CARSON'S POV

I paced back and forth, rubbing my cheeks, frustrated beyond belief. As soon as the officers found out Tarryn had been taken, we were moved to a different location - a house owned by the FBI. It had taken an hour to reach, and even my grandfather was forced to come with us.

It's been three hours since Wayne snatched my little sister and Rose, killing the two agents with them. Trey and Matthew were giving me noticeable glares like this was my fault. I mean, it was my fault -

"How could you let her go with them?" Matthew stands, his dark grey eyes flashing with a storm within. "You knew how dangerous it was, and still let her go!"

I understood the weight of Matthew's words, and guilt gnawed at my insides like a relentless predator. Each step Tarryn had taken towards that car now seemed like an unerasable mistake. My gaze dropped to the floor, unable to meet his accusatory stare. It wasn't that I hadn't been aware of the risks; I had, but I couldn't let my sister face this ordeal alone.

Trey stepped in, his expression a mix of concern and frustration. "Look, we're all stressed right now. Blaming each other won't help. We need to focus on finding them."

Ivan, who had been sitting quietly in the corner, his face etched with worry, finally spoke up. His voice carried the weight of wisdom earned through years of experience. "Matthew, it is no one's fault but Wayne's. He's a psychopath. Blaming anyone now will only take up energy and we need to focus on bringing Tarryn and Rose home."

Trey leaned forward, exhaustion in his eyes. "And how are we supposed to do that? We're stuck in this fucking house with guards."

Matthew's shoulders sagged, and he sank back into the chair. His face expressed what we were all likely feeling, helpless. I could tell he was struggling to balance his emotions, torn between the need to express his anger and the understanding that it wasn't productive.

I took a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart. "You're right, Matthew. I should've been more cautious. But we can't change the past. What we can do is come up with a plan to track them down and rescue Tarryn and Rose."

Trey nodded in agreement. "We know Wayne's methods from his previous crimes. He leaves subtle clues, breadcrumbs that only someone who knows him well can decipher. If we can think like him, we might be able to anticipate his next move."

Ivan's eyes crinkled at the corners as he offered a faint smile. "I've known Wayne longer than any of you. I might have insights into his patterns."

The hours stretched on as we pooled our knowledge and resources, piecing together Wayne's history and behaviour. The house owned by the FBI became a makeshift war room strewn with maps, documents, and hastily written notes. With each passing moment, the urgency grew, but so did our determination to outwit the cunning criminal who had taken our family members.

As the night deepened and the first rays of dawn painted the sky, we knew that the journey ahead wouldn't be easy. But we were prepared to face whatever challenges lay in store, fueled by the hope of reuniting with Tarryn and Rose and the unbreakable bond that held us together.

Skyler and Sam jogged into the room, their expressions sombre.

I straightened, glancing between the two. "What is it?"

Sam swallowed. "I know how they found out where we were. Haisley called his father-"

"I knew that little shit was up to no good. We should never have fucking brought him here," Matthew snapped, standing and began pacing the room.

"That's not the worst of it ..." Sam murmured, guilt filling his eyes. '

"What is it?" I asked, calm and collected - well, trying to be.

"Rose ... on the surveillance cameras behind the building they took Tarryn from, it showed her holding a gun to her."

There was a collective silence.

"What the fuck?!" Matthew yelled, throwing his hands in the air. "What - what does that even mean? You're her brother -"

"Matty - let him explain."

"Rose is my half sister. We have the same mother, different fathers."

"That still doesn't explain why she held a gun to my sister's head!"

"Wayne is Rose's father," Sam said, rubbing the back of his neck.

My brain hurt.

Rose betrayed us.

Tarryn's own sister betrayed her.

Her own brother, her twin, betrayed her.

"Fuck, I need to get some air," I mumbled, standing and making my way out of the house and onto the porch. I absolutely hated myself for letting Tarryn get into the vehicle with her. I braced myself on the railing, folding my hands and resting my chin on them. I closed my eyes.

I was scared, this feeling of dread rotting away at my insides, rotting away any hope that everything would be okay.

I needed my sister to be okay.

+++

I couldn't sleep that night.

No matter how much I tried, visions of my baby sister with that man taunted my mind.

"Hey," a voice whispered. I glanced over and noticed my twin leaning on the doorframe. "Can I come in?"

I nodded, "of course, you don't need to ask," I said, scooting over in the bed and making room for her. June settled in beside me, allowing me to wrap my arms around her. She nuzzled into my shoulder, our fingers intertwining. "Are you okay?"

"Definitely not okay, Carson."

"I mean -"

"I'm not craving, if that's what you mean. I ... fuck, our sister was kidnapped by her psychopath sperm donor," she whispered, "and we can't do anything. I don't know what to do and sitting here and doing nothing feels wrong, like we're letting her down."

"I know the exact feeling, Junebug."

We fell into silence for a moment. "How are you so calm?" She asked, glancing upwards, her hair tickling my face.

"I don't know, if I am calm, I mean. I am a mess on the inside."

"Aren't we all?" She mumbled and I squeezed her tight. "At least she has her medication, right? She took it with her?"

My heart stopped.

I shot up out of bed, muttering a sorry to my sister, before running down the hallway. June followed me into Tarryn's room. I went straight to her nightstand, heart throbbing, as I searched for her medication.

I opened the drawer, and there it was, exactly where she had left it.

I picked it up, running a hand through my hair. "Fuck."

"What's wrong?" June asked behind me.

I showed her the bottle. "Tarryn doesn't have her medication."

June's face dropped because even she knew the consequences of Tarryn not taking her medication. "Come on, we've got to go tell Sam. They need to find her, now."

It took only minutes to find Sam. I tossed him the bottle of pills. "Tarryn could go into cardiac arrest if she's gone too long without them," I said, taking a deep breath. "She also doesn't have her anxiety meds either, which is likely causing problems for her right now."

Sam nodded, grabbing a piece of paper and the bottles. "I'll write them down. I will have officers call all the pharmacies within a two-hour radius. Maybe Wayne will send someone to pick up these drugs for her. It's worth a shot and we're going at it from every angle at the moment."

We spent the next day waiting to hear good news.

The only news we got is that Haisley left on foot to a gas station two miles from my grandfather's place, the cameras there picking up a licence plate that belonged to Lloyd Jefferson. Sam and the other agents assumed Lloyd was working with Wayne.

I didn't understand why Haisley chose his evil father over his own twin.

Maybe I never would.

I stayed outside on the porch for most of the day, lost in my thoughts. It wasn't until dusk that Skyler came out and urged me inside. "Hey man, I know you're beating yourself up, but you need to eat."

I waved him away. "I'm not hungry, Sky."

He sighed. "Don't do this, you need to eat and you need to stay strong for when we do find Tarryn and mom."

"You think wherever Wayne took Tarryn, mom is there too?"

Skyler nodded. "Yeah. I think ... I think he wants to get his family back together, whether they want it or not. So you need to eat, because when we do find them, they'll need us."

Sam appeared behind Skyler.

"Did you find something?" I asked, standing and pushing past my little brother.

"Yeah, we found and arrested Lloyd Jefferson."

+++

Short chapter, sorry guys.

I hope you liked it, though.

Next will be Tarryn and her mothers POV

Stay strong, stay kind - Charlie 🧡