No Stone Left Unturned (eBook)

Chapter Three

Dangerous Abduction

El Lobo

Cameron and Sara returned home, their weary bodies carrying the scars of a hard-fought battle in New York’s downtown area. The war against formidable opponents had tested their martial arts training to its limits, but they had emerged victorious, and a sense of relief washed over them as they walked through the threshold of their safe house. They were grateful for their survival and eager to find a moment of respite finally.

“Can you believe we made it out of there outnumbered twenty to one?” Sara whispered, her voice filled with optimistic disbelief and exhaustion.

Cameron nodded, his face still streaked with dirt and sweat. “I never thought it would come to that. But our training paid off.”

The safe house was a modest place tucked away in a quiet neighborhood. Its unassuming exterior hid the advanced security measures within. Sara’s gaze shifted around the room. Despite their weariness, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease. Something was off. She nudged Cameron and pointed toward the entrance hallway. A trusted ally and fellow fighter, Officer Craig Nelson, lay face down in the small enclosure leading to the trio of secure doors.

Cameron’s brow furrowed, and instinctively moved forward, his senses on high alert. “Officer Nelson?” he called out cautiously.

“Nelson, what happened?” Her hand reached out to touch his shoulder.

There was no response. Sara’s grip on Cameron’s arm tightened as they exchanged a concerned glance. With a silent agreement, their eyes scanned the area for any signs of danger. He was still alive but unconscious; his gun lay two feet away.

As she turned him over, a gasp escaped her lips. His face was pale, and his uniform was stained with blood. “Cameron, he’s hurt! We need to get him medical help.”

Cameron knelt beside Nelson, assessing the extent of his injuries. “It looks bad. We need to get him help and find out what happened here.”

Sara nodded, her mind racing to make sense of the situation. “But how did someone breach our security? This place is supposed to be impenetrable.”

Cameron’s eyes narrowed as he examined the entryway. “It looks like there was a struggle here. The locks are intact, but something went down.” Sara left to check on her baby.

A modestly furnished yet cozy nursery. The room was dim, lit only by a soft nightlight in the corner. The ambiance was unsettlingly quiet, the kind of silence that weighs heavy on the heart. Sara stood in the doorway, her silhouette framed by the hallway light, her posture slumped as if the gravity of the situation had physically pressed down upon her.

Sara’s voice was barely above a whisper, trembling. “Betsy... Eugene... Roger.”

She stepped into the room, her eyes darting around, taking in the empty crib, the open window with the curtains fluttering like a whisper in the night, and her breath hitched, a hand flying to her mouth as her eyes filled.

Her voice breaking, though with a mix of fear and desperation, Sara said, “No, no, no. This can’t be happening.”

She rushed to the crib, her fingers grazing the soft bedding, which remained untouched except for the indent where Roger once lay. She picked up a small stuffed animal, clutching it to her chest as if holding on to the last piece of her child.

Sara screamed into the void, anguish written all over her face. “Where is my baby? Betsy! Eugene!”

Cameron, in the other room, snapped his attention towards the direction of Sara’s cries. He looked torn, a man caught between duty and heartache, his gaze lingering on the wounded police officer before making a decision.

Sara, now kneeling, her body racked with sobs, the stuffed animal pressed against her lips, whispered a mix of prayers and pleas.

“Please, bring him back to me. My baby, my Roger... I can’t... I can’t live without him.”

She let out a wail, a sound so primal and filled with pain that it seemed to echo through the house, reaching every dark corner, every shadowed crevice.

Sara pounded her fist against the floor, her voice a crescendo of despair. “Why? Why him? Take me instead!”

Her cries filled the room, a haunting soundtrack to the scene of desolation around her. Sara remained enveloped in her grief, a mother’s worst nightmare unfolding in the silence of the night.

Cameron, having made a split-second decision, left the wounded police officer with a promise to return quickly. His footsteps were heavy, each step echoing his dread and disbelief. He entered the nursery, and the sight of Sara, broken and pleading on the floor, hit him like a physical blow to the stomach.

