"Every great move forward in your life begins with a leap of faith, a step into the unknown." Brian Tracy

Sam

I arrived twenty minutes later at the warehouse. As I leave my vehicle, Pete's words swirl through my mind; I drop to my knees. I'm too late. I failed Cindy. I wasn't here to protect her as I had promised her I'd be.

I feel Pete squeeze my shoulder. I never even heard him approach.

"Sam, you need to pull yourself together. Cindy depends on you now more than ever."

My breath hitches as I croak, "I failed her, man. I fucking failed her."

Pete says nothing. He keeps his hand on me, knowing that nothing he says can take away the guilt I feel at this moment. But he's right; Cindy is expecting me to come for her. That's what I need to do. I do as Pete says; I pull myself together and stand with one purpose: find Cindy.

Pete pats me on the back, encouraging me. I take a cleansing breath before I pull out my phone.

Cindy is missing because she left the safety of her office to take blueprints to Benson. Why would he ask her to do that? He knows someone is stalking her. It doesn't make sense.

"I need to call Benson," I announce with confidence.

"I was thinking the same damn thing," Pete agrees.

I pull up my contacts and press Benson's number. He answers immediately.

"Sam, is Cindy with you?"

"No, Benson, she's not with me, and you know why?" I say harsher than I meant to.

Pete elbows me and gives me a look that tells me to keep my shit together. I nodded, knowing that I was out of line.

"I'm sorry, I don't know why," Benson mutters. "She wasn't here when I got back to the office. She didn't tell me that she was leaving the office early. I thought she was with you."

I rub my temples in an attempt to calm the fuck down.

I keep my voice level as I ask, "Did you or did you not ask Cindy to bring you blueprints to Big Dog Contracting's office?"

"I did not," was Benson's simple reply.

"What?" My tone goes up an octave in surprise.

"I didn't ask Cindy to take blueprints to Big Dog's office. What the hell is going on, Sam?" Benson's sounds as concerned as I feel.

I relayed to Benson the message Cindy left me, her not answering my call, and how Pete and I found her car and phone at the warehouse.

Once I finish, I tell Benson to meet me at Big Dog's office.

Benson doesn't skip a beat. "I'm on my way."

"You good?" Pete asks.

He's still on duty and dropped everything to come to my aid.

"Yeah, I got it from here. Could you do me one favor?"

My best friend doesn't hesitate. "Whatever you need."

"Can you please call Jerry and let him know what is going on?" I know that Jerry will lose his mind, but he would kill me if I kept this from him.

"Of course."

We give each other a one-arm hug.

"Thanks, man."

Pete pats my cheek and hands me Cindy's broken phone. "Go get your girl. You know how to reach me if you need me."

"I do."

I slip Cindy's phone into my shirt pocket before entering my vehicle. With my light still flashing on the roof of my car, I speed off to Big Dog's office. I refuse to leave there until I have the answers that I need to find Cindy.

Benson is already there when I arrive, and he looks pissed as he paces back and forth in front of his car, waiting for me. I swing my car into the empty spot beside him. He quickly walks over and opens my door.

Benson cuts to the chase. "What's the plan?"

It's at this moment that I realize how much Benson cares about Cindy. I already knew he was more than just her boss; they were friends. Everyone knows that you don't mess with the people Benson cares about, never.

"You know the players in that office," I say, pointing at Big Dog's office building. "They know you. I need you to be there to keep them at ease."

Benson looks at me incredulously. "Keep them at ease? Are you fucking kidding me? I'm going in there and taking off heads till someone tells me where Cindy is."

I place my hand on Benson's shoulder. "If anyone understands how you feel, I do. If we go in there guns blazing, they'll tighten ranks, and we'll not get any information on Cindy."

Benson's shoulders sag. "You're right. I don't know how you're so calm."

I shake my head. "It's my training. Trust me; I'm losing my mind. I want nothing more than to stomp in there and demand answers, but the human mind has a way of shutting down and getting defensive when they're under fire. Calm, cool, and collective will get us the answers we need, understand?"

Benson nods.

I turn towards the office door. "Just follow my lead."

I open the door and hold it open for Benson to walk through first. I want whoever is inside to see a familiar face before I enter.

"Hello, Mr. Easton. I hope that you're not here for your blueprints. I'm sorry that I don't have them for you. Cindy never brought them."

Benson stops dead in his tracks and looks at me wide-eyed.

I encourage him by tilting my head towards the receptionist, indicating for him to continue.

Benson regains his composure. "Um, hi, Carla. Who told you that I needed blueprints brought to your office?"

"You did."

Benson and I exchange looks.

"Carla, I never called you and asked you to tell Cindy to bring blueprints to your office."

Carla looks uncomfortable as she jerks her chair closer to her desk.

"Well, not you personally. Robert said Reed told him you wanted them, so I called Cindy and gave her your message. She said that she was on her way, but she never showed."

Realization hits her. "Oh my goodness, was she in a car accident?"

I can no longer stay quiet. "Who's Robert?"

Both Benson and Carla look at me.

"He's head of security," both responded in unison.

I reach out my hand to her. "Hello, I'm Detective Sam Kidwell. Can we speak to Robert?"

She takes my hand weakly, and her face goes pale. "I... I don't know. He had left earlier; a friend was picking him up. Is Robert in trouble? Is Cindy okay?"

The poor woman begins hyperventilating.

I step forward. "Place your head on the table and concentrate on taking deep breaths."

She does as told, and soon, the rosy glow returns to her full cheeks.

Benson had left and returned with a glass of water. He handed it to Carla, and she took a small sip.

I admit that I was getting impatient. Who was Robert, and why would he make up a story about Benson needing blueprints? Maybe it was Frank Reed who started the whole thing.

As I am working through this, Frank Reed comes into the office.

His eyebrows raise in surprise. "Benson? What are you doing here?"

Benson's brows furl. "Did you tell Robert to have Carla call Cindy to have blueprints delivered here to this office on my behalf?"

"What? No. What the hell are you talking about, Benson?"

Frank's eyes dart between Benson and me, looking genuinely confused.

"Carla, where's Robert? I'd like to know what the hell is happening here?" Frank demands.

She repeats what she said earlier.

My gut tells me that this whole fucking nightmare begins and ends with this Robert guy.

My phone rings, and I see that Jerry is calling me.

"I have to take this," I say to no one.

"Jerry?"

After filling in Jerry, he tells me that he called Detective Harris and asked him to put a rush on the evidence collected from his home. His daughter's life depended on it. If I know Frank Harris, he'll stop at nothing to get that evidence through the system as soon as possible.

After I hung up with Jerry, I returned to the office. Carla was still at her desk.

I raised my brows in question.

"They're in Mr. Reed's office. They're expecting you to join them, Detective. First door on the left."

"Thank you."

I start to go, then stop. "You did nothing wrong here, Carla."

Tears fill her eyes, and all she can do is nod.

I enter the office. "Tell me everything you know about this Robert guy."