Only Her (A K2 Team Novel)(88)

Brooke’s eyes widened. “Oh my God, that’s Dr. Austin’s missing cat.”

“Yes. Where are my dogs and her other cats?”

“In the kennel. They’re together.”

He peeled the kitten’s claws out of his shirt and handed him to Brooke. “Get him cleaned up, and then put him with the others. They know him.” The poor thing was a mess and stunk to high heaven. “See if he’s hungry.” Who knew the last time he’d eaten. To Cody’s eye, Pelli was thinner than when he’d last seen the cat.

“Let’s go see what we can learn,” he said to Mike.

Mike eyed him. “You’re being damn calm about this. If Riley were my girl, I’d be freaking out.” He swiped a hand through his hair. “Hell, I’m freaking out, anyway. I’ve never had a friend kidnapped before.”

“You think I’m fucking calm?” Cody stilled, holding out his arm. “Cut open a vein and you’ll see how furiously my blood is boiling. But rage won’t find Riley. Intel is what we need, and I’m counting on the cameras providing that.” Before he did lose it he entered Riley’s office.

“Start the feed.” At his abrupt command, Baker opened his mouth, then apparently thought better of whatever he was going to say, which was wise of him, since the man currently headed Cody’s shit list.

Baker pushed Play, and a woman carrying a cat carrier entered. She paused and looked around before going to the farthest corner of the waiting room. A dog whined, and Cody shifted his gaze to the opposite side of the screen where it showed Sally straining against his leash, his ears straight up and his tail wagging.

Damn. Sally knew it was Pelli in that carrier. Cody pressed his lips together. If he’d been with Sally right then, he would have understood what his dog was saying.

“Sally was with you? Whose idea was that?”

Baker paused the video. “Dr. Austin’s. She said I’d look like I was waiting for an appointment that way.” He glanced up at Cody. “Look, man. You can’t make me feel any worse than I already do for losing Dr. Austin. It’s not an excuse, but unless I shadowed her every move, which she wasn’t having, there was no way I would have guessed that woman was our target. When she came in, the smell coming from that carrier was god-awful, and I thought that was what your dog was reacting to.”

There was no way Baker could have known that Sally was reacting to Pelli being close. Not only that, but Riley had refused to allow any of her guards into the exam rooms with her. None of them had considered that would be how the woman would get to her. Some of Cody’s anger at the man eased.

“That’s what I would have thought, too,” Mike said. “Your dog knew, though, didn’t he? That the missing kitten was in there?”

“Yeah, he knew.” Cody could beat himself up all day for not being the one sitting in that waiting room when the woman came in, but that wouldn’t help them find Riley. “Where is he now?”

“Brooke put him back with your other dog after we realized Dr. Austin wasn’t anywhere in the clinic,” Baker said.

“Okay, good. Start the video over.” This time, he zeroed in on the woman’s features. She was tall and skinny, with dirty brown and gray hair and a long, thin face. Along with Baker, there were two other women with pets in the waiting room, and both of them wrinkled their noses as they turned their faces away. Did Mrs. Napier—and who the hell was Mrs. Napier?—let the carrier get so disgusting that people would stay away from her?

On the screen, Brooke called Mrs. Napier’s name. “Speed up the video,” he said after Riley entered, closing the exam room door behind her. He watched until the door opened. “Stop it.” According to the timer, Riley was in the room with Mrs. Napier for ten minutes.

A woman stepped out, wearing large glasses and what was obviously a wig. “Stop.” He leaned closer to the screen. “That’s Riley. Start it again.” Right behind her, Mrs. Napier appeared. “Stop it again.”

“She’s got a gun,” Mike said.

Cody took several deep breaths, his hands fisting at seeing Riley with a gun stuck into her back. “Start it.” He had to figure out who Mrs. Napier was and fast. They watched the two women walk down the hall to the back before they disappeared. “Go to the parking lot camera.”

That video showed the women walk toward an older model Chrysler. “Is that a Sebring?”

“Yeah. My dad had one,” Baker said. “Let’s see if we can get a license number.”

Mike huffed out a breath. “Dammit, there’s mud smeared over the tag.”