Page 10 of Forbidden Fate

I know that before I even grab my keys.

I know it while I’m pacing my kitchen, my phone clutched in my hand, Raven’s voice still echoing in my ears.

Belinda is gone. Possibly kidnapped. And Daniela’s immigration status has been called into question.

I stop pacing and brace my hands on the counter, staring down at the cold marble.

Adriana de la Fuente.

Except that’s not even her real name. Or it is, and the other isn’t. Leona Patel. For the past few days, I’ve devoured every piece of information I can find about her.

Somehow she’s connected to all of this. I can feel it.

I should take someone with me. The thought hammers at me again.

But who? Eagle is in the hospital. Falcon is busy with Savannah, and he never took me seriously anyway. Raven is fragile with Belinda gone, Daniela threatened.

Hawk would understand.

Hawk always does.

But Hawk is buried in Daniela’s situation right now, trying to fix something that might already be broken beyond repair. I can’t pull him away from that.

Vinnie?

I shake my head.

He already dismissed me. That picture was good enough for him. Enough to convince him Vega is dead. I can’t waste time trying to convince someone who’s already decided I’m wrong.

My father⁠—

I don’t even let myself finish that thought.

He’s still in that hospital bed, trapped in a body that won’t cooperate.

He can’t help me. And my mother? Right. She’d tell me I’m being ridiculous. Besides, she’s hardly left the hospital, moving between Dad and Eagle.

Maybe Shane? He’s one of my vet techs, and we’re pretty close friends. But I can’t drag him into this. You don’t ask an employee to risk their life, no matter how well you pay them.

I draw in a deep breath.

I’ll go alone.

I’ve done more difficult things than this.

And I’ll have my phone. If something goes wrong, I can be tracked.

The house sits at the end of a quiet street. I park a few doors down and kill the engine.

Adriana de la Fuente’s house. Or Leona Patel’s. Or whoever the hell she really is.

It’s big. Eight bedrooms, if the records I dug up are right. More a mansion than a house.

I leave the car and walk toward it, trying to be nonchalant.

Right away something feels off.

No cars in the driveway.