Chapter 75
Chapter 75
Matthew’s POV
I stood there, paralyzed, my eyes glued to the screen as the horrific scene unfolded. My stomach twisted violently, and I felt a cold sweat break out across my skin. Heizel’s scream echoed in my head, a haunting cry that drowned out everything else. Each flinch of her body with every strike, each attempt to remain strong against the onslaught—it shattered something deep inside me.
I’d seen violence before. Hell, I’d been in the thick of it more times than I could count, but this? Watching her like that—helpless, broken, and bleeding? It was a new kind of hell, one I had never prepared for.
I couldn’t stop it. I couldn’t protect her.
The screen flickered to black as Darius ended his sick broadcast, leaving me standing there feeling like a failure. My fists clenched, nails digging painfully into my palms as I struggled to regain control, but it was useless. The rage within me surged, a living thing clawing its way out, demanding action, demanding blood.
I slammed my fist against the table, sending papers flying into the air like confetti in a twisted celebration of chaos. It didn’t relieve the pressure building inside me; instead, it only fueled the fire. I could feel the others in the room watching, waiting for a command, but I was lost in a maelstrom of anger and despair. All I could see was Heizel’s blood, her face twisted in agony.
“Matthew, we’ll get her,” Taylor’s voice broke through the haze, trying to pull me back from the edge of my fury. But his words felt hollow, meaningless against the image of her suffering.
“I need to find her now!” I spat, my voice raw with emotion. “We’re wasting time. That bastard has her, and he’s torturing her for fun!”
“Look, we’re doing everything we can,” Taylor said, stepping closer, his expression serious. “We’ve got every resource on this. You can’t lose your head right now. We need you clear, focused.”
“I should’ve been there,” I muttered, ignoring him. “I should’ve protected her.”
“You can’t save her if you break down now,” he shot back, his tone sharp but not unkind. “Focus, man. We’ll find her.”
I sank into a chair, my hands raking through my hair as I fought to breathe through the rage that threatened to consume me. The image of Heizel hanging there, beaten and bleeding, replayed in my mind like a relentless nightmare. I felt the walls closing in around me, suffocating, and every second she spent in that monster’s hands was another second closer to her demise.
Two hours left.
I stared at the whiskey bottle on the table, the amber liquid taunting me like a siren’s call. It would be so easy to drown my pain in it, to numb the overwhelming grief and fury clawing at my insides. But I couldn’t. I had to stay clear-headed. I needed to save her. Whiskey wouldn’t do that.
I pushed the bottle away, frustration boiling within me.
“This isn’t just some job, Taylor,” I finally said, my voice quieter now but still intense. “This is Heizel. She’s everything.”
“I know,” Taylor nodded, his expression softening. “We’ll get her, man. You’ve got the best team on it. But you need to stay strong.”
I took a deep breath, forcing my racing thoughts to settle. “What do we have? Anything?”
Taylor gestured toward the screens, where footage from security cameras played on a loop. “We’ve identified two cars used during the abduction. Beta team is tracking them now. We’ve also got satellite imagery pulling in from the last few hours. We’ll find them, Matthew.”
“It’s not fast enough,” I growled, anger spiking again. “We’re running out of time.”
“We’ve got men tracing his contacts,” Taylor continued, unwavering. “Darius is a ghost, but he’s not invincible. We’ll pin him down.”
I slammed my fist on the table again, frustration boiling over. “I can’t lose her, Taylor. I can’t.”
“You won’t,” he said firmly, gripping my shoulder. “We’re going to bring her home.”
I nodded, but inside, I was still unraveling. I wasn’t sure I could hold it together long enough to find her. The clock was ticking, and Heizel was out there, suffering.
As I paced the room, I felt the weight of time pressing down on me, each second stretching into an eternity. Every tick of the clock was a reminder of how close I was to losing her forever.
I stood up abruptly, my body itching to move. “I’m going to the command center. I need to see everything, hear everything. We need to move faster.”
Taylor nodded. “Whatever you need. We’ll find her, Matthew. We will.”
But even as I walked away, every second felt like it was slipping through my fingers. Each tick of the clock drew me closer to a reality I couldn’t face.
I wouldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—let Heizel suffer because of my failures.