Page 83 of No More Lies

“Steve, Mackie’s on it,” Dex said calmly. “You’re on speaker, tell us what happened.”

“I don’t know. I was in the shower. I heard the alarm. Then her car. Fuck, she’s gone! I got to try and call her.”

Steve hung up and tried Diane. It rang and rang before going to voicemail. He tried again, voicemail again. A third try, no different. His knees gave way, and he sank to the floor. Volkov had his wife. He was certain of it. Squeezing his eyes shut, he fought back tears.

His eyes sprang open at the sound of his phone. Seeing Dex’s name, he answered.

“Did you reach her?” Dex asked.

“No.”

“We’re not getting anything on the phone. Mackie’s working on locating the car, but we are enroute to your house. Be there in ten.”

He didn’t respond, words wouldn't come out. He was supposed to protect her. Keep her safe. He’d failed her in so many ways recently, but he never thought he would fail at keeping her safe.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly climbed to his feet and went upstairs to get dressed before the rest of the team arrived. He had to pull himself together. Volkov had taken Diane for a reason. Almost certainly, he needed her alive. His teammates were the best in the world. They would find her. Putting on black jeans and a black t-shirt, he splashed cold water on his face and stared at his reflection. He was not going to let his wife down. The woman was so damn strong. Stronger than him. He would do whatever it took to find his angel and bring her home.

As for Volkov. If he got his hands on him, the man was going to regret being born.

A screech of tires told him his team had arrived. He jogged down the stairs and let them in.

Raven filed into his house with Sam. Mackie was tapping on an Onyx laptop as he walked, and they all gathered around the kitchen island.

Dex said, “Tell us everything, Steve.”

“I was in the shower. Diane had come down to start work.” He gestured to her laptop on the dining table. Ryan went over and retrieved it. “I heard the alarm disarm, and I thought she was getting something from her car. Then I heard a car reversing, and when I looked out the window, I saw her SUV speeding down the street.”

“Did you see who was driving?”

“No. Fuck! I should have come down as soon as I heard the alarm.” He dragged a hand over his face.

“Wait. Diane disarmed the house?” Donnie asked.

“Yes. Her code. I checked.”

“And you didn’t hear any shouting, voices, anything?” Sam asked.

“No.” Steve looked around the island at his teammates. “She wouldn't have just left.”

The room went quiet.

“Guys, I got her on a traffic camera.” Mackie broke the silence.” She appears to be alone in her car. Wait.” He paused and everyone else remained silent. “Diane got into a black Escalade at the corner of West and Taywood.” Mackie said turning the screen so Steve could see. He zoomed in, but there was no clear view of the plate or faces.

“Send that to Dale,” Sam said. “I’ll have him see if they can track the Escalade, pick it up on other cameras and get a plate.” He pulled out his phone. “Nyx can head over there and check out her car.”

“What about Diane’s cellphone?” Donnie asked.

“I tried calling. It’s going straight to voicemail.” Steve’s gaze remained fixed on the screen. The picture showed Diane from behind, stepping into the rear of the Escalade. A man stood watching, his back also to the camera.

“They probably took it off of her,” Mackie said, turning the laptop back around. Seconds later, he raised his head. “I tried to ping it again, no luck. Last registered location was the same as her car.”

“This makes no sense.” He looked around at his team. “Are we saying she left the house by herself and went willing to meet them? Why would she do that?”

“It looks that way,” Dex said. “If someone had forced her outside, she would have fought, screamed. You would have heard it.” Dex asked, “Did she have any calls, emails, texts, anything this morning?”

“No, nothing. She would have told me.”

Wouldn’t she? Steve braced his arms on the counter to compose himself. A small piece of paper had been propped against the coffeemaker. He snapped it up, straightened, and opened it.