Chapter Twenty-Four JC's eyes were burning as he squinted to keep reading article after article about cabins located in the Florida area. He knew that he should give up on his search and get some sleep, but his determination was too strong for him to quit. He kept telling himself that in another five minutes he might find what he was looking for, but his hope could only do so much for him. There was a weak pulse radiating within him telling him to keep clicking on the links, but it was slowly starting to die as he skimmed another article that was advertising a small rustic cabin located in the middle of Florida.

He hit the back button on his browser but stopped from clicking on the next search result when the door to Justin's guest bedroom slowly opened. He turned in his chair and smiled slightly when he saw Whitney leaning up against the door frame, a frown plastered on her face. "What are you still doing up?"

She looked at him, not acknowledging that he had spoken, before walking over to him. "The question is, what are you still doing up? JC..you're going to wear yourself out if you don't get some sleep...you have a promotional tour coming up in three days and you need to be well rested. I'm sure where Riley has Emily there is a TV and you're bound to be on there at one point. Don't allow him to have the advantage of seeing you distressed looking..he's a sick man and I know he'll feed off of your troubles."

He sighed before moving the mouse around on the computer screen and selecting shut down from the menu. "I just can't sleep...I'm just hoping that there is some type of lead that I'm overlooking..I want her back among people that don't want to harm her. No one should be put through this, Whitney...especially not her."

She placed her hand on his shoulder before squatting down to look in his eyes. "Listen to me, JC...you have to realize that saying what should and should not happen doesn't help anything. The police are looking for her..."

"That doesn't reassure me very much," he said in a sour tone before getting out of the chair and stretching his arms above his head. "Whitney..you can't tell me that you're calm with just the police looking for her. I can see it in your eyes that you're worried as hell at this point. Its been three days and we haven't even gotten a phone call from them...they should know SOMETHING by now..even if it is a small and unimportant detail."

She sighed and walked towards the door. "I'm not going to sit here and have this discussion with you, JC. We're both stubborn and neither one of us is ever going to see eye to eye. But please get some sleep...the last thing that we need is for you to get sick from lack of taking care of yourself."

JC watched as she walked out the door, shutting it softly behind her. He knew that she was right but even with knowing that, he couldn't bring himself to commence to the sensible side within him. He groaned before laying down on the bed, feeling a small wave of comfort course through his body as his tired eyes began to close.

Whitney headed towards the other guest room that was located farther down the hall, but stopped short when she came to Justin's room. She slowly peeked her head into the room and smiled when she saw him sprawled out across the bed. She walked slowly across the carpeted room and reached down to gently run her finger across his lip, smiling to herself when he stirred slightly from her touch. She bent down and kissed his forehead lightly before turning to leave, but stopping when his voice floated through her ears.

"Don't go."

She turned around and smiled as she watched him rub his eyes to look at her. "You need to get some sleep..I'm sorry for waking you up, sweetie."

He moved over in the bed and patted the empty space beside him before placing an irresistible pout on his lips. "I'm lonely."

She knew there was no reason trying to fight with him because that pout could control anyone. She walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at him over her shoulder. "Do I have to lay down too?"

He rolled his eyes and put his arm around her waist, slightly tickling her stomach. "Of course you do."

She smiled as she stretched out beside him and rested her tired head against the feather pillow. "I found JC in his room looking on the Internet at cabins. He's stressing himself out over this whole thing and I'm worrying about him. I don't want him to get sick, Justin..he needs..." She stopped talking when Justin propped up on his elbow and looked down at her. "Don't worry about JC..he knows how far to push himself and when to take a break. He's a grown man and there is no reason to tell him how to act in this situation."

"I know, Justin..I just don't want him to push himself to the limit."

"I understand what you're saying," he said softly as he brushed a piece of loose hair off of her face. "He's just really attached to Emily and he worries...he'd react the same way if something happened to you or Stephanie. You guys are like family to us now and we watch out for our family."

She yawned before nodding her head against the pillow and let her eyes slowly close. "I see what you're saying..."

"Goodnight, Whitney," he said softly as he laid down beside her and slipped a protective arm around her waist, bringing her tight against him. "Sweet dreams."

Stephanie groaned as she opened her eyes and looked at the clock. She had been laying in bed for two hours and she still could not get to sleep. She was growing frustrated with herself and the situation that she was surrounded with. Afterall, she was human and humans could only take so much. She reached over and turned the small lamp on that was beside the bed and looked around the room. Just like everyone else, she felt guilty for having the opportunity to stay in such a nice place while one of her best friends was living in conditions that only God knew were like. She could feel her anger starting to rise as she mentally pictured Riley yelling at Emily.

"That bastard," she whispered out into the empty room before letting her fist hit the pillow in frustration. She felt like she was letting Emily down because she couldn't help find her, but after hours of racking her brain, she had no clue of where she could be.

Her eyes settled on a picture of Lance and his mother that was placed on the small table that was beside the bed. She reached over and gently handled the photo as if it might break, taking in every detail about the picture. Lance had a beautiful smile, along with the most gorgeous green eyes that she believed that she had ever seen. They seemed to sparkle in a way that made them stand out more than anything. She smiled before placing the picture back down on the table and glancing up when the door to her room slowly opened to reveal Lance standing there in a pair of hunter green boxers and a wife beater.

"Couldn't sleep?" he asked her as he walked into the room and sat down on the bed beside her.

She shook her head and rested it against the wooden headboard. "I feel guilty..I know I shouldn't because none of this is my fault, but I can't help it. My brain keeps telling me to stay awake..I think I'm seriously starting to lose it."

He chuckled softly leaned over placing a soft kiss against her forehead. "You really need to pull yourself together..infact, we all do. You have to realize that you're not made of iron..."

Stephanie starred blankly at Lance before allowing her eyes to grow larger. "Lance..."

"What did I say?" he asked as he displayed a look of confusion on his face. "All I said was you aren't made of iron...I thought you understood that you're made of flesh..."

"No...Lance, I know where he has her," she said as she jumped off the bed and walked around the room. "He told me a couple of years back about this cabin called Ironsides...his family bought it when he was younger and when his dad split, his Mom gave it to him, saying she wouldn't be back to that place..."

Lance looked at her as a small smile played on his lips. "Are you sure about this, Steph?"

"I'm positive...she's gotta be there," she said as she reached for the phone and dialed the number to the local police station. She tapped her foot impatiently on the ground as she waited for her call to be answered, feeling an anxiousness about her to tell everyone what she knew. "Yes...tell the main detective on the Emily Robinson case that I have some news that he needs to hear...."

Chapter Twenty-Five