Page 95 of Dragon Charmed

“No police,” Eric said.

“What are you talking about?” Connor said. “She’s been abducted.”

Eric frowned. “Yes, by one of your employees. I don’t think you want that to get out, do you? It could impact your reputation. Plus I have contacts in the police department. I’m going to handle it. Do you have a thumb drive to save these videos on?”

Connor scrambled into the desk drawer. “I think I have an old one. Here.” He plugged it in and saved the videos.

“What is Nadia’s last name and contact info?” Ben asked.

“Beringer.” Connor opened a desk drawer and pulled out a book where he flipped through pages and then scribbled her address on a piece of paper.

“How long has she worked for you?” Eric asked.

“A little over a year now.”

Too much of a coincidence. “Was she here when you worked on the Death of Magic painting?”

“I hired her right around that time, yes.”

“Can we get to the lot through the back of your store?” he asked.

Connor motioned for them to follow him as he jogged through the gallery. He unlocked the back door, and Ben ran over to the car. Both doors were open, and the key was still in the ignition. Tessa’s purse was also in the car. He searched it and found the burner phone. He closed everything and brought the bag, keys, and phone with him.

“I don’t see anything that would tell us where she was taken.”

“We’ll be in touch if we have any more questions,” Eric said.

“I hope she’ll be okay.”

“If Nadia shows up here or contacts you, call us immediately on the phone number Sydney gave you.”

“I will.”

They headed out to the truck, and Ben spun to face Eric. “What the hell, Eric! Why aren’t we calling the cops?”

“We are. Just one of ours,” Eric said.

“You recognized Nadia, didn’t you?” He held his breath, dreading the answer.

Eric scowled. “She’s the witch that cast the memory spell on us.”

Ben’s heart beat triple time. “Let’s go.”

They climbed into the truck, and Eric called Megan again. “Megan?”

“I’m here with Marcus and Sienna. Tell us what’s going on.”

Eric quickly relayed what they had seen on the video.

“Why would they take Tessa?” Sienna said.

“Maybe they didn’t believe Tessa’s story. She gave them a fake name,” Ben said.

“Just a first name so that they couldn’t try and track her down online,” Megan said, her voice cracking.

“They still could if they used reverse imaging. Tessa would have been on the security cameras from the other day. If they took a still photo of her face and ran it through an online search, her real name and background would have come up. She has her own Wikipedia page.”

Eric gaped at him. “How do you know that? You’re technology challenged.”