Chapter 32 Finding Cassandra

My princess is missing. She is fucking missing. I do not know where the fuck she is. Why the fuck did I walk out the door and leave her alone like I did? My goddamn ego got the better of me, and I left her here. I hope she is not shit scared and alone in some godforsaken place.
There is a suffocating grip on my heart as a hundred possibilities race through my mind. Each possibility is even more terrifying than the other. I shall break down into pieces if anything terrible has to happen to her, but let's not jump to any conclusions yet. There could be a very good reason why I cannot find her. My biggest concern is that we have pissed a couple of people off the past few days; anyone that wanted to could have taken her.
And this has made me a nervous wreck; I am pacing the kitchen floor as I am trying to think where my princess can be. With every step that I take, it feels as if I am slowly sinking into the floor. I feel so helpless but even more frustrated that I do not know her well enough to even know where else she could be. With every ticking second, I feel the agonizing pain grow inside of me.
Seated at the counter is a very frantic Joseph, punching every number he can think of finding her at. But none of them bring us even closer to where we would like her to be, and that is right here in my arms. So I am patiently waiting for some of my guys to come on over and to put some feet out there to trace every step that she took.
And just as it seems like it is taking forever, I hear Mason at the door as Giselle shows him to the kitchen.
"Hey, boss."
"Mason, I need your guys to get out there now. We have already lost too must time."
"Where do you need us at?"
"You and Jax take the apartment, then Damian and Leo can take the club."
I am trying to keep my voice composed and urgent, but nothing but trembling words flow from my lips. I am not known to be a weak person, but the fear of losing my princess is somehow bringing me to my knees. Mason sees this, but he carries on to keep me focussed.
"Logan is out doing something for your dad, but Micah is also on his way."
"Then rather let Micah go with Jax. I need you here with me."
"Sure, boss, let me go sort the boys out."
"And tell Damian and Leo no fucking around at the club!"
I watch as Joseph is watching me; I know what he is thinking. My guys know their place; this is not our territory; that is why they are all waiting outside near the driveway just down the road. The last thing I need is a turf war while I am trying to find my princess. I could care less that Joseph Cummings is her father right now.
Within five minutes, Mason comes back to join us in the kitchen again. Mason is my go-to guy for anything, but what he is the best at is the stuff that nobody wants to get their hands dirty with. So much to my annoyance, we are waiting for an hour to see if any of the boys come up with something. If this fails, then we shall do things my way.
And lucky her father is just as bad as me, maybe even a bit worse, for he has agreed we can go ahead and trace her.
"Please tell me her car has a tracking device in?"
"No, not the car that she is driving; it is fairly old."
"Goddammit!"
If these fucking people did not make her believe that she can be nothing more than an erotic dancer, then she would not be driving that piece of shit. But let me reserve my comments for later, for I am telling them where to get off.
I reach and take my phone and try for what can easily be the hundredth time to phone her.
"And her phone is still off!"
I smash my phone down on the marble counter so fierce that the screen shatters into pieces. I knew it was coming sooner or later. Mason takes the messed-up phone from me and hands me his own.
"Thanks, Mason; please check in with the guys while I go to the bathroom."
I see as Joseph only but shakes his head; I wish I can slam that disapproving look back into his face. My princess has been through a hard life, and it is her parents that put her there. They decided her future for her, she had no say, and they sat comfortably back and saw it. She is the purest and good-hearted person I have ever known, and she deserves better.
As I slam the door of the bathroom closed behind me, the sound echoes through the hallway, and even the windows vibrate. Not even a second later, these damn things that I discovered I have started to roll down my face again. They are streaming ever so freely, but they do nothing to cool the rage I am feeling. Not only for what they did to her but for me leaving her behind here. She is looking for something that she will never find here. She belongs with me, now more than ever.
After pulling myself together, I make my way back to the kitchen where Mason is standing, waiting to give me an update on how the search is going.
"Boss, I had a call from Jax; they just found her car."
"God, let's go!"
"Boss, it is standing in the parking area at the apartment."
"But I did not see it?"
"It was parked around the corner; you would not have seen it."
My aching heart drops even further into the floor where I am standing. Why did I not think of looking for her car there? But what makes it even more heartbreaking is the fact that we are still firmly standing here, which means that she is not at the apartment either. This only means one thing...
