“Sure,” I say.
He looks over at Carl. “Do you need an escort?”
I giggle. “Where is the car?”
“I parked out back,” he says. I glance over at the hallway to the right of our table. I know I shouldn’t, but the parking lot for the restaurant is just outside, I saw the drive to it when Carl parked out front. I was actually surprised we didn’t park back there too, but he said something about security protocol and the parking lot didn’t provide proper egress, whatever that means.
I look over at Jason and back over at Carl. I stand up to tell Carl that we are going out back when I feel a little off suddenly. “I’ll just go to the bathroom,” I say to him.
He nods and gives me a wink. I stand, and I see Carl start to get up, but I motion for him to sit and mouth “bathroom.” He gives me a subtle nod of his head and sits back down. The Latin music is louder in the back hallway as I make my way to the women’s bathroom. I go to grip the door handle and a rush of dizziness floods me. I sway. My vision begins to dot with black, and just as I feel myself falling, hands grab me.
“I got you,” a voice says.
Grady
Detective Benson looks around as I start to clean up the mess. He and Dean have been talking quietly in the corner for at least ten minutes now.
“This isn’t the same person,” Dean states. My head whips around at his statement.
“What do you mean this isn’t the same person?” I ask.
Dean glances around the room. “Where’s the note?”
“I…” I trail off because there was no note this time.
“So?”
“This wasn’t done by the same person. Look around. Every other time, it’s been a very specific MO. This is disorganized. It’s like someone just ransacked the place for no purpose. We can see them on video, too,” he says, pulling up his phone and tapping on an app with the security firm’s logo. “Here, see this guy. He’s a different height and build from the last guy.” He points to a figure in black that is seen entering and then leaving only a few minutes later.
“I agree,” Benson states.
I run both my hands through my hair which is still in desperate need of a cut. “So, you are saying we have two stalkers?”
Benson shrugs. “It’s hard to say. These are definitely different criminals though.”
I toss a piece of a broken mug in the trash as I look around at the mess created, but he’s right. There are broken items, cushions ripped open, posters ripped off the wall, a smashed guitar in the corner, but there’s no real rhyme or reason for what was done. It just looks like someone just trashed the place for fun.
Dean’s phone buzzes and I see a message pop up on the screen of his phone. “Shit,” he curses under his breath.
He hits call on the message. “When? What happened? Fuck. Carl, damn it. I’m on my way.
“You need to come with me. This,” he says, motioning around us, “can wait.”
He steps out of the room before I can say another word. Benson and I follow him.
“What’s going on? Anything I can help with?” Benson asks.
“You handle kidnapping?” Dean growls.
Benson’s head snaps back. “What?”
“Your sister and half brother are missing,” Dean says as he turns to me. It takes a good few seconds for his words to sink in.
“What the fuck are you talking about? She has Carl with her,” I say as I feel my blood pressure begin to elevate.
“We don’t have time, get in the car and follow me,” he says and motions for Benson to follow us. I walk up to his SUV and open the door, slamming it behind me.
“What the fuck is going on?” I hiss at him once he’s inside.
He turns to me. “Something isn’t adding up. I have three teams working on analyzing this case. They’ve been working on it, but…today wasn’t him. I know it in my gut.”
“Great, your fucking gut. I need to know where my brother and girlfriend are,” I growl, on the verge of losing my shit.
“They met at the Mexican restaurant as planned at zero eighteen hundred hours. Miss Baldwin was accompanied by Carl who sat at a table two tables down and across from the table where Mr. Winters and Miss Baldwin were sitting. At zero eighteen hundred and fifteen, Miss Baldwin stood, indicated to Carl she was using the restroom, and walked down a small hallway immediately to the right of the table. Carl could see the first three feet of the hallway but did not see around the corner to where the men’s and women’s bathrooms were located. He had peeked down the hall upon entry and noted that there were only two bathrooms, a supply closet, and a back door that was locked from the outside as patrons used the front door to gain entry. There is a video camera at that door and the film is currently being analyzed by LAPD. Approximately two minutes later, Mr. Winters stood and indicated to Carl that he too was going to use the facilities. He went down the same hallway. When neither individual emerged by five minutes later, Carl entered the hallway and found both bathrooms empty. He checked the kitchen and was told by the staff that no one had been there. He walked out back and saw nothing amiss. He called Miss Baldwin’s cell phone which rang and was located on the ground near a parked car in the parking lot. The lot holds about ten cars. Four were staff members, two spots were vacated, and the remainder belonged to patrons inside the restaurant. Video feeds from a few other nearby stores and a bank are also being checked for footage as we speak. No car in the vicinity is registered to Mr. Winters.”
Dean pauses and looks over at me. “Who knows about your half brother?” he asks.
I frown. “Me, my mom, the band, and Emma, why?”
“Who knows about the notes?”
“The sticky notes?” I confirm.
He nods. I can almost picture the cogs turning in his mind. He’s got a theory and I want to know what it is, now.
“Me, my mom, the band, and Emma…and you guys and the police.”
“What if…there are two people…” He trails off, pressing his lips together as he contemplates theories in his head.
“Just fucking say what you are thinking,” I urge because I’m exasperated, scared, and fucking pissed off that both my brother and girlfriend could up and vanish while being under a protective detail.
“I don’t know yet. It could be two people working together. It could be one person with an accomplice. It could be completely unrelated. It could be a copycat. I don’t know.”
I process all his words. He’s right. We’ve been spending all this time focused on the possibility of one person. We’ve never thought about two people. Should we have? Have we wasted all this money on security and working with the police for nothing?
Dean stops outside the restaurant, and we hop out of the car. I run up to the door, but a cop stops me. “Sir, you can’t go inside.”
Dean walks up to him, flashes him some sort of credentials, and the man steps to the side, allowing us to enter the restaurant. I’m unprepared for the chaos that surrounds me upon entering the dining area. There are police everywhere, some talking to what appears to be waitstaff and chefs. Others are using powder to look for fingerprints in the hallway beyond the tables. As I survey my surroundings, a deep foreboding washes over me. This is different than the other times. This isn’t a warning or vandalism, this is a full-blown crime scene. An officer holds a bag up to Dean. I recognize the item immediately. Emma’s phone.