The Bound Between Us

Herman tried calling Anastasia again. This time, her phone was off.

She never turned off her phone. Ever since she became a mom, unless her

battery died, her phone always stayed on. Even if she was furious with him, she'd

ignore his calls, but she wouldn't just switch the thing off.

He remembered seeing her phone at full charge before she left. It'd barely been

two hours. No way the battery was dead.

A cold dread settled in his gut.

Three unanswered calls later, Herman's worry turned into certainty: something

was wrong.

He called Monica, hoping maybe Anastasia had gone to her. No luck-Monica

hadn't seen her either.

Nelson jogged over, a little out of breath. "Mr. Salstrom, I asked the security at the

gate. They said Mrs. Salstrom left in a taxi, headed north."

"Find out that taxi's license plate. Now," Herman ordered, his voice sharp. "And

get Dailey over here."

But the car had left right from the banquet entrance, just outside the cameras'

reach. None of the guards got the plate number. Tracking her by the taxi was

probably pointless.

Herman quickly tried to locate Anastasia's phone.

Half an hour later, following the last signal, Herman drove out toward the northern

weeds, he found her phone-smashed to

gone. Just like

up soon after. "Boss,

movement at all."

come after Anastasia for

Asher for

it wasn't

missing for nearly an hour. A

his nerves

pulling traffic cam footage from this

intersection," Herman said, gripping the shattered phone

His eyes

was suffocating-like someone

around his throat.

Meanwhile, somewhere far away-

sat in darkness, blindfolded, wrists and ankles tied. She couldn't

hear anything except her own pounding

crept in, cold

memory flickered: an

the charity

to meet

gotten into a cab.

a strange

over her.

been wrong with

the chip?

didn't know who had taken her. She just knew

she tried to

was a stone

if

hear water

cave?

they taken her?

nearby. Anastasia shrank into herself, straining

listen.