He's trying to put me at ease, I think. But those assurances mean nothing. Abel would know I'd bring down the full power of IVI on him. I have an army at my disposal. He would have planned for that. And in my gut, I know Ivy won't be on these streets. She'll be hidden away somewhere he thinks I can't get to her.

He hasn't responded to any of my texts. Not even the one about his father being alive. It seems my threats to torture Eli can't even draw him out, proving he truly has no loyalty to anyone or anything.

"I think you should go home and get some rest," Marco says carefully. "There's nothing else you can do right now. You need to eat something and close your eyes for a few minutes."

"I can't," I growl. "I have to do something."

He watches me as I stew in my frustration. He doesn't know that every time I close my eyes, I see her face. I feel her body against me. And I smell her. The ghost of her scent haunts me, even when she isn't here.

Something has snapped inside me. I don't know what it is, but I feel... broken. I never truly knew what that word meant until now.

"We have to find her, Marco." I grab him by the shirt and shake him because I don't know what else to do. "I need her back.”

"I know you do, boss." His hands come up to grip my arms, gently removing them from his shirt. His lips are set into a grim line, reflective of the way I feel. He knows as well as I do this won't end well.

"There's one other option," he says quietly. "It isn't a pretty one."

"What?" I demand. "What is it?"

"The little girl," he says. "She might know more than she's letting onto. And I don't like bringing children into this, but if this is a life-or-death situation..."

He's right. Evangeline is the key. She could give me answers. More places to search. Something on Abel. Anything.

I'm already moving for my door handle when I freeze and turn back to Marco. "I don't know how to talk to children. I terrify them."

"That may be true." His lips tilt up at the corner. "But not this one. I've seen the way she looks at you. She's not scared."

"Scared, no," I admit. "She's defiant. Like her sister. But she's still young—"

"Talk to her like an adult," Marco suggests. "And maybe she will surprise you."