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“He’s useless,” she said, her tone dripping with disdain. “We’re wasting our time.”
Josh looked uncertain, his eyes darting between Freddy and his mother. “But what about the guy you’re working with? We need that code. Didn’t you say he already sold it?”
Ellie waved her hand dismissively. “Forget the code. We’ll just demand money instead. It’ll be faster and easier that way.”
Freddy’s heart leaped in his chest. Money? They were going to ransom him? The thought of his family receiving a demand for his life made his stomach churn.
“But won’t whoever bought the code get mad and come after us?” Josh asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.
Ellie shook her head. “That’s why I used a middleman. They’ll go after him, but even he doesn’t know who we really are, so we’re in no danger. We just need to focus on getting the money.”
As they discussed their new plan, Freddy’s mind raced. They hadn’t mentioned Wils once, which meant they probably didn’t know he was the head developer. That was a small relief, at least. If they didn’t know about Wils, then maybe he was still safe.
But the thought of being ransomed off like some kind of commodity made Freddy’s skin crawl. Even worse, he knew it was doomed to fail.
Patrick, for all his faults, was a shrewd businessman. He’d never cave to ransom demands, no matter who the victim was. It would set a dangerous precedent, opening the floodgates for future attacks on the company and its employees.
A bitter laugh threatened to escape Freddy’s lips as he remembered Holly’s recent concerns about the company’s finances. She’d been puzzled by discrepancies in the books, insisting they should have more money than the recordsshowed. Patrick had brushed off her worries, but Freddy had seen the flicker of doubt in his brother’s eyes. Even if Patrick wanted to pay, he might not have the means to do so.
The reality of his situation began to settle over Freddy like a heavy blanket. This warehouse, with its musty air and flickering fluorescent lights, might very well be the last place he’d ever see. The chair beneath him, once a source of discomfort, now felt like a final resting place.
His thoughts drifted to Sabrina, and a wave of regret washed over him. One night. That’s all they’d had together. One beautiful, perfect night that now felt like a cruel tease of what could have been. He’d never get to tell her how much she meant to him, how she’d brought light and laughter into his life when he’d felt invisible to the world.
Freddy closed his eyes, trying to conjure Sabrina’s face in his mind. He wanted to remember every detail - the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed, the slight furrow in her brow when she concentrated on a particularly tricky bit of code. He clung to these memories, letting them wash away the fear and despair that threatened to overwhelm him.
As Ellie and Josh continued their plotting, their voices faded into background noise. Freddy retreated into himself, resigned to whatever fate awaited him. He only hoped that somehow, someday, Sabrina would know how much he had loved her.
Chapter 26: Sabrina
There’s only one person with the connections to China to be sharing information. Sabrina didn’t want to believe Holly was sharing information with her father, but maybe there was an innocent explanation. No matter what, she needed to confront Holly. She could follow-up with Patrick then too, even if she had to flush that fucking phone down the toilet.
Sabrina carried her computer back to where Holly and Patrick’s offices were located. The cryptic message from the forum still echoed in her mind, fueling her suspicionsabout Holly’s potential involvement. She needed answers, and confronting Holly directly seemed like the only way to get them.
Before she could knock on the frame around Holly’s door, she heard an engine pull up and cut off. Curiosity got the best of her, and Sabrina retraced her steps just in time for Nathan to bust through the front door of HQ, his face etched with worry.
“What’s going on?” Sabrina asked, her voice tight with concern.
Nathan looked up at her, his eyes heavy with the weight of the situation. “I got a ransom call from Ellie Baker. She’s demanding a large sum of money in exchange for Freddy’s safe return.”
Sabrina’s stomach dropped. “Ellie Baker? Why would she do this?”
“It’s a long story. Where’s Patrick?”
Just then Patrick and Holly came out to join them.
“What did you find out?” he asked his dad.
He repeated what he’d already told Sabrina but added, “Ellie believes I killed her husband. She’s convinced that I’m responsible for his death, and now she’s taking it out on Freddy.”
Patrick froze, his jaw clenched. “We need to figure out how to get Freddy back safely. And we need to do it fast.”
“How do we do that?” Sabrina asked.
“We can’t pay the ransom,” Holly said.
Sabrina looked between the two of them and wondered why the money was such a big concern. Wasn’t TI making tons of money, and even if not, the Taylors had gotten rich, right? Was this another sign that Holly was involved? Sabrina had set her laptop down while listening to Nathan explain the ransom call. Should she still tell them about TruthYeller?
Patrick must have seen the question in her eyes. “We don’t have that kind of cash on hand. The business simply doesn’t have the liquidity they’re demanding.”
