Unshakeable Pursuit (Christian Romantic Suspense)

Chapter 9a

Geoffrey had just pulled the car in front of Liam's house when he heard a gasp from the back seat. He and Maylin both turned.

Cassandra sat pressing the prepaid mobile phone they'd given to her up to her ear, her knuckles white. "We have to go to San Francisco," she said. "We have to go now."

"What happened?" Maylin asked.

"My sister." Cassandra bowed her head, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. She took a deep breath and looked up at them. "Someone tried to kidnap her on her way to school this morning."

It was the last thing Geoffrey would have expected, now that they knew it was Chester Wong after them. Geoffrey wasn't entirely sure Chester was really after his daughter Cassandra, but he knew Chester had no reason to have his younger daughter kidnapped. "Who would do that?"

"And why?" Maylin sounded as confused as he was.

"You can listen to her voicemail message." Cassandra pressed some buttons on her phone. They'd had her discard her mobile phone in case Chester found a way to track it, and they'd given her the prepaid phone. After hearing about Geoffrey's family last night, Cassandra had been adamant about going into Sonoma with them to call her sister, Chelsea, to make sure the girl was all right. She was also going to check her phone's voicemail messages.

A young girl's voice sounded over the phone's speaker, trembling as if she was trying not to cry. "Cass, something happened this morning ... I was walking to school and these two men tried to grab me." There was a muffled sob, then Chelsea's voice came on again, stronger and composed. "I got away because someone on the street saw them and helped me. Cass, they spoke Cantonese, but I didn't understand them very well. I don't know why they wanted me. I ..." She heaved a breath. "I went home and told Dad, and he ... it was like he didn't believe me. He looked right through me and asked if I was sure it wasn't all in my imagination."

Geoffrey's hand against the back of his seat clenched hard.

Chelsea continued, "Please come get me, Cass. I'm scared." Then the message ended.

"We have to get her," Cassandra said. "Bring her to the cabin."

Geoffrey decided quickly. "Okay, we'll go to your house today."

"Wait a minute," Maylin said. "You can't remove a teenager from her father's home without his permission."

"But her mother can give permission." He looked at Cassandra, who nodded firmly. "Cassandra, come inside with us. We have to find a way to talk to your mother without your father knowing."

Liam rented one side of a dilapidated duplex with white-washed wooden walls. Three steps led up to a door with a ripped screen, which Geoffrey opened and then knocked on the wooden door behind it.

Liam opened almost immediately, but there was something urgent about his stance, and tension made the cords in his neck stand out. "Come in."

"What's wrong?" Maylin asked.

"Detective Carter just called." Liam returned to his seat in front of his computer, which sat on a card table in his living room. The only other furniture was a sofa with a sheet thrown over it, which didn't completely hide the ghastly roses on the fabric. "He's coming over with an abduction case for me to work on for the Sonoma PD. A young girl."

"That's awful." Maylin's hand covered her mouth.

"We won't take up too much of your time, then," Geoffrey said. "We need to head to San Francisco immediately. Liam, this is Cassandra Wong."

Liam shook Cassandra's hand. "I'm glad you're safe."

"We need to get her sister to safety, too," Maylin said.