Dimitris POV
Recap
" Dimitri, something happened." Stephan said.
My eyebrows burrowed. " What happened?"
He glanced towards Sebastian who stood before a laptop sitting on a table. " See for yourself."
I marched on over to Sebastian who nodded towards the laptops screen. I look at the screen only for the book to drain from my face.
There tied to a bed in torn clothes with a gag in her mouth is Catalina.
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An unease dreadful feeling swept over me as I stare at the image displayed across the screen.
There was Catalina, my Catalina, tied to a bed frame barely dressed and gagged.
" What the hell is this!?" I scream.
Rage. Hate. Despair. So many emotions plague me as I continued staring at the god damned screen.
" I think it's obvious Dimitri. She's been kidnapped." Stephan says.
I shake my head. The idea of Catalina being kidnapped baffles me.
" Who would want to kidnap her!?" I snap.
My mind is racing as I think of what person would take her. There intentions. My mind comes up blank.
" I don't know. Her family is powerful. They may have some enemies." Stephan said after he mulled the thought over.
" I agree. Her father runs a large cooperation. He must have enemies all over the place." My friend Victor, adds.
" It is logical." I mentally pull at my hair. " But why would they do this now? It's been three days and now they decide to send us something!?"
From past experience I know that when you take a person you contact the family right away and state your demands. This doesn't sound like an ordinary kidnapping from people who want a ransom or negotiate. No. It sounds like whoever a behind this has a bigger purpose. But who is behind it?
" Want me to call Mr. and Mrs. De la Cruz? They should be informed about this." Trent states matter of factly.
" Yes. Go call them. As well as Josh and Isis. Sebastian go with him." Sebastian nods and he and Trent leave the room.
" Stephan is this just a picture or video?" I ask him.
" This is a picture."
" Is there any way you can trace the IP Adress?" He shakes his head.
" I'm not a hacker or computer genius. That's Kyles job and he's in Santa Monica."
" Pete call Kyle and get him on the first plane and over here now!" Pete nods and starts to do what I said.
" Dimitri you should calm down." Stephan says as he pulls me over to the far corner of the room.
" How do you expect me to calm down when-"
" I know what is happening but you are married to Isis now. You need to tone your anger down a notch before everyone, including your own wife, starts to ask about your behavior. For all you know she'll start to make assumptions between you and her own sister. Do you want that to happen?" I sigh. Stephan is right. If I continue lashing out they'll start to question me. Even more Isis who notices everything.
" You're right. I'll calm down." Stephan pats my shoulder.
" Good. Now all-" Stephan is cut off by the door opening and everyone walked inside.
" Honey what is so important that they had to drag me away from our own wedding party!? And why are you in here!?" Isis snaps as she marched towards me. An irritated look on her perfectly made up face.
" I think you all should sit down." Her parents exchanged a worried look.
" What's wrong?" Veronica asked.
Glancing at all of them I didn't want to tell them. I didn't want to say that someone took their own daughter and sibling. How would they take it? Would they freak? Would they panic?
Taking a deep breath I put on my best face and told them. " Something grave happened to Catalina."
None of their facial expressions changed. Only Josh's and his fiancé Heidi's.
" Oh my god! What happened to Cat?" Heidi asked wide eyed from where she sat on the couch.
" She's been kidnapped." Heidi gasped and started sobbing into Josh's shoulder who started to console her.
" You can't be serious!?" Veronica exclaimed, her eyes wide with uncertainty.
I motioned to Sebastian who grabbed the laptop and walked on over to Veronica and Maxwell. Looks I couldn't place overcame their features.
" Come on it can't be that bad?" Isis said as she snatched the laptop away from Sebastian and saw the photograph displayed all over the screen. She let out a hard laugh.
" This isn't real! You can't believe this is real?"
" I don't know what you find funny Isis? Your sister is taken by God knows who and led only knows what has happened to her!" Heidi remarked only to gain a sneer from Isis.
" I almost forgot how new you are to the family Heidi and don't know my sister just as well as the rest of us do. Catalina, like the bratty child she is, is just doing this to mess up my perfect wedding day! To rain down on a day I find sacred! Do you not remember the incident of 2010!?" My eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
" 2010?" I question.
" This isn't the first time my sister been 'kidnapped'. In 2010 she faked being kidnapped when she was in Argentina. We, just as you, believed she was locked away somewhere being molested by monsters when in reality it was all fake! She made it up! Paid people to make it look like she was! Just how this is fake!" Isis cried as she pushed the laptop back onto Sebastian's arms.
" She got kidnapped before?" Stephan asked the question that must be on everyones minds.
" Yes-no she didn't! She faked it because like always she doesn't like it when the attention isn't on her!" Isis retorted.
" Isis, honey, how about you just go back to the party and enjoy yourself before you go off to your honeymoon. Well straighten this out." Veronica assured a red faced Isis.
" I do need some tequila." Isis mumbled. " Fine but do hurry. We still need to dance." She gave me a quick feathered kiss on the lips before she hurried out the room.
" I just want to know if any of this is real at all?" Maxwell snapped the moment the door closed behind Isis.
" Wow. I almost thought you didn't have a sensitive bone in your body old man." Josh said to his father with an eye roll.
" Don't be stupid! She's my daughter!"
" Or maybe it's that picture perfect image you so desperately want to keep." Maxwell gave josh a scowl.
" Joshua." Veronica said with a warning tone in her voice. Josh scoffed and stayed quiet. He suddenly reminded me of Catalina. How they both stand up to their own parents. Although I'm sure if he were Cat they might have hit her.
" Dimitri is this real?" Maxwell pressed. Almost acting as if his slight argument with josh never happened.
