Beautifully Broken (The Broken Series Book 2) (9 page)

“I
know. Why do you think I had so much trouble tracking him down when Morris took
Kri last November?” Dan responded irritably.

Kadyn
opened the blinds on the sliding glass doors. He stared unseeingly through the
glass. “Dan, there has got to be some way to narrow this down. Do you have any
idea where the guy was last seen?”

Dan
sighed. “The last location I could place Garcia was Boca Raton, Florida. His
trail disappears after that.”

Kadyn
stilled when he heard something shatter on the other end of the phone line.

“I
can’t believe she’s gone again. How much shit can one woman get into?” Dan
gritted angrily.

Kadyn
turned away from the sliding glass doors. He began pacing across Kri’s living
room as he sought ways to narrow the search. “We’re assuming the guy speaks
Portuguese, since he lived in Portugal for some period of time. We know he’s
fluent in French. Do you know if he speaks any other languages?”

“I
don’t know of any other languages, aside from English. It is possible, though. Kimme
told me that Garcia grew up in a French boarding school. He prefers to speak
French, so he clearly identifies with that culture. Maybe he prefers living
there. Maybe he took her to France.”

Kadyn
stopped pacing. “I was thinking the same thing. Still, if the guy is smart
enough to pull off what he did at the Pentagon without leaving a trail, then he’s
smart enough to know that France is the first place we’d look.”

Dan
quietly considered Kadyn’s argument. Finally, he spoke. “You make a good point.
This guy is far from stupid. Still, he just might be arrogant enough to hide
her in the most obvious place, assuming that we would immediately rule it out.”

Kadyn
walked down the hallway toward Kri’s bedroom. He leaned against the doorway as
he peered inside the room. “He could be in any English, French, or Portuguese speaking
country. Portuguese isn’t all that far off from Spanish, so I would add Spanish
speaking countries to the list.”

“Agreed,”
Dan responded reluctantly.

Kadyn
sighed in frustration. “I don’t have a lot of leave time left, between the time
I took off to find Kri in Trout Lake and our trip to the Bahamas in April. How
am I supposed to manage this large of an investigation when I have to work?”

“I
don’t know, Kadyn. This is going to be a lot more difficult than the last time.
This guy has far more resources at his disposal than Morris did, and that gives
him the ability to broaden the playing field across the entire globe. I think
you did the right thing by pulling the feds in on this one. Still, this is
Krissy we’re talking about. We can’t just sit on our asses in the hopes that
the feds will do their job. I’ll keep digging and see what I can find.”

Kadyn
pushed off the door frame and walked back toward the living room. “Thanks, Dan.
Listen, I need you to keep this quiet. We have got to keep this out of the news
for as long as we can. I don’t want to give him an excuse to bury her someplace
where we’ll never find her.”

“Consider
it done,” Dan replied before abruptly ending the call.

Kadyn
slipped the phone inside his pocket. He reached for the front door, then paused.
He slowly turned around. His eyes took in the apartment. He could still see her
here in every possible space… the kitchen, the breakfast bar, the chair, the
couch, even sitting on the floor. He could still see her cooking, reading,
laughing, and crying. He could feel her everywhere and nowhere at once. Kadyn gave
Kri’s living room one last longing look as he gathered the strength to walk
away. Silently, he stepped over the threshold and locked the door.

“Kadyn?”

Kadyn
turned just as Mickey reached out to touch his arm. “Hi, Mickey. How are you?”

Mickey
shrugged. “I’m okay. Any news on Kri?”

Kadyn
shook his head. “Sadly, no.”

Her
eyes pooled with tears. “I’m so sorry, Kadyn. I never should have let him inside
Kri’s apartment.”

Kadyn
shoved his hands in his pockets as he leaned against the side of the building.
He felt conflicted about Mickey’s decision to let Michael into Kri’s apartment,
but no good could come of telling Mickey that. “Your life was being threatened.
It’s not like you had a choice, Mickey.”

“Thanks,”
she whispered. “If there’s anything I can do to help or if you just want to
talk, please know that I’m here for you.” As Mickey began to walk away, she turned
back around to look at Kadyn. His strong physique looked broken as he stood staring
down at his shoes. “I hope you find her, Kadyn.”