Cameron’s voice, thick with emotion as he dropped to his knees beside her, cracks. “Sara... oh, God, Sara.”

Cameron wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. His presence was a solid, reassuring force amidst the chaos of their shattered world. Sara leaned into him, her body shaking with sobs, her grief a tangible thing between them.

Cameron struggled to keep his voice steady, tears streaming down his face as he reassured his wife, “We’ll find him, Sara. I swear to you, we’ll find Roger.”

Sara clung to him, voice muffled against his chest. “How? How could this happen? They were our friends... our baby.”

Cameron kissed the top of her head, a tender gesture amid despair. “I don’t know, love. I don’t know. But we’re not going to give up looking. Never.”

Cameron, typically a pillar of strength, allowed his tears to fall, his grief for their missing child and the situation’s sheer incomprehensibility mingling with Sara’s.

Cameron’s voice was firm yet gentle. “We’re going to get through this. Together. We’ll do whatever it takes to bring our son home.

As Cameron and Sara returned from the nursery, Cameron looked at Nelson’s wounds; footsteps echoed outside the hallway. Cameron and Sara tensed, ready for whatever might come through the door. The sense of danger hung in the air like a storm cloud.

The door swung open, revealing a figure cloaked in shadows. “Impressive observation skills, Cameron, Sara,” a voice taunted, dripping with malice. “But your safe house wasn’t safe enough. We’ve had it under surveillance for quite some time.”

Cameron’s jaw clenched, his gaze locking onto the intruder. “Who are you?” Cameron went for the stranger, but Sara held him back.

The figure stepped forward, revealing a giant of a man, standing at least six foot six, if not more, built like a human wall. His face looked as though he had been through many battles, with a deep scar trailing from his scalp to his left eye. His presence exuded power and danger. His eyes were void of emotion. Blood seeped from a gunshot wound on his upper arm, resulting from a confrontation with Officer Nelson. Strangely, the injury didn’t seem to faze him all that much.

“They call me El Lobo,” he rumbled, his deep voice resonating. “I’m here to collect rather than create a debt.”

Sara’s eyes narrowed, her voice dripping with defiance. “I’ll call you El Idiot. We don’t owe you anything.”

El Lobo chuckled. “Oh, maybe you do. Your little victory in downtown New York didn’t go unnoticed. You are both outstanding fighters but meddled in affairs far beyond your understanding. You let someone escape.”

Cameron clenched his fists at his sides. “What do you want? And where is our son, and where are Eugene and Betsy?”

El Lobo’s eyes gleamed with a wicked light. “I have a deal you can’t refuse; my trade-off: your son Roger for a favor. As for the Rossi couple, they are with us. We need someone to take care of your son.”

Sara’s heart raced, and she stepped forward, shielding Cameron protectively. “Over my dead body.” Sara rushed El Lobo. Cameron was not quick enough to hold her back, and El Lobo swatted her aside as though she was a mere nuisance.

El Lobo’s laughter echoed through the room. “Well, that can certainly be arranged.” Sara got up and seemed unfazed, but now she had a fire in her eyes as she looked up at Cameron.

Tension filled the air as the standoff continued. Cameron and Sara faced an impossible choice, knowing their training and survival instincts would be pushed to their human limits. The haven they had fought so hard to maintain had been shattered, and they once again plunged into a new battle that would test their martial prowess and their bonds of family and love.

Before they could respond, El Lobo continued, his tone shifting from menacing to calculated. “But perhaps there’s a way out of this for you. A job, a task that I only want you and your team to accomplish. No law enforcement.”

Cameron’s gaze narrowed. “What kind of job?”

El Lobo leaned in, his eyes locking onto theirs. “A high-stakes operation requires unique skill sets and contacts if you are not afraid of danger. If you succeed, you’ll have your son back.”

Sara’s voice was laced with skepticism. “And if we refuse?”

El Lobo’s grin returned, colder than before. “Well, then, little Roger might be in a different parental environment.”

Cameron’s mind raced, torn between the desperate need to protect his family and the dangers ahead. The choices they faced were heart-wrenching, the path ahead uncertain. But one thing was clear: The fight for...