Then realization hit him—he had left his phone there when rushing out to the earlier meeting. Could Hadley have been looking at it?

The device was locked, of course. What could she possibly have seen?

Her expression, however, told him everything—she must have caught sight of the wallpaper.

He cleared his throat, his tone carefully neutral.

Hadley jerked back to awareness. She withdrew her hand quickly, as though burned, and forced a strained smile while avoiding his eyes.

“Hey, is the meeting finished?”

“It is,” said Ellis with a nod.

Her rattled behavior left him certain of what had happened.

Ellis decided not to call attention to what she had seen.

“We’ve already mobilized resources. Every precinct is sending out officers to search for Mr. Scott,” he said instead.

Her chest tightened, though she still managed to whisper, “Thank you. I truly appreciate everything you’re doing.”

“There’s no need for thanks. On another note…”

He shifted the conversation with practiced ease.

“About Gifford—”

“Have you located him?”

“Not quite.” He shook his head.

“We have no solid proof he’s in Srixby. But we’ve picked up signs of Bianca’s movements.”

“Bianca… Gifford’s half-sister!” The words escaped Hadley in sudden realization.

“If she’s here, then he must be with her! Finding her will lead us straight to him!”

After Elissa’s incident six months ago, both siblings had disappeared without a trace. The pair had always operated as a dangerous team.

G a lno ve ls . com is where the magic begins

“Mr. Gomez—”

“I understand.” Ellis gave a firm nod.

“My people are monitoring Bianca right now.”

“Then I’ll leave this in your care.”

“Naturally.”

Clutching her phone, Hadley rushed toward the door.

“I need to let Ernest know!”

“Alright,” Ellis replied, his gaze following her as she disappeared down the hall.

Once her steps faded, he returned to his desk and picked up his phone.

Unlocking it, he glanced at the screen.

The wallpaper was an image of Hadley at a public gathering, her dark curls tumbling past her waist. The picture caught her beauty perfectly.

His fingertip brushed the outline of her cheek. In silence, he thought, so radiant—and yet still so young.

That day passed without a single breakthrough. Darkness crept over Srixby as night settled in.

Somewhere else in the city, Eric’s mind drifted in a void of blackness.

He had no sense of where he was or what was being done to him.

.

.

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