I boarded the jet and waited for takeoff. Only we were still on the tarmac not moving, when I saw another black SUV pull up beside the jet. It was one of Bryce’s cars. A moment later, he stepped out wearing a pair of jeans and a black baseball cap. I’d never seen him in anything but a suit. He took a black bag and swung it over his shoulder and made his way over to the jet.

“Luc.” He nodded. “I need to find my daughter.”

“I know, Bryce, I know. I’m freaking out here. This is bad,” I admitted. I didn’t want to scare him but it was the truth. The jet revved its engine and we sped down the runway. Moments later we were airborne. “My father is really pissed off about Henri’s death. I know he’s out for revenge, my only guess is that he is hoping I get killed in the crossfire too. He’s been watching me here in New York for the past two years. I’m such a fool.”

“Go easy on yourself, Luc, you knew it was a possibility you were being watched,” Bryce said, leaning back in the chair across from me.

“I know, that’s why I had no right to fall in love with your daughter,” I frowned.

“You don’t control who you love, Luc, trust me I know. My family tried to force me into loving my first wife but I never did,” he said with a distant look in his eyes. “I loved Vicky’s mother. I was a fool not to go after her.”

“I am dangerous, Bryce, you see how my family operates? She will never be safe and that’s if we can even save her now.” My body shuddered at the thought.

“Luc, my friend from the FBI is sending undercover agents to Thunder Bay. They will be in unmarked cars, but do you have a plan?” Bryce asked, looking at me. His eyes looked creased and tired. He looked stressed out.

“I do, Bryce, but I can’t tell you that plan. I just need you to trust me.” I replied.

“I trust you Luc and I believe you love my daughter, but I also trust that you can’t do this alone. I’m here to help. So spit out your plan now because we are going to refine it and make it work,” he said and I knew it was an order not a request.

“Okay, Bryce, here’s my plan….”

Chapter 29

Joe

After driving ten miles out, I was met with defeat. The lady at the front desk had not seen a black Mustang. I’d called into the police station as well, and the Mustang had not been spotted yet. Fear crawled its way up my throat. I had spent the last two years fucking up big time. I acted like a little shit and my sins have caught up with me. My mother’s death stung so hard I felt like I couldn’t breathe for the first six months. While I was drinking on the beaches of Mexico, I left Vicky to fend for herself. I left my papa to fend for himself, and now he was dead. I was terrified that my sister would meet the same fate and that I would get sucked even deeper into the black hole I had just recently swum out of.

I drove around for another hour. I knew that as the moments ticked by she might be getting further and further away. Vicky’s cell phone rang.

“Hello!”

“Joe, its Luc. I am here in Thunder Bay.”

“That was fast.”

“Yes, I have a plan. I need you to listen,” Luc said into the phone. I sat quietly and tried to figure out if this could actually work. I turned the car around and headed for my parents' house. The undercover FBI agents and Bryce Andrews would be meeting me there. I’d had time to process the fact that Vicky and I didn’t share the same parent’s for two years, yet knowing I was about to meet her biological father was painful. The words radiated in my head. I was about an hour out right now. It was going to take me time to get back.

“Okay, Luc, I’m on my way back to you,” I replied, as I swerved the car in the opposite direction.

The hours were passing by and I was not stupid. I knew our chances of finding her depleted with the passing minutes.

Chapter 30

Luc

Bryce and I arrived at the home that Vicky grew up in. The front door was locked, but I efficiently picked the lock and we were inside. The house was empty. Bryce walked around and looked solemn and sad. Especially when his eyes landed on a family portrait in the hallway.

He exhaled a long breath. “It’s hard to live a life that is filled with so much regret.”

“You are still young, Bryce, you have time to make things right for yourself,” I responded as we made our way into the kitchen. I flicked on the lights. Bryce tapped my back.

“Let’s just get her back, Luc.” He nodded. We had to get her back. I made a quick call to Joe; he would be here in ten minutes. The undercover agents arrived and Bryce debriefed them. Everybody was armed and they were bringing more ammunition into the house. This place was really going to light up tonight.

I called my father as planned. I wasn’t a fool. I knew he wasn’t in New York anymore. There would be no meeting at the pier.

“Father,” I said when he picked up after one ring.

“You never were a good listener were you, Luc?” he chuckled into the phone.

“Let’s stop playing games. You know damn well why I am here.”

“Of course, Luc, but I am not happy about the fact that you have agents with you,” he answered. FUCK! He was already here. He was watching us. “You know it only takes one phone call and she’s dead,” he chuckled again.

“You wouldn’t be so foolish, Father. You kill her and you don’t get my help with the Dubois. Even though I don’t think it’s my help you want.”

He laughed and it was deep and throaty. “You know me well, S.on I am glad to see I’ve trained you well. You were always smarter than your brothers. The family has felt a great loss since you left. Contrary to what you believe, I don’t want you dead. I want you home. I will even allow you to bring the girl with you, if you so wish,” he said, surprising me. Maybe I was of service to him. He probably hadn’t found someone that could maneuver the international transfers like I can.

“Come here to the house we can talk,” I said hoping he would take the bait.

As I was talking on the phone, I switched clothes with one of the agents. He’s a big tall dark guy like me. Bryce’s friend at the FBI really delivered on this one. We could be mistaken for identical twins in the darkness. With my father on the phone, I left the house along with the other two agents. Everyone came in separate cars. We needed to cause a diversion again. I had mapped out all possible motels in a fifty-kilometer radius. The agents and I would be scoping the area. That left Joe and Bryce with my father. I hoped neither of them got killed because Vicky would never forgive me.

I left Vicky’s house in the old Tracker, while the other two men got into their rentals. I told them I was driving out to the farthest, most deserted motel in the area.

“Luc, you mistake me for a fool. Remember who taught you everything? I know you left the house. My men are just trying to determine your direction. I will find you and come to you. You really are a smart boy, Luc, but you are fucking weak. At the end of the day, it’s your weaknesses that will get you killed,” he said and I heard the phone close.

FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!

He knew I was on my way to Vicky. I just hoped she was at the motel that I was en route to. I dialed Joe’s number.

“Hello,” he picked up anxiously.

“Joe, my father knows I left the house. He knows I’m on my way to Vicky. I’m headed to a motel off the highway…” I gave Joe the directions and he said he would meet me there. My father was going to Vicky, and he definitely brought his goons. He’s too much of a coward to face me on his own. The other agents had begun to scan the area motels and they had already said they had come up empty. I texted them to meet me at the motel I was guessing she was at. My father thought he could get in my head and figure out my next move, but it’s a two way street and I knew how he operated.