He watched, feeling oddly helpless as the police officers knocked on the door, the banging getting louder and more insistent when no one answered.
“Just go in,” he muttered. “Kick in the fucking door and go in.”
“Reese, talk to me,” Travis pleaded, pain echoing in every word.
“They’re knockin’. No answer.”
“Where’s Brantley?”
“No idea,” he admitted, but immediately recanted. “Wait. Hold on. Brantley’s at the side of the house. He just… Well, he’s strollin’ to the front door, demanding the cops go inside. Lots of hand movements, some shoutin’. They’ve got guns trained on him.”
Son of a bitch.
Because the last thing they needed was for Brantley to get arrested, Reese headed their way at a jog.
“Take a look for yourself,” Brantley was growling, motioning toward the side of the house, both hands up so they could see he didn’t have a weapon.
In his hand.
One of the cops started down the steps, gun aimed at Brantley as he moved around behind him, toward the side of the house. The other called for Brantley to remain where he was, then lifted a Taser, the red dots aligning with Brantley’s chest.
This was the problem with situations like this. The police had procedures to follow, protocols that were meant to protect people as well as themselves. In this case, Reese figured asking for forgiveness was a better idea than seeking permission.
Based on the gleam in Brantley’s eyes, he felt the same way.
Just as Reese made it over, the officer who’d gone to check it out came running back around, motioning for his partner to go inside. The man turned, used his foot to kick back against the door, shattering the jamb and gaining them access.
“I’m goin’ in with you!” Brantley demanded. “That’s my cousin in there!”
“I thought she was your niece?” the cop shouted back.
“She’s related,” Brantley countered. “All that fucking matters.”
Reese heard voices on the phone, realized Travis was shouting at him.
“Hold on, Trav,” he said, trying to keep his voice steady as he ignored the officer’s instruction for him to stay outside before radioing in the situation.
The officers went to clear the house, and of course, Brantley disappeared down a hallway. Reese followed, hesitated. He sent up a silent prayer that…
“Kate?” There was so much emotion in Brantley’s voice, it was a surprise the word came out at all.
From the hallway, Reese heard, “Uncle Brantley! I wanna go home. Please let me go home!”
Tears slammed into Reese’s eyes at the sound of Kate’s tormented voice.
“Travis,” Reese said on a ragged breath, “we’ve got Kate. Trav, we’ve got her.”
A shattered sob sounded through the phone and Reese felt a father’s pain, his relief, and his desperate need to be with his daughter.
Reese stepped through the door, saw Brantley working the handcuffs with what he assumed was a lock pick.
“Uncle Reese,” Kate cried out, tears streaming down her dirty face. “I wanna go home!”
“You’re goin’ home, darlin’,” he assured her. “Here.” Taking the phone from his ear, he tapped the button to put the call on speaker. “Your daddies are on the phone. Talk to them, Kate.”
“Kate!” Gage shouted.
“Daddy,” she sobbed. “I wanna go home.”
“You are, sugar,” Travis told her. “You’re comin’ home right now.”
Kate peered up at Reese, so much hope in her eyes even as tears tracked down her grimy face.
He couldn’t speak, emotion clogging his throat, but he managed a nod to assure her it was true.
Chapter Seventeen
Two hours later, after some intense phone calls, the private jet was carrying Brantley, Reese, and Kate back to Texas.
It hadn’t been easy to get out of Mississippi, what with all the red tape and the Feds wanting to chat about what had happened, but evidently, Travis Walker knew some mighty powerful people and a few well-placed phone calls had ripped right through all the unnecessary bullshit, allowing them to leave Mississippi with the little girl.
They had allowed the EMTs to check her over, relieved to know she hadn’t been physically injured and, despite some dehydration, she was in good shape. With the help of a kind female EMT, Kate had been able to get cleaned up and they’d given her clean clothes to change into. It was with the blessing of the EMTs that they’d opted to seek medical attention once they got her back home where she would feel safe.
Now, as the jet soared through the air, Brantley stood at the open door to the bedroom, peeking in at Kate, who was passed out on the bed, her tiny body curled beneath the blankets, her arm wrapped securely around a stuffed dog one of the police officers had given her. If he had to guess, she hadn’t slept much since she was taken, and now that she was with family, she was able to relax.
It pained him to think about what she’d been through, more so that Juliet Prince had vanished without a trace. The police were scouring the area looking for the woman, but as of the time of their departure, there had been no signs of her. The FBI would be handling the matter, likely spurred by Travis’s insistence.
