Chapter 390: The Rescue Mission Begins

Rex's POV

I had never driven this fast in my life. My knuckles were white on the steering wheel as I repeatedly tried Adam's phone for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Come on, man. Pick up," I muttered as it went straight to voicemail again.

This wasn't like Adam.

"Rex, are we gonna find Mommy and Daddy soon?"

I glanced in the rearview mirror at Alayna, strapped securely in her car seat. I still couldn't believe I'd brought her along.

"Yeah, sweetheart. We're going to find them very soon," I assured her, trying to keep my voice light. Adam was going to kill me for bringing his daughter into what could be a dangerous situation, but I'd deal with that later. Finding them alive was the priority.

My phone rang, and I snatched it up immediately.

"Luke? Any news?"

"Nothing good," Luke's voice was tight with tension. "Adam's room is empty. Bed not slept in."

"Shit," I muttered, then quickly glanced back at Alayna. "I mean, shoot. Have you tried Sophie?"

"Just did. Her phone's going straight to voicemail too."

The bad feeling in my gut intensified. "I think they're both in trouble. Something about this whole setup has felt wrong from the beginning."

"What do you want me to do?" Luke asked, his voice deadly serious.

"Don't alert Jasper or any of those reality show people yet. That Jasper guy can't keep his mouth shut to save his life. I've brought enough men with me—we should be there in about twenty minutes."

"You brought your security team?" Luke sounded relieved.

"The whole unit. Former Special Forces, fully armed. If someone's taken Adam and Sophie, they picked the wrong couple to mess with."

After hanging up, I pressed harder on the accelerator.

By the time we reached the outskirts of Birchfield, the sun was just beginning to rise. I'd instructed my team to approach with caution—no sirens, no lights, nothing that would alert the villagers to our presence.

Luke was waiting for us at the production crew's base camp, his face haggard from a sleepless night. His eyes widened when he saw Alayna in my arms.

"You brought the kid?" he hissed.

"I didn't have a choice," I whispered back, shifting Alayna to my other arm. She was still half-asleep, her head resting on my shoulder.

A nervous-looking man approached us, clipboard in hand. This had to be Jovan, the show's director.

"Uh, excuse me, but who are all these—" His words died in his throat as he took in the sight of nearly a hundred armed men in tactical gear emerging silently from our vehicles.

"Mr. Ash," Luke stepped forward smoothly. "We have a situation. I need you to stay calm and help us."

Jovan's face had gone pale. "What's happening? Who are these people?"

I shifted Alayna more comfortably in my arms and fixed Jovan with a hard stare. "These people are going to save lives today. We have reason to believe Sophie White and Adam Foster are in danger."

"Danger?" Jovan's voice cracked. "What kind of danger?"

"This village," I said bluntly, "is suspected of human trafficking. We're here to extract our people and gather evidence. But first, we need to get my men out of sight. Can you help with that?"

Jovan looked like he might faint. "Human trafficking? But... we've been filming here for days!"

Luke said grimly. "Now, can you help us hide these men until we're ready to move?"

Jovan nodded frantically.

Within twenty minutes, my entire team was hidden throughout the production area. Only myself and two of my most trusted lieutenants remained visible, along with Alayna, who was now fully awake and looking around curiously.

"So what's the plan?" Jovan asked, his voice steadier now that he'd had time to process.

Luke leaned in. "We go to the village leader and demand Sophie back. We say the show needs her for filming. We don't mention Adam—if they don't know he's missing, we keep it that way."

Suddenly, the door to one of the cabins burst open, and a tall, handsome man strode out, followed by several others.

"Rex? What are you doing here?" Jasper exclaimed, looking around.

Then his gaze shifted to Alayna in my arms, and his jaw dropped.

"Jasper!" Alayna called out, reaching toward him with a smile.

Jasper's expression softened immediately as he stepped forward to ruffle her hair. "Hey, munchkin." Then he looked back at me, his eyes sharp with concern. "What's going on, Rex?"

Before I could answer, another man pushed forward—Jason.

"Sophie's missing, isn't she?" Jason said quietly. "And Adam went after her."

Luke nodded grimly. "We think they're both in trouble."

"WHAT?" Jasper's voice rose to a shout. "And you didn't tell me? What the hell, Luke! I've been here the whole time!"

"Keep your voice down!" I hissed. "We don't want to alert the entire village."

A beautiful woman with perfectly styled hair stepped forward, her expression curious. "More handsome men and a cute little girl? What's happening now?"

Another woman, tall and elegant, raised an eyebrow. "Is this some kind of surprise for the show?"

Jovan cleared his throat. "Everyone, please. There's been a... situation. Sophie is being kept somewhere in the village, and we need to go get her."

"Kept?" A muscular man who I assumed was another contestant frowned. "What do you mean 'kept'? By who?"

"The mayor, apparently," Luke supplied. "We're going to go ask for her back."

"What? They paid them off, didn't they?" The muscular man—Cassian, I heard someone call him—looked annoyed. "Sophie is my partner for the show. I'm coming with you."

"Me too!" chirped the first woman who'd spoken. "It's so boring without Sophie. She's the only one I actually like here."

Two other women exchanged glances, and one of them—a statuesque blonde—rolled her eyes. "It's probably just a misunderstanding. Sophie probably just decided she didn't want to film anymore. No need for this... circus."

Her companion nodded. "Exactly. Why bother the village leader? Just get another online teammate. It's not that hard."

Jasper's head whipped around, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "If you don't have anything helpful to say, keep your mouths shut. Nobody asked for your opinion."

The blonde woman's face flushed with anger. "How dare you speak to me like that! I was just saying—"

The woman burst into tears, creating a scene that quickly devolved into chaos. Contestants were arguing, Jovan was trying to restore order, and Alayna was starting to look distressed by all the shouting.

I caught Luke's eye. He looked like he was at the end of his patience, his jaw clenched tight. I gave him a slight nod, making a split-second decision. Having all these reality TV personalities come along might actually be perfect cover. A large group of the show's cast and crew demanding their online correspondent back would seem natural, not suspicious.

Jovan seemed to understand my thinking. He raised his voice. "Enough! I'm going to speak to Orson about Sophie. Anyone who wants to come, follow me. The rest of you, stay here and be ready to film when we get back."