“Sage, it’s Ronan.” My voice was terser than I’d intended, but I couldn’t seem to do anything about it. “Are you with Willow?”

“No.” She sounded confused. “Willow is at work.”

“I can’t find her.”

She hummed in thought. “Maybe she’s at lunch.”

Maybe. But I didn’t like the sense of dread creeping over me. “She left your apartment this morning to come here?”

“Yes. At the usual time.”

“Thanks. That’s all I need to know.”

I hung up.

Something must have happened to Willow between leaving her apartment and arriving at the office.

And that tightness in my stomach? It was morphing into full-on fear.

Time to make another phone call.

I strode to the window so I could look out over Chicago. Somewhere out there, Willow might be in danger.

“Detective Lee.”

“Joanna, I need your help. Willow Lennox is missing.”

“How long?” she asked.

“She left her apartment this morning and never arrived at work.”

I sensed her hesitation. “You know we can’t consider her a missing person until she’s been gone for forty-eight hours. She might have stopped for a coffee with a friend, or decided she’d rather spend the day shopping.”

“She didn’t.”

Willow wasn’t like that. A headache pinched at my temples. What if Tom had been too slow to pay his debts and someone thought they needed to make an example of the Lennoxes? I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to her.

“Given the problems she’s been having, I’ll get someone to canvas the area outside her apartment. See if anybody will let us view their security feeds. We don’t have enough for a warrant to force them to allow access to their cameras though.”

I nodded, trying to rein in my frustration. Rules existed for a reason, and they weren’t her fault. “You do that. I’ll do the same. If you find anything, please call me.”

“I will.” She paused before hanging up. “We’ll do what we can to get your girl back, King.”

“Thanks.” I exhaled roughly. “I appreciate that.”

I just hoped it would be enough.

Willow

Thick black fabric obscured my vision as my consciousness slowly returned. I could hear voices around me but could not decipher their meaning. All I knew was that they were unfamiliar and male.

I shifted in place, feeling woozy, but I remained upright. When I took a moment to mentally check my body parts, I realized I was tied to something. Rope looped my ankles to a chair, and my wrists were bound behind my back.

I tested the rope, but it held firm.

Panic began to rise within me, and my breathing grew shallow. I drew in a slow, deep breath. I was in a bad situation, but if I wanted to get out of it in one piece, I needed to stay calm and be smart.

“She’s awake,” a man barked.

“Good.”

A shiver shot down my spine.

I knew that voice. Recognized it from a handful of unavoidable conversations over the years.