Free Caught by Jami Alden Page B

him, crashing in a rundown youth hostel in San Francisco.
    He focused his attention back on the screen, where he saw the last message from Kara, dated Friday evening.
    Can’t wait to see my honey tonite. He’s still pissed, but I’m hoping he’ll give me another chance.
    He felt the hackles rise on the back of his neck.
    “Who’s pissed?” Toni muttered, echoing his thoughts.
    Ethan frowned as he read a message a the bottom of the page, dated last Wednesday. I’ll give you one last chance to make it up to me. Meet me this weekend and show me how sorry you are. This from someone with the charming moniker “T-Bone.”
    His cell phone buzzed, interrupting whatever Toni was about to say. He swore when he saw his brother Derek’s number on the caller ID. “What’s up?”
    “Just wanted to let you know we’re heading over to Dad’s in the next twenty minutes. He said he had something important to talk to us about, so don’t be late.” Tension dug into Ethan’s neck like bony fingers. He’d forgotten all about their weekly dinner with his dad. He’d managed to avoid the last two weeks, as he’d been working. But this week he had no excuse to blow it off.
    “I wonder what new theory he’s come up with this time.” He sighed. And how much money he’s going to waste chasing after it, he thought. “I’ll see you there.”
    Toni spared him a glance over her shoulder as she clicked through to T-Bone’s FacePlace page.
    “That was my brother calling to remind me of another standing obligation.” He was reluctant to leave, and not only because he wanted to follow the trail to T-Bone and what he might know about Kara Kramer’s disappearance. He liked it here in Toni’s dark, sweltering apartment, working beside her.
    “It’s cool,” she said without looking up. “I’ll let you know whatever I find out.” Her fingertip stroked idly over her mouse, as if she were fondling a patch of skin.
    Okay, clearly he needed to get laid if watching Toni navigate cyberspace was enough to get him excited. He stood quickly. “I’ll be back in a few hours.”
     
    Toni watched the retreat of his wide, muscled back with a combination of regret and relief. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she was starting to crush on him. Not only was he hot, he was smarter than she’d first given him credit for. Not many people knew what EXIF data was, much less how it could be used for an investigation, but Ethan must do his homework.
    And he had an odd knack for sensing when she was about to head down the dark road of fear and let anxiety override all logic. Using humor or short, pointed questions and remarks, he gently guided her back on track, keeping her from fixating on the worst-case scenario.
    But she was grateful to see him go. The lustful undercurrents pulsing between them were far too distracting. Someone she cared about was missing, and she could barely concentrate because she couldn’t stop thinking about stripping Ethan Taggart naked. Better he was gone so she could really focus.
    From T-Bone’s profile page she clicked on a link to T-Bone’s Treasure Chest.
    Speaking of naked.
    “Kara, what the hell have you gotten yourself into?”
     
    Kara huddled on the thin pad and tried to figure out how long she’d been sitting here in the dark. A day? Two?
    She had no idea. Her body shook with a combination of cold and fear. She sat with her knees curled up to her chin, her bound wrists looped over her legs in an attempt to hold in whatever body heat she had left.
    Her eyes were wide open in spite of the dark, her ears tuned to every slight sound as she waited for the man to come back. Despite her grogginess from whatever drug was working through her, she hadn’t slept since the man left hours ago. After his brief greeting, all the more terrifying for how casual he’d sounded, he’d left and hadn’t come back.
    Hazy details were starting to surface. She’d never made it to the party. She had a vague memory of a