40. Luca

Chapter forty

Luca

R ome pats me on the back as I walk past him through the front entrance. "It's almost over. What time is your flight tomorrow?"

"Noon, after Kylie's last class, as if you don't already know." I arch my brow, daring him to deny it. There's nothing Rome isn't aware of.

His lips quirk up. "We should have dinner when you return. I'd love to meet Kylie."

I eye him a beat. He's bound and determined to bridge the gap I placed when my father died. For once, I lack the desire to put space between us.

"When things settle down." I acquiesce.

The corner of Rome's mouth tips up. "Safe travels, cousin." He steps back to close the door as Gio, Rafael, and I head to the Escalade.

"Do you feel good about the plans, Rafael?" I ask once we're all in the car, needing the reassurance it will all go well tomorrow.

"I do. Italy flew down some foot soldiers to help. It's going to be quick and merciless."

Gio takes us down the long driveway away from Rome's house. It's a beautiful estate near the city. Horses are out in the pasture to our right. All are heading to the stables, probably to feed and house up for the night. One stands out, a beautiful white stallion racing home, bucking and showing off for the golden palomino running a few feet behind him. Rome's always loved horses and I have no doubt the white horse is his.

I wonder if Kylie would enjoy going horseback riding. I've gone a few times when I was younger and it was exhilarating to ride such a powerful animal. A vision of Kylie with her hair flying wildly behind her as she rides comes to mind. I decide to make that happen soon.

My smile dims when I realize I haven't heard from her. I check my phone and sure enough, she never answered my text. I send one out letting her know we are on our way to get her, then instruct Gio, "Swing by Kylie's place first."

"Got it." Gio turns the signal on as we drive past Rome's gate to the main road.

As I stare at my phone with no response coming, I get an uneasy feeling. "Have either of you gotten an update from Joseph lately?" I meet Gio's stare in the rearview mirror. He shakes his head at the same time as Rafael. Knowing Joseph will call if something's wrong doesn't lessen the uneasiness. I dial his number.

"Mr. Morelli?" He answers after the first ring.

"Joseph. Is all well?"

"It is. She's still inside. Did you want me to bring her to your house?"

"No, we're on our way now. Wait until I arrive and then you can sign off for the night."

"Yes, sir."

"Thanks, Joseph." I end the call, but still no return text from her. I can't seem to tamp down the wrongness crawling up my spine as I stare out the window while tapping my finger on the door's armrest.

"Is something wrong?" Gio asks.

"She hasn't returned my text. It's … not like her."

Gio furrows his brows as he looks at me in the rearview mirror. "Joseph has sight lines on her, right?"

I tilt my head, thinking about how he phrased his answer. "He said she's still inside."

"Then she's fine. She probably just fell asleep watching TV." Rafael shrugs.

"Probably." I mutter .

Using the hour drive to Kylie's apartment, I take care of any last-minute business and to make sure everything is set to go in the morning. I'm looking forward to taking Kylie out on the boat. She mentioned wanting to snorkel, so I asked Joanna to make sure snorkel gear was delivered to the house we'll be renting.

When Gio stops at the curb, I instruct them to stay while I run in to get Kylie.

As soon as I hit the top of the stairs, the lack of sound coming from her apartment becomes apparent, but there is a light peeking out from under the door. Hoping Gio is right and she's just asleep, I knock before putting my hands on my hips and wait.

I give it a few seconds before I knock again, but louder this time.

The uneasiness is back.

Putting my ear to the door, I still don't hear any kind of noise from inside. I straighten and knock again before scanning the small landing between her and her neighbor's door across from her. I'm not sure anyone's in the other apartment with how quiet it is.

Pulling my phone out, I call Rafael and ask him to come with his tools. I have to know she's not just asleep before I let the panic set in.

Rafael comes through the door and takes the stairs two at a time.

"She's not answering." It's all I need to say before he bends down and picks the lock.

Once he gets it unlocked, I push the door open and scan the area, calling her name.

No one answers.

I find her room empty. Turning, I check the bathroom and then what must be Talia's room. Neither one is here.

I step out of the bedroom and look at Rafael and freeze.

"She came here to pack, right?" he asks in a calm manner.

"Yes." My mind races, trying to think of what to do next.

"Look in her room. Does it look like she packed?" Rafael calmly instructs.

I rush back to find her luggage sitting at the bottom of her closet. As I drag it out, I already know what I’ll find—the lack of weight a dead giveaway. Still, desperate to be wrong, I unzip it and fling it open. Seeing nothing but the silky lining has dread settling to the pit of my stomach.

Rafael's "Fuck" comes from behind me.

"Call Rome." Make sure he has eyes on Robert. I rush past him and jog down the stairs and out the building, heading straight for Joseph.

Gio steps out of the Escalade. "What's going on?"

Anger and panic war inside of me, but I'm still hanging onto hope that she's safe, and this is all a big misunderstanding.

Joseph steps out of the SUV and waits. I look over my shoulder at Gio. "You and Rafael stay here just in case she comes back while I go to her parents' house." That's all Joseph needs to hear before getting back into the car. I jump into the passenger seat. "You've followed her to her parents before—take me there."

"Sir, I never saw her leave." He pulls out and speeds past Gio, turning at the next block.