“Me
too,” he responded softly. He pushed away from the wall and quietly walked
away.  

When
Kadyn entered his apartment, his roommate, Mason, was pulling a frozen pizza
out of the oven. He looked up from the oven in surprise. “I haven’t seen you
for days. I thought maybe you decided to move in with Kri.”

Kadyn
didn’t answer. He just kept walking straight to his room.

Mason’s
jaw dropped as he watched Kadyn walk dejectedly across the room. He set the
pizza on top of the stove and followed Kadyn to his room. He stood in the
doorway and studied his friend.

Kadyn
was sitting on the edge of his bed with his head buried in his hands. His
elbows were braced against his thighs. His shoulders shook softly, but he
didn’t look up, and he didn’t make a sound.

Mason
was reluctant to enter the room. “Talk to me, Kadyn. What’s wrong? Did somebody
die?”

Kadyn
looked up. His eyes were vacant, his face streaked with tears. “She’s gone,” he
whispered. “Kri’s gone.”

Mason
crossed the room and kneeled in front of his friend. “Kadyn, what do you mean
by gone? Where did she go?”

Kadyn’s
eyes met Mason’s. “Michael Garcia took her when we were on lockdown at the
Pentagon. I can’t find her. I’ll never find her. She’s gone.”

Mason
shot to his feet. “You mean she’s been kidnapped?
Again?
What is it with
this woman? Why does every fucking man on the planet want to kidnap her?” Mason
began pacing across Kadyn’s room. “Garcia is the guy you thought took her last
November, the guy from Portugal who’s suspected of having some terrorist
connections?”

“Yes,”
Kadyn responded as he watched his friend pace across the room. Like Kadyn,
Mason was an Air Force Captain. Both worked at the Pentagon but in different
departments. Mason was one of six friends who had gone to Trout Lake to help
Kadyn rescue Kri. They were a tight circle of friends, and the experience of
nearly losing one of their own had bonded them even more.

Mason
stopped pacing. He looked like he’d just been hit by a wrecking ball. “Shit.
She could be in the hands of terrorists for all we know. I assume the explosive
devices found at the Pentagon are connected?”

“I
believe the two crimes are connected,” Kadyn confirmed.

Mason’s
eyes narrowed. “You pulled DHS in?”

Kadyn
sighed. “Yes. I had to.”

Mason
raked his hand through his hair. “Okay. DHS will approach the Portuguese
government for more information on Garcia. The Portuguese government will
cooperate if they think this is connected to some terrorist plot. Stay friendly
with the investigating officers. See if you can get one of them to share
information with you. We should start with Portugal too. We need to dig up everything
we can on this guy… where he worked, where he lived, names of family members, coworkers,
other women he’s dated, anyone who might know where he lives.”

Kadyn
nodded. “Phil’s searching Interpol’s criminal databases. I’m going to see if I
can track down the name of the reporter who broke the story on Garcia’s criminal
activities and his terrorist connections. He may have some information on
Garcia that will help us track him down.”

A
determined look settled over Mason’s face as he turned to walk out of the room.
“Good. I’ll help you. Call Cenia and get her over here. We may need her help
translating stuff. If we can track down the reporter, she’d be the best person
to speak to him.”

Kadyn
rose from the bed. “Mason, I want to keep this quiet as long as we can. I know
it’s bound to get leaked out at some point, especially with the media nosing
around for a story on the car bombs. Let’s just keep this between you, me,
Phil, Cenia, and Dan for now, okay?”

Mason
met Kadyn’s gaze. “Sure thing, buddy. I’m going to get my laptop. You want some
pizza?”

Kadyn
shook his head. “I’m not hungry. I’ll call Cenia. I’ll meet you in the living
room with my laptop in a few minutes.” Kadyn scrolled through the list of
contacts on his cell phone until he found Cenia’s name.

Cenia
picked up on the second ring. “Hey, Kadyn. What’s up?”

Kadyn
walked to his dresser. He reached for the framed photograph of Cenia and Kri
kissing a dolphin in the Bahamas. “Did you drive in today?”

