I considered that Harper might be anywhere and could make a call from somewhere other than her cell phone.

My heart dropped when I saw the picture pop up on my phone.

Harper gagged, with tears streaking her precious face. Her eyes squeezed shut. Her arms were bound above her head where she hung from a butcher hook like a piece of meat. the photo attached to a text that said,

‘Can't wait to see if she is as much fun as we remember.

My heart throbbed in my chest as fury burned within me. I passed my phone to Max, and his face turned pale.

The elevator doors parted, revealing my empty penthouse. I dashed to my office, hoping I had left the computer on, so we wouldn't have to waste another second before locating Harper. As I flung the office door open, I froze, taking in the mess on my desk. Looking over the papers, I recognized them as the ones from the file Max had brought over days earlier.

Oh no, dammit Harper…

I turned and shared a look with Max, he must've anticipated my thoughts.

"We're gonna find her brother," he said reassuringly before walking past me to sit at my desk.

"Can I close out of this?" he asked with his brows furrowed. When I looked up, I saw that emails between Harper and JW were open.

Fuck she saw those too? When we get her back, I have so much explained to do.

A few minutes and a ton of keystrokes passed,

"There, she's right there." He pointed at a screen with a grid and a glowing red dot.

I jumped up and turned the monitor so I could see it better.

"What the fuck am I looking at here Max, what is this? give me a location, not a damn puzzle." I snapped nearly knocking the monitor off the desk.

"Easy asshole. Sit down. I'll get the coordinates, and we can go get these pieces of shit." Max retorted. I sat in the chair bouncing my knee when my phone pinged again alerting me of a new message.

‘ We are r eady to get started unless you are ready to sign over territory and the estates. what happens next is up to you. You have fifteen minutes.'

I slammed my fists down on the mahogany desk so hard the wood cracked like an egg under my hand.

"We need to leave now, Max," I said sharply. Max didn't flinch; he was familiar with my temper and how I would lash out to deal with it.

I watched Max pull out his phone, tap a few buttons, and get to his feet. The chair scooted and slammed against the wall behind him.

"I got it. "We can keep tracking her location on my phone now," he said, hurrying past me and out of the office without looking up from the red dot on his mobile screen.

"let's go get our girl," he called over his shoulder.

* * *

Speeding down the highway, we lagged about twenty minutes behind those fools. I missed the fifteen-minute warning, yet it was clear they craved the properties and turf more than they did Harper. They were too clever to hurt her if there was any chance that I'd cave to their demands. But I had zero plans to comply, and they were about to find that out.