Decisions

Nick tucked in Hanna, kissed her cheek, and headed to the living room, closing her door behind him. After such a busy day, she’d fallen asleep halfway through the story he read her. He was glad she could rest. There was no way he’d be so lucky.

He grabbed a beer, made himself comfortable on the couch, then turned on the TV. He flipped through some movie choices and picked what looked like a mindless action flick. He just needed something to get his mind off everything. 

Even with an exciting movie in front of him, it was hard to stay in the story. His mind wouldn’t stop wandering. Would Ava be okay? Was Corrine going to stay true to her word and keep that predator away from their daughter? His attorney had told him to stay put, so as much as he wanted to fly out and take care of Ava himself, he remained home. He couldn’t risk making one wrong move and putting his potential custody of the kids in jeopardy.

Waiting was the hardest thing. In the morning, he would have to call Ava and Parker to see if he could get any more information out of them.

And what about Alex? That bloody shirt didn’t give Nick much hope that he would come back alive. He’d already passed the crucial forty-eight-hour time frame. Things were definitely not looking good for his friend. And again, he couldn’t do anything about it. 

He leaned his head back against the couch and closed his eyes. His daughter and his best friend were both in trouble, and legally, he couldn’t do anything about any of it.

Every once in a while, he wished he wasn’t a good cop. Sometimes, it would be nice to skirt the rules and do what needed to be done. 

But the rules were set in place for good reason, and he knew that. That’s why he followed them, even when he didn’t want to. In the end, he had to trust that things would work out. Just like with Hanna. He’d done all the right things regarding his kids even when Corrine had been playing dirty, and now Hanna was living with him.

That was what he needed to focus on.

Nick’s phone rang. Sighing, he opened his eyes. He didn’t feel like dealing with anything or anyone, but what if it was important? What if Ava needed him, or if Alex had been found?

He reached into his pocket and checked the screen. 

A blocked number.

Nick pressed ignore. If it was important, it wouldn’t be a blocked number.

Or would it? Should he have answered?

His heart raced. What if it was an anonymous tip? Or Ava on a secret phone?

He cursed himself for being so rash.

The phone rang again. Again, a blocked number.

Nick doubted himself as his thumb hovered over the screen to answer. 

By the time he decided to answer, it had gone to voicemail.

He cursed himself again. What was wrong with him? There was no way to call back a blocked number. He needed to answer it.

“Call again.”

The phone remained silent. Not even a notification about a voice message.

He groaned, a headache forming around the base of his skull. This was exactly why he wasn’t leading Alex’s case. He was too close to think clearly.

In fact, given his current state of mind, he might want to call Chief Crawford at City Hall in the morning and have everything go through him rather than Nick. His friends at the station would still keep Nick apprised of what was going on with the case.

His head swam, trying to decide. He stared at his phone, willing another call. After a minute, he picked up his beer and drank the rest of it, hoping it would at least relax him enough to get some sleep. His alarm was going to blare all too soon.

The phone rang. A blocked number.

His heart nearly jumped into his throat. 

Nick accepted the call. “What do you want?”

“Watch your tone,” said a machine-altered voice.

He clenched his fists. Not only was it a blocked number, but also a disguised voice? This was going too far. “Who is this?”

“That’s not watching your tone.”

“Who are you?” Nick struggled to keep his voice steady. Not that he cared about pleasing such a coward. He needed to know what was going on. “What does this have to do with?”

“You better lay off, Nicholas.”

“Who is this?” Nobody called him by his given name, not even his parents.

“Just lay off,” warned the voice-altered coward.

“Lay off what?”

“You don’t know? Really?”

He took a deep breath, trying to remain calm. The jerk on the other end was stepping on his already-strained last nerve. “No, I don’t. You could be talking about any number of things.”

A mechanical-sounding laugh came through the phone. “Then you’d better figure it out—and back away. Got it?”

“Not if you don’t tell me what I’m supposed to leave alone. Do you expect me to step away from everything in my life? That’s not really doable. I’m a police captain and a parent. My life is full of drama.”

“Then that’ll make this even more interesting, won’t it? Figure it out, or your friend will pay.”

Nick’s stomach dropped. “Do you have Alex?”

More laughter. “Look at that. You’re not stupid.”

“What do you want from me?” Nick demanded.

“Watch the tone.”

A Leslie Gore song sounded in the background, also sounding mechanical. 

Nick didn’t even know how to respond to that. 

“Back off, or your buddy pays.”

“I’m already off the case! What more do you want from me?”

“Just leave it alone, or you’ll both be sorry.”

“What are you going to do to him?”

“Kill him.”

“You—”

“And you’d better keep an eye on those kids, too.”

The call ended.

“Wait!” Nick stared at the phone. The screen shook. No, that was his hand. His whole body was shaking.

What did they want him to do?

More importantly, what did he mean about ‘those kids’? Was it Ava and Parker across the country, or Hanna and Ari? And how long did he have to figure it out so he could save Alex?