“Yes.
I had a meeting scheduled for five o’clock, so I decided to drive rather than
slug in. I’m just now pulling out of the Pentagon parking lot. Why?”

Kadyn
set the picture back on the dresser. “I could really use your help with
something. Can you come by the apartment before you head home? Mason just baked
a frozen pizza if you’re hungry.”

Cenia
laughed. “I’m happy to swing by, but I think I’ll pass on the Tombstone pizza.
What do you need help with, Kadyn?”

Kadyn
sighed. “I’ll give you the details when you get here, but you should know this
could take a while.”

“Okay,”
Cenia responded warily. “I’ll grab something to eat. Then I’ll head over.”

“I’ll
see you shortly,” Kadyn responded before ending the call.

Cenia
rang the doorbell a few minutes later. She handed Kadyn a bag from Five Guys
when he answered the door. “You sounded stressed when we talked on the phone. I
thought this might help.”

He
eyed the greasy pile of fries and two thick burgers wrapped in tinfoil. He
suspected that one of them had been intended for Kri. “Thanks. Maybe later.”

Cenia
set her food on the coffee table as she sat on the couch. “Hey, Mason, how’s it
going?”

“Humph,”
was his only reply. He stared at his laptop and refused to look at her.

Cenia
looked at Kadyn. “Where’s Kri? I thought she’d be here. She needs a good tongue
lashing for not returning my phone calls.”

Kadyn
sank into the large gray chair that sat perpendicular to the couch.

Cenia’s
eyes flitted between Kadyn and Mason. “What? What did I say?”

Mason
exchanged looks with Kadyn. Finally, Kadyn spoke. “Kri’s been kidnapped again.”

Cenia
laughed awkwardly as if Kadyn had just told some awful joke. When Kadyn and
Mason didn’t laugh, her expression grew fierce. “No. She can’t be.”

Kadyn
offered Cenia an apologetic look. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words
came out.

Cenia
stood abruptly. She continued to look from Kadyn to Mason. “
You’re lying!
”
she screamed as her tears began to fall.

Kadyn
stood and reached for his friend. She shoved him in the chest as he tried to wrap
his arms around her. “Stop! Don’t touch me. Take it back, Kadyn.
Take it
back!
”

Kadyn
tightened his arms around Cenia. He held her firmly against his chest while she
cried. He had been the one to introduce Kri and Cenia, shortly after he met
Kri. The two women had become fast friends. As with Mason and Phil, Cenia had
insisted on going to Trout Lake to help Kadyn rescue Kri. She had seen Kri’s
bruises, the cracked rib, and haunted eyes filled with fear. Cenia helped her work
through her nightmares and her fear of being alone in the months that followed.
Every time Kadyn had to travel for work, Cenia stayed with Kri. She had poured
everything into helping her friend heal.

Kadyn’s
jaw clenched. He had known Cenia would take this hard. “I should have called
you sooner,” Kadyn whispered as he smoothed down her silky black hair.

Cenia
was still shaking when she pulled away. She swiped at her puffy eyes and took a
deep breath as she drew on her military training. “Alright, Kadyn, tell me everything
you know.”

I
woke to the rich aroma of coffee. Once again, Michael was nowhere to be seen. A
tray of food and a carafe were sitting on the coffee table in front of the
couch. I walked to the couch and poured a cup of coffee. I took a sip, then sank
into the soft leather couch with a small sigh of contentment. I sat back up
when I noticed a single white rose lying on the tray. I reached for the flower
and brought it to my nose. White seemed like such an ordinary color, but the rose
petals were delicately curled, and the fragrance was exquisite.

I
was halfway through my first cup of coffee when curiosity got the best of me. I
peeked under the silver lid sitting on top of the tray. My eyes widened at the
sight of strawberry and banana crepes, which were lightly dusted in powdered
sugar. I couldn’t resist the decadent breakfast. I nearly moaned when I tasted
the crepes. As I settled in to enjoy the food, I thought about how easily I
could get used this. That thought was quickly followed by a pang of guilt.
Was
I seriously willing to forfeit my freedom for a really good cook?