Amara stood in the dim light of the parking lot, her breath coming out in harsh, ragged gasps.
The air around her was suffocating, thick with desperation and fury.
Vaughn was still missing, and the longer he was gone, the more the terror clawed at her insides.
The conversation with the contact in the bar echoed in her mind..
Outsiders, people who didn’t usually operate in Las Vegas, were behind the kidnapping.
Whoever they were, they didn’t just want ransom.. they wanted something more dangerous..
Control..
Amara couldn’t shake the weight of those words.
Control! Power!
She turned toward Lucas, her voice low but filled with urgency. “We need to find them. These outsiders. Whoever is trying to take power in Las Vegas… they have Vaughn, or they know who does. We can’t wait any longer.”
Lucas stood beside her, his face grim.
His hand rested on the gun hidden inside his jacket, his eyes scanning the darkened streets as though he expected someone to emerge from the shadows at any moment. “I’ll make the calls,” he said quietly, his voice hard with determination. “There are a few people who might know something, but these aren’t the kind of groups that show up on anyone’s radar easily. They’re ghosts.”
“I don’t care how hard they are to find,” Amara hissed, her eyes blazing with anger. “I’ll drag every ghost out of the shadows if I have to. We’re not stopping until we find them.”
Lucas nodded and pulled out his phone, stepping aside to make the necessary calls.
Amara’s heart pounded in her chest, each second feeling like an eternity.
The night sky was oppressive, the stars hidden behind a thick blanket of clouds, mirroring the storm that raged inside her.
Vaughn’s face flashed in her mind, his small hands reaching out for her, his voice calling her name. She couldn’t fail him. Not again.
After a few minutes, Lucas returned, his expression unreadable. “I’ve got a lead,” he said, his voice clipped. “There’s a group that’s been operating on the outskirts of the city for the last few months. They’re not from here, but they’ve been making moves, trying to establish a foothold. No one’s sure who they are or what they want, but they’ve been recruiting heavily. We start with them.”
Amara nodded, her hands clenched into fists. “Let’s go.”
The drive was silent, the tension between them thick and suffocating.
Lucas navigated the narrow, winding streets that led them away from the glittering lights of the Las Vegas Strip and into the darker, more desolate areas of the city.
The neighborhoods they passed were a stark contrast to the opulence of the casinos and luxury hotels.. crumbling buildings, broken streetlights, and empty lots filled with debris.
This was where people came to disappear.
Amara sat in the passenger seat, her mind racing with possibilities. Whoever had Vaughn wasn’t just some random thug looking for a quick payout.
They were organized, methodical, and dangerous. And if they were part of this group trying to gain power in Las Vegas, then the risks were even higher.
This wasn’t just a personal attack.. it was part of a larger plan. But why? Why take her son?
As they neared their destination, Lucas pulled the car into an alley behind an abandoned warehouse.
The building loomed in front of them, its windows shattered, the walls covered in graffiti.
It was the kind of place no one would look twice at, the perfect hideout for people who didn’t want to be found.
“This is where they’ve been operating,” Lucas said quietly, turning off the engine. “It’s not much, but it’s a start.”
Amara nodded, her body tense with anticipation. She reached for the door handle, her hand trembling slightly. “Do you think they’ll talk?”
“They’ll talk,” Lucas replied, his voice cold. “If they know what’s good for them.”
They stepped out of the car, the sound of their footsteps muffled by the thick layer of grime and dirt that coated the ground.
The air was heavy with the smell of decay, and a faint wind howled through the broken windows of the warehouse.
Amara’s heart pounded in her chest as they approached the rusted metal door at the back of the building.
Lucas rapped on the door three times, a sharp, deliberate knock.
For a few moments, there was nothing but silence.
Then, a faint shuffle came from behind the door, and the sound of a lock being undone echoed through the night.
The door creaked open, revealing a tall, muscular man with a scars running down both the side of his face.
His eyes flicked between Amara and Lucas, narrowing with suspicion.
“Who the hell are you?” he growled, his voice rough.
“We’re here for answers,” Lucas said calmly, though his hand hovered near the gun hidden beneath his jacket. “We know your group has been making moves in the city. We’re looking for someone.”
The man’s gaze hardened. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Amara stepped forward, her eyes blazing with fury. “Don’t play dumb with us,” she snapped. “My son was taken, and we know whoever did it is connected to your people. Now, you’re going to tell me where they are, or things are going to get very ugly, very fast.”
The man’s lip curled into a sneer, but before he could respond, Lucas grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the wall. “You don’t want to make this difficult,” Lucas said, his voice low and dangerous. “Where are they?”
The man glared at Lucas, his jaw clenched, but after a moment, he spat on the ground and muttered, “Fine. There’s a group of outsiders. They’ve been trying to push their way into the city. I’ve seen them around, but I don’t know where they are now.”
Amara’s heart sank. It wasn’t enough. “You must know something,” she pressed. “Who’s leading them? Where do they meet? Anything.”
The man shook his head. “I told you, I don’t know. They keep to themselves. No one here trusts them, but they’re powerful. Dangerous.”
Amara’s hands clenched into fists.
She wanted to scream, to tear this man apart for not giving her the answers she so desperately needed. But it was clear he wasn’t lying.
He didn’t know anything more.
Lucas released the man, who slumped against the wall, rubbing his neck. “Get out of here,” Lucas growled. “And if you hear anything else, you find us. Understood?”
The man nodded quickly and disappeared into the shadows, leaving Amara and Lucas standing in the cold, empty alley.
Amara leaned against the wall, her breath coming in shallow gasps.
They were so close, but still, they had nothing.
No location, no names.. just a vague description of a group that had already covered their tracks too well.
Lucas turned to her, his expression grim. “We’ll keep looking Miss,” he said. “We’ll find them. But this… this isn’t going to be easy.”
“I don’t care how hard it is,” Amara said through gritted teeth. “They have my son, Lucas. And I’m not stopping until I get him back.”
They returned to the car, the weight of the night pressing down on them both.
As they drove through the darkened streets, Amara’s mind raced with thoughts of what could be happening to Vaughn.
Every second that passed felt like a knife twisting in her gut. She had been prepared for a ransom demand, for some kind of leverage.
As the city lights flickered outside the window, Amara clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms.
She had to stay focused. She had to stay strong. For Vaughn.
But she didn’t know who to go to look for to find information..
Suddenly a name popped in her mind, who could help..