“Yes.” She hesitated and then let her hands settle on the warm wall of his chest and somehow the connection made her feel safer. “She worked at the one we were at tonight, but of course, the company files have no record she ever existed. And she’d started dating a man who fits Ignacio’s description.” Fear for her sister burned in her belly. “The landlord at her apartment said he’d never heard of her. I know where she was living. I talked to her every day until she disappeared.”

“If the cartel is looking for women they can wipe off the map, her connection to you would rule her out. She doesn’t fit the profile.”

“She has no connection to me on record. My father was FBI. Years ago he penetrated a motorcycle club, and they came after him, and our family. The FBI split us up and created new identities for both me and my sister. We didn’t find each other again until I used my resources to make it happen.”

“Why did your father let them split you up in the first place?”

She glanced down. “He’s dead.” Bitterness twisted inside her and she forced her gaze to his. “Our parents didn’t survive the attack.” Rushing past her confession before he offered sympathy that never helped, she quickly added, “I know my sister got involved with Ignacio. I’m just praying she’s still alive.”

Several beats passed, his expression impossible to read—until, abruptly, he moved, sitting up and giving her his back. Kara pushed to a sitting position, unsure what to think, watching him scrub a hand over his face before he stood up and whirled on her with a challenge. “And you thought you’d just walk into the cartel and find your sister yourself?” he demanded, his hands settling on his hips. “Are you insane, Kara? We’re talking about one of the largest, most dangerous cartels in the world.”

She scooted to the end of the bed and curled her fingers into the mattress. “This is my sister, Blake. This isn’t about the cartel. This is about her. She’s all I have.” Her voice cracked. She hated how weak it made her seem. “I don’t know if you have siblings. I don’t know how important they are, but—”

“Two brothers,” he surprised her by sharing. “And yes. I’d die for either or both of them but that doesn’t mean I’ll let you die for yours. What was the purpose of drugging me in Denver?”

Kara blinked at the sudden turn of subject, but she rolled with the punches, too deep into this to turn back now. “I wanted the documentation you were handing over to the cartel.”

“Why?”