Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 39473 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 197(@200wpm)___ 158(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 39473 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 197(@200wpm)___ 158(@250wpm)___ 132(@300wpm)
“Fine,” I growled, stepping back reluctantly. “You stay on my fucking heels, and you do exactly what I say.”
Tripp nodded, the relief and determination clear in his eyes. We might not fully trust each other, but right now our goal is the same. Bring Aubrey home safe and make Ronnie Hanks wish he’d never breathed free air again.
The armory emptied back into Kane’s office, and the waiting started. Which I fucking hated.
It shredded my nerves down to the fucking bone. Give me a target, a weapon, and a direction to move, and I could function. But standing around while Aubrey was out there somewhere, trapped with a violent psychopath who had every intention of hurting her, felt like being skinned alive one layer at a time.
I braced my shoulder against the bookshelf lining Kane’s office wall, trying to anchor myself with the solid weight of something familiar. I didn’t trust myself to speak, afraid that if I opened my mouth, the edges of my fear and fury would bleed out uncontrollably.
I scanned the faces around the room, each brother locked into their own tense silence. Kane sat calmly behind his massive desk, a stark contrast to the tension radiating off every man around him. Edge lounged deceptively loose-limbed beside Jax, but the calculated stillness of his gaze told a different story. Tripp hunched forward in one of Kane’s leather captain’s chairs, his elbows braced on his knees, hands clasped tight enough to crush bones.
I could feel the waves of guilt and worry rolling off him, mingling with the distrust and anger that simmered in my gut. However, for the first time since I’d met him, I understood him a little better. Because I knew exactly what it felt like to have somebody you loved out there in the dark while you couldn’t do a damn thing except wait.
When Jax suddenly stopped typing and lifted his head, every eye in the room zeroed in on him. “I have something.”
I was moving before he finished speaking, crossing the room as he turned the laptop, allowing us all a view of the map glowing on the screen. Red markers dotted across the digital landscape, but Jax zoomed in quickly, narrowing it down with precise motions.
“Walk me through it,” Kane ordered.
Jax nodded. “Started with everything Tripp gave us on Ronnie. A lot of it was dead ends—people locked up, moved on, places burned out, sold off—but patterns don’t vanish completely. Bastards like him always revert to habit.”
My jaw tightened at the mention of Ronnie’s name, teeth grinding until pain shot through my temples. Jax clicked something on the laptop, and an image appeared. Grainy security footage from the convenience store parking lot, Aubrey’s car clearly visible under the washed-out glare of lights. My hands fisted helplessly at my sides.
“Sent a couple of prospects out to canvass, and a couple of people in that area reported seeing a white van near the convenience store.” Jax clicked again to show another shot—shadowy, with no plates visible. “Cameras caught it leaving the parking lot about twenty minutes after she parked. Followed its route using traffic and business cameras, picking it back up every few miles. It headed out toward the outskirts of Parkland.”
That was two towns over from Crossbend, and it was rural and sparsely populated.
“No traffic, very few businesses, no real reason to go there unless you’re trying to disappear.” Jax tapped a spot on the map, an isolated property surrounded by miles of nothingness.” I’m pretty damn sure this is where he took her.”
It was perfect for a man like Ronnie Hanks. A secluded hole to crawl into, far from prying eyes or potential interference.
Kane rose from behind his desk. “Let’s ride.”
The brothers immediately shifted into motion, purpose driving each step. Weapons and gear were checked swiftly and methodically, a sense of grim resolve settling like armor around each man’s shoulders. I reached for my gun, feeling the cool metal beneath my fingertips like a lifeline. Every muscle tightened with anticipation, adrenaline mixing dangerously with the dark, brutal thoughts already spinning inside my head.
As we moved toward the door, Tripp fell into step beside me, a silent presence charged with unresolved tension. I kept my gaze forward, not wanting to acknowledge the unspoken bond forming out of shared desperation. For the moment, we were allies again. It was time to bring Aubrey home.
The property sat at the end of a narrow dirt road surrounded by scrub brush and overgrown trees. It was a shadowy maze of rusting buildings, reeking of decay. As soon as we got eyes on it, every ugly piece of the puzzle slid into place. Men patrolled the perimeter with rifles, vehicles were scattered around the buildings, and lookouts occupied elevated positions. Ronnie Hanks hadn’t been hiding. He’d been fucking waiting.
My grip tightened around my weapon as we watched from cover. Aubrey was in there. I could feel it.