Bound To Fall

Something Isn't Right

Sterling

I could feel the agitation inside of me grow. It was nearly midnight at this point, dinner had gone cold hours ago. Isabelle still had yet to show up and the only thing that made sense is that she got too caught up into preparing for tomorrow.

Grabbing my coat, I exited the penthouse and sent Ronnie orders to meet me in the parking garage. Luckily he's quick and already has the car ready to go when I get downstairs.

I opened the door to the back and climbed inside. "Have you heard anything from Henry?"

"No Sir." He responded as he began to drive out of the parking garage.

I could feel worry beginning to pit in my stomach. I pulled up Henry's number as Ronnie drove towards the bakery and waited for an answer. To my dismay, I only ended up with his voicemail which caused the worry inside of me to grow.

"Step on it." I ordered. "Something isn't right."

Without a word, Ronnie picked up his speed. Shortly we arrived at the bakery and I could see that all the lights were off. Isabelle had clearly left and the place had gone undisturbed, whatever was going on happened after she had already left.

I looked around, seeing if there was a trace of anything left behind. My eyes fell on Henry's car and I rushed over to it with Ronnie right by my side. When I reached the window, Henry's eyes were closed and I couldn't tell if he was breathing or not.

My worry quickly started to turn into panic and anger. I had to force myself to stay in control as I opened Henry's door. I used my fingers to find a pulse, it was a relief when I located it but I could tell he was barely hanging on.

I looked him over and noticed some blood on his seat. I could tell that some of it was dried and then I spotted the stab wounds to his stomach. I gulped as I tried to control the rage brewing, it became very clear that this situation is a lot more serious than I had thought before leaving my penthouse.

"Ronnie, call an ambulance." I ordered as I looked around for anything to apply pressure to Henry's wounds.

In a matter of minutes the ambulance arrived as well as the police. The EMT's took care of Henry as I explained to the police about how I came across the scene. I also took the liberty to mention Isabelle's disappearance.

Henry was on his way to the hospital well before I finished up with my statement. I could feel myself growing more and more frustrated and angry because the longer they wasted my time talking about this, the more time I'm wasting that should be spent on Isabelle.

Finally, the cops allowed me to leave and as I headed for the car I noticed Ronnie ending a phone call. I watched him carefully as he closed the space between us and looked around to make sure the police were out of earshot.

"What's going on?" I asked, making it clear in my voice I wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush here.

"That was Luca." Ronnie informed me. "He's uncovered what Mr. King is up to and he wants to meet you as soon as possible."

The bad feeling in my gut only got worse with that statement. There's no way that it's just a coincidence that Isabelle went missing right as we uncovered what Mr. King was up to. There's something connecting these two events and I intend to find out what the fuck is going on.

"Let's go." I headed for the car, this time getting into the passenger seat. "Have him meet us at the warehouse."

Ronnie sent Luca a text and hopped into the driver's seat. The ride to the warehouse was filled with a tense silence. My mind was racing as I was trying to figure out my next move, but I need to know exactly what I'm up against when it comes to Mr. King.

The warehouse came into view and Luca was standing outside with a file. I got out of the car and Ronnie followed behind me. I wasted no time unlocking the warehouse door and leading the way inside, locking the door back up to secure the three of us in the building.

"What do you have?" I asked Luca. "I don't have a second to waste so this had better be worth my time."

"It is." He handed me the file. "Mr. King's money exchanges aren't for laundry or anything like that, he's trafficking people. It took me a while but I finally cracked everything that led me to a website on the dark web."

As I looked through the images I could feel myself getting sick. It was all young women who were being advertised. It's the most vile fucking thing I've ever see and the fact he was eyeing Isabelle pissed me off even more now.

"Do you think it's connected?" Ronnie asked.

"Of course it's fucking connected!" I snapped and slammed the file down on a nearby table. "I'd be a goddamn fool if I didn't realize it was all connected. I don't know what this fucker has planned but I fully intend to rip him apart piece by fucking piece!"

My rage was boiling up, I could feel myself losing control as I grabbed a chair. With all the force inside my body I threw it across the room. It hit the wall with a loud echoing thud and then hit the ground.

"What do you want us to do sir?" Ronnie asked.

"Get me any information on where he may be keeping her now." My voice was calmer but my anger was still palpable. "Time is of the essence and we need to act immediately. Luca, keep an eye on this site and let me know if anything on Isabelle pops up."

"Yes Sir." Luca responded.

"Let's get to work then gentlemen." I spoke as I started to head for the door of the warehouse.

They both followed behind me and then we proceeded to part ways. As Ronnie drove me back to the penthouse, I pulled my phone out and dialed my father. I know his help in a situation like this would be important, and he did say we were a team.

"Do you know how late it is?" His voice was tired and irritated from me interrupting his sleep.

I'd apologize but this is a serious matter, so I chose to get right to the point. "Isabelle has been taken and I'm sure Mr. King is behind this."

I just don't know why. There has to be a reason for targeting her, there has to be.

"I'll meet you at your place." The annoyance in his tone had vanished, now he was nothing but serious.

"Okay." I responded. "I'll see you soon."