"Someone has taken her."
"Boss, we don't know that yet; Micah and Jax are asking people if they have seen her."
"Tell them to ask faster; I am fucking tired of waiting."
"I think we should start looking at tracking her."
"Finally, the most sensible thing anybody has said for the past two hours."
Joseph goes to stand up to go make a phone call, but I ever so rudely stop him. If he thinks he can start showing that he cares now, well, Joseph fucking Cummings has another thing coming.
"Joseph, you can sit down; my guys will be doing it."
"Christian I..."
"You will do nothing, just like you have for the past couple of years. Now I do not wish to have this conversation now, but believe me, when I find my princess, then we are."
He seems to be willing to listen, not quite sure how I should take that frown on his face. But every bit of my aching heart does not care very much what he is feeling. Only, of course, the pain that his daughter is missing.
Then Mason comes with even more news, but I am afraid to say it is not good either.
"Boss Damian and Leo have come up empty-handed. Nobody, nothing saw her going to the club at all."
"Fuck! I thought so!"
"What do you want them to do?"
"Find that asshole; what was his name? The ex-boyfriend?"
"I think it was Damon?"
"Tell them to speak to Jessie or Mike to find out where he is."
Then I turn to Joseph, who is still frantically trying to phone her. His hands are kind of tied with all his men still being underground. I doubt this man ever thought that he would have to listen to a Caine.
"Joseph, does she have any other messed up ex-boyfriends that you know of?"
"I am afraid I never really saw whom she spent her time with."
Of course, he did not; he was too busy grinding my father's ass. Then all of a sudden, it strikes me.
"Where is Giselle?"
"She had an appointment."
"I hope it is with the fucking president. How can you just go while your daughter is missing?"
"I told her we would sort it out."
"Sort it out? Cassandra is not something you sort out! You sort your fucking shoes out! Not your daughter!"
And if I did not piss him off earlier, then now I have done it. He rises from his chair, trying to act intimidating; please, I have news for you, Joseph Cummings, I am much taller than you, and I still have my gun on me. If you so much as want to start a fight now while I am looking for your daughter, then you are sadly mistaken. I only but look at him as I step forward towards him. He quickly assesses the situation and steps two steps back.
"Just as I thought. Mason, let's go. We can do this from the club."
With that, we both turn and leave the kitchen. Now, if I said that I was scared of him, that would be a lie. I have been wanting to do that ever since I heard what they did. Only when we are in my car, Mason speaks to me.
"Damn, I would have loved to see you fuck him up. The man is a piece of work."
"A piece of work still has a purpose; I don't know what Joseph Cummings' is."
"The guy did a number on his daughter."
"I just wish she can see that and stay with me."
"Hey, we will find her. I will start the trace as soon as we get to the club."
Even though every second of that felt good, Cassandra is going to be disappointed with the way I have treated her father. Even though my father can be the world's biggest asshole, he was always there for me as a kid. He knew whom I spent my time with, and he made it a point to be present. My heart bleeds for my princess; I just want to make everything better; I want to take her away from all of this and give her everything she deserves. I just need to find her!
It is not long, and we find ourselves walking downstairs and into the club. The first person I look for is the first one that walks up to greet me.
"Hey, Mike."
"Hello, Mr. Caine."
"Did Jax ask you about Damon?"
"Yes, I am afraid it can't be him. He is in jail, some assault charge."
"Who would have guessed? Thanks, Mike. If you can think of anything, please let me know. We are going to be in the office."
"But Sabrina..."
"It is my club now. Cassandra wants it; it is now hers."
We make our way up to the office that has a full view of the floor below us. I can see poor Jessie and Tammy sit at a table as worried as hell. I send Jax to go down and send them home while Mason and I carry on.
"I am relieved it is not that ex, but now I am shit worried who else it can be."
"Who would want to avenge Antoni's death?"
"I don't know of anyone stupid enough."
"There is always..."
But he stops mid-sentence as he is staring at his laptop. His brown eyes grow wide, and it lights up even brighter than the screen. He first mumbles as if to make sure, but then his voice becomes loud and clear.
"Her cell phone is on! I have a location!"
"Where is your phone? I don't know her damn number!"
"In the car, I left it in the damn car. I will go ask for it."
"Fuck! No! Let's go! We need to get to my princess!"