Chapter 28 - Lex

"I think Nic is in danger!" I shout, opening the door to Damon's office. He is pacing the length of his office and tossing a yoyo as he often does when he's thinking or stressed.

"I think you're right."

"Are you feeling it too?"

He nods.

"I'll get the others," he says, leaving me alone in his office. I collapse on the couch and drop my face into my hands. I had promised Nic that I wouldn't let anything happen to her. If only I hadn't been such a dumbass, if only I had claimed her as my soul mate much earlier, our connection would be much stronger, and I could have perhaps stopped this from happening. But I was so consumed by my fear that I could not see beyond it. I hope she is safe.

The others quickly gather in Damon's office. I had sought out Damon specifically as he has a much more acutely developed sense of sniffing out danger.

"TJ, can you get her location?" I ask the minute TJ walks in. He pulls out his iPad and sets to work immediately.

"She went to New Jersey from here, then headed out towards Pittsburgh. Right outside Pittsburg, it seems she changed her mind and headed back to New Jersey."

"Let me see," I say, snatching the iPad from him. "This doesn't seem right. Can you get the detailed data?"

He nods and breaks down each leg of her journey.

"She hasn't come back to New Jersey. Look at the time stamps," Damon says. And he's right. There's no way she could've reach New Jersey so quickly. Not even the fastest commercial jets fly as fast. I think I know what happened.

"She's been taken. I'm going to Pittsburgh. TJ, I need the exact location from where she supposedly took a U-turn and headed back here. Can you and Liam go to where her current location supposedly is as per the tracking device? I'm leaving right away for Pittsburgh. Keep me posted," I say and rush out of Damon's office.

Damon and Pat follow me.

"We're coming with you. My skills might come in handy, especially since we don't know what we are dealing with. And Pat's negotiations skills are legendary. TJ and Liam can follow the leads here and keep us updated."

I nod, not trusting myself to speak. I'm so incredibly grateful for their support. It is quite late in the day now, and almost all our employees have gone home for the day, which is just as well. The less curious people around us, the better.

We stop only to wear our Skins, then shift and head in the direction of Pittsburgh. When we are roughly at the point where Nic supposedly turned around, we begin our descent. In the dead of the night, we are grateful that there isn't any traffic. When we land, we start walking in different directions, looking for anything out of the ordinary.

"Look at this!" Damon shouts. Pat and I sprint towards him. He is holding up a handkerchief.

"Chloroform."

"She has definitely been kidnapped," Pat says, exhaling sharply.

I pinch the bridge of my nose. From the pocket, I pull out my phone and call Pam. I ask her if Nic has reached home. She says she hasn't. Since I don't want to worry her, I make light of it, saying that she probably changed her mind, and that Nic's phone is still switched off as we had a fight. After I have calmed Pam down sufficiently, I promise her that I will call her the minute I hear from Nic, and hang up.

Then I call TJ.

"Hey, I was just about to call you," he says. There's something in his voice that sets my nerves on the edge.

"What is it?"

"I'll explain later, but they're holding her somewhere near the Grand Canyon."

I hang up and tell Damon and Pat what TJ told me. Even when I know that the Grand Canyon stretches for hundreds of miles, I feel hopeful. Our search area has just narrowed down from the whole country to one specific geographic location. Without wasting even a minute, we shift and start for the Grand Canyon. There is something on the edges on my memory, something about the Grand Canyon, but in my dragon form, I'm not really able to remember. Anyway, it doesn't matter right now. The important thing is to find Nic.