My mind races. I kept an eye on her until she entered the building, but never walked her to her door. I was too angry with what happened at the club and didn't even think twice about it. "Fuck." I run my hand through my hair, holding out hope that her mom came and got her and she's safe.

Joseph takes the next turn quickly and I slam into the door before I can brace myself. "When you got to her apartment, did you simply watch the doors, or did you greet her first?" I already know the answer since I've instructed him to watch her from a distance so she didn't know she had a detail on her.

"I stayed in the car, but saw movement behind the curtains and assumed it was her." Joseph guns it and steers around a slow moving Prius who lays on their horn when Joseph cuts them off.

"There's about a half hour between the time I left her at the building and when you would've arrived. It's likely someone came and picked her up between that time." Whether that someone was a friend or foe is what worries me.

If Kylie isn't with me, she's home or with her parents. She would have informed me of her whereabouts, even at this late hour. And if it was Talia behind the curtains, where is she now? "Did you see her roommate?" I ask .

"No. Just the movement behind the curtains when I first pulled up, but nothing since. No one entered or exited from the front entrance." He speeds through a red light since no one is coming.

That could leave the back entrance if the building has one. Pulling my phone out, I dial Rafael. As soon as he answers, I bark out, "Check for cameras at the back of the building."

"On it. I'm also retrieving the street camera footage in case she was taken before Joseph got here."

"Good. And what did Rome say about Robert?"

"He has two men on him. He hasn't left the bar, and he's getting shit faced and chatting up a woman as we speak."

"Fuck."

"Rome has his men trailing the syndicate to make sure it wasn't them, but they've seen no signs of her so far."

I take a deep breath. "Okay, call me when you hear anything or if you find anything on the footage." I disconnect the call right as Joseph pulls into a driveway and parks behind an older model Toyota Highlander.

"Do you want me to wait out here or come in?"

"Wait here."

I jog to the door and push on the doorbell before placing my hands on my hips and locking my body in place. When the door swings open, I look into a confused Kurt Davis's face.

"Please tell me Kylie's here."

Kurt scans my appearance before anger takes over his face. "What the hell happened? What did you do to her?" He turns and yells into the house. "Kathy, call Kylie and find out where she is."

"Fuck. I thought for sure she was here. I dropped her off at her apartment this afternoon to pack for our trip tomorrow—"

"What trip?" Kurt interrupts, holding the door open and grabbing my arm to pull me inside .

"I'm taking her to Miami for the weekend. She went home to pack while I finished business, but when I went to pick her up, she wasn't there. I texted her earlier and never got a response—that's not like her. I've texted her multiple times and still no response."

"You son of a bitch. You promised me she'd be safe with you. Does your mafia family have my daughter?" He roars, poking me in the chest.

"She's not answering. What's going on? Why are you yelling at him?" Kathy comes rushing into the hall.

I turn to Kathy. "I can't find Kylie. She was supposed to be packing for our trip and when I went to pick her up, she wasn't there. Any idea where she could've gone? It's not like her to ignore my texts."

Kathy's face goes sheet white. "N-no. Not this late. She was expecting you?"

"Yes, the only reason I took her to her apartment was because she wanted to pack tonight instead of tomorrow before class. I told her I would come get her later."

"Your phone! It dinged earlier when we were eating. Maybe that was her." Kathy rushes down the hall, Kurt and I hot on her heels. She grabs the phone and her shoulders sag in relief. "It's her …" her smile drops and horror fills her face.

Kurt rips the phone out of her hand and I look at it over his shoulder. Dread and fury fill me. The breath whooshes out of Kurt and he nearly drops the phone from his trembling hand. "What the fuck! Who is that?" The text he missed earlier is a picture of Kylie tied to a chair with tape covering her mouth. She's a mess, as if she struggled and her eyes are unfocused. There's a second picture of a guy taking a selfie with her in the chair holding a knife to her throat with the words 'I told you, you'd regret it.'

I grip Kurt by the arms and turn him around. "Who is he? I need his name now!"

"H-hank Miller. I put him away for sexual assault five years ago." His voice is hoarse, his eyes never leaving the image on his phone.

A loud cry comes from Kathy behind me .

I let him go to call Rafael. "Hank Miller has her. Find out everything you can about him. Kylie's dad put him away for sexual assault." My voice trails off as the gravity of the situation hits me.

"Wait!" Kathy yells. "I've seen him in the building. He was there when I dropped Kylie off the other day. He gave me the creeps, and I told her to be careful around him." Her voice wobbles and her eyes glisten.

I turn and grab her gently. "Where does he live? Which apartment?"

She grabs my upper arms back, tears running down her face. "The apartment below her. The older neighbor … he's visiting or something."

I let go of Kathy and bring the phone back to my ear. "Did you hear that? Break it down. Find her." I disconnect the call and rush back outside, with Kurt running after me. Before he hops into the backseat, he instructs Kathy to call Chief Canton and let him know what's happening.

"Back to the apartment as fast as you can," I instruct Joseph. He puts the car into reverse and slams his foot on the accelerator. Tires squealing as he brakes fast and puts the car in drive.

"I got that text hours ago. Hours." Kurt's agonized voice rips into me. I can imagine the guilt that must be eating him alive. It's what I felt when I thought she was taken because of Rome … because of me.