" I can explain." Stephan spoke up from where he stood. " I got an email on my phone earlier without any name just an order: open in a private. I didn't know where else to go so I came here. The email had a link. It didn't open on my phone so I opened it on the laptop and the picture showed up." Stephan explained.
" A link? Is it trackable?" Josh asked.
" It should be." Stephan assured.
" I'll make a few calls. I know a lot of important people in the CIA and FBI. I'll get a team of them down here."
I blinked. Feds!? He wants to bring a team of them here! " No!" I stop maxwell before he pressed the call button. He gives me an odd look.My mind raced as I try to come up with an explanation for my sudden outburst.
" Like Isis said I believe this is just a stunt Catalina is playing." Everyone turned to look at me as if I've lost my mind. Stephan mostly. " Isis said Catalina has faked this all before. And if I were to remind you, your daughter wasn't happy with anyone because she was grounded. I'm sure it's just her acting out. Teenage rebellion." Veronica nodded.
" You are right. She always does stupid things when she doesn't get things her way."
" But mom what if this is real!?" Josh said.
" It's not! Just a prank curtesy of your sister." Veronica snapped. " Now let's all get back to the party before they start to question our whereabouts." Veronica and Maxwell leave the room without any other questions. Thankfully no calls made to get Feds down here.
" Dimitri we are family now and you have to be completely honest with me. Is my baby sister really kidnapped?" Josh asked.
" Please tell me this isn't real?" Heidi added besides him.
Glancing back and forth between the two of them I almost couldn't bring myself to lie to their faces. To say that Catalina really is taken. Instead I put on my best serious face and nod.
" I give you both my word that this is all fake. A joke curtesy of Catalina." Josh shakes his head.
" Unbelievable!" Quickly josh and Heidi leave the room.
" What the hell Dimitri!? Catalina is kidnapped and you tell her own family- her blood- that she's not! What the hell is wrong with you!?" Sebastian yelled the moment the door shut closed behind Heidi and josh.
I mentally sighed. " Sebastian I had to stop Maxwell before he called his friends in the CIA and FBI." Sebastian scoffs.
" Those friends might have helped looked for Catalina! Did you not think about that!?"
" Yes but-"
" But what!? Catalina might be-" Sebastian lets out a breath. " What if it were Isis huh?" I scoff.
" Don't be ridiculous!" Sebastian aggravated grabbed me tightly by shirt collar. His eyes wide with anger.
" I'm being serious! I know you! I know if it were your precious wife you wouldn't hesitate to have some government people search the entire globe for her!? Wasted every single dime you have! Even killed a man with your bare hands! We need to find her Dimitri! I need to find her!" He's breathless at the end of his slightly monologue.
" Sebastian I have my wedding to get back to. Let me go." I say as I put my own hands over his.
He doesn't let me go. His grip tightens slightly to the point where he's slightly choking me. His eyes are narrowed. His jaw tightly clenched. He suddenly took me by surprise as he lands a hard blow to my jaw causing me to stumble away from him.
" Sebastian what the hell!?" Stephan exclaimed as he came to stand between the two of us.
" Don't touch me! If you won't do anything to search for Cat I will even if it cost me my pathetic life!" He exclaimed as he glared at me. The look reminded me too much of when he was younger and more rebellious. " Enjoy your wedding with that whore that's now your wife Uncle." He spat before he stormed out the room. The door slammed closed behind him.
" Wow. Kid has some nerve to hit you boss." Victor said.
" But it was a good shot." Pete added. I mentally agreed with him. The punch hurt and I was able to taste blood in my mouth.
" I deserve it." I say as I spit out the blood into a trash an.
" Wait are we not going to search for the girl!?" Trent said exasperated. " Dimitri you can't seriously believe her family!? Who would fake their own kidnapping?"
" The search isn't over. I just made them all believe that." They all shared the same confused look. " Do you want the Feds involved in this? Those government people working with us who if I'm correct are criminals and when they find out who we really are we'll rot behind bars for the rest of our lives?" The point went across for they all nodded.
" Smart move boss but what now?" I sigh.
" We look for her. I want everyone to-"
" Hello Dimitri." I'm cut off by a familiar voice heavy with a Russian accent.
Slowly I turned towards the direction of the voice only to face the laptop which shows his despicable face lined with age. A gruesome smirk on his lips.
" Vladimir Kurkova."
My hands clenched tightly into fists. How stupid was I not to think of him!? How could I believe that it were her parents enemies that could have taken Catalina when I have enemies of my own? How stupid am I!?
" Hello boy. Enjoyed my surprise?" He motioned over his shoulder to where Catalina is still tied to a bed and gagged. " I must say the girl is beautiful." My jaw clenched at the thought of him forcing himself upon my Catalina.
" Don't you dare touch her you son of a bitch!" He lets out a bellowed laugh.
" You are in no position as to what I should do with the girl but be assured I haven't touched her. Yet. Can't say the same for my other men." My breathing labored. I wished I could reach into the miserable camera and strangle him until he turned blue in the face and stopped breathing.
" Why!? Why did you take her!?" I demand.
" Isn't it obvious?" He sighs before a hard look overcame his features. " You sent for my wife and children to be murdered in cold blood. Their bodies weren't recognizable after everything you did to them. I vowed on upon their souls that I will make your life miserable. That I will kill everyone you've ever cared about. I am a man of my word. I will get my revenge starting with the women you love." He snapped his fingers and I watched wide eyed as a man appeared besides Catalina a long sharp blade in his hands. Panic settled into my core.
" Vladimir don't you-" the screen went black as he cut off the video connection.
" Son of a bitch!" I throw the laptop across the room. I flip over the table. I break everything I can get my hands ahold of. I stop when there's nothing more.
" Dimitri." Stephan calls my name.
With a sob I fall onto the ground. " He has her Stephan. Vladimir has her and he's going to kill her. It's all my fault."