by Wilder, L.
“You got it, boss.”
The two men grabbed my arms again and dragged me over to the room. The second he opened the door, I was hit with a familiar smell—one that made my stomach turn and my heart race. I was on the verge of having a full-blown panic attack. I figured I was just overwhelmed by everything that was happening until one of the men turned on the lights. The second I saw that the room was filled with many mattresses, I felt like I’d stepped back in time and was imprisoned in that room where those awful men had held me captive when I was twelve years old. I immediately started to twist and turn, pulling and tugging with all my might—trying everything in my power to break free from their hold. “No, Stop! Let me go!”
“What the fuck?”
“Get her under control,” Demarco roared.
“I’m trying.”
When I continued to thrash about, Demarco charged over and grabbed a hold of my hair, twisting it in his hand as he yanked my head back. “I’m done dealing with you, little girl. Now, get in the fucking room!”
“I can’t go in there!”
“You can and you will.” I was so intent on breaking free from their hold that I wasn’t paying attention to Demarco as he reared back his fist and slammed it into the side of my face. I immediately went flailing forward, only stopping when my forehead met the doorframe. My head was spinning as I dropped to the floor. Demarco gave me a hard kick in the side as he snarled, “Stupid girl!”
I was sprawled out on the floor, trying to catch my breath, when one of the men took me by the arm and dragged me further into the room. My eyes were closed, but I could feel the heat of Demarco’s angry glare against my skin as he stood over me and growled, “You foolish girl. You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
“You won’t get away with this. My father will come for you.”
“Your father?” His deep, thunderous laughter echoed through the room. “You mean that idiotic biker and his pathetic little friends? You really think I’m worried about them?”
“You should be.”
“And why is that?” He snickered. “They have no idea where you are.”
I opened my eyes and forced myself up into a seated position. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking they don’t have the means to find me, because they will. Like you, they are very resourceful men.”
“You’re a funny little girl. I like that you have a little spunk in you.” A sinister smile crossed his face. “A girl like you will add even more money to my bank account.”
“Selling women for money?” I could feel my anger rising as I told him, “You’re sick. You deserve everything that’s coming to you.”
“And what’s coming to me?” He chuckled again. “I’d really like to hear.”
“Oh, they will come for you, and when they do, you’re as good as dead.”
“Oh, I hope they do come for me. I really hope they do.” He took a step over to me and placed his hands on his hips. “You see, I’m done dealing with stupid people. I’ve already dealt with Don, and it won’t be long before I’ve dealt with you. If your father and his friends happen to figure out where you are, which they won’t, I’ll deal with them as well.”
With that, he turned and walked out of the room. The bigger guy looked down at me with an odd expression, like he almost felt sorry for me. He followed Demarco, then closed the door and locked it, leaving me alone in that horrible room. I desperately wanted to cry, but I couldn’t let myself break down like that. I had to stay strong and keep it together. It was the only way I’d make it out of this mess alive.
Chapter 15
Flynn
Loving Lauren was as easy as taking in a breath. It always had been. Her smile. Her laughter. Her easygoing, yet determined personality. The way she was so open to giving and receiving love. She was the whole package, and I knew without a doubt I’d never find another woman like her. And I didn’t want to. I wanted her—only her, and it was killing me to know that her life was in danger. I wanted to believe that Cotton and the brothers would be able to get to her and save her, but when we pulled up to the school, I realized it wasn’t going to be as easy as we’d hoped.
By the time we made it to the parking lot, Big and the others were already there checking things out. We got out to give them a hand, and when we saw Two Bit and Diesel walking back to their SUV, Cotton rushed over and asked, “Any sign of her?”
“No, Prez. There’s not a soul around.” Two Bit pointed over to one of the houses next to the school and said, “We even went over to the Michaels’ place and asked if they’d seen anything.”
Cole and Lucas Michaels were brothers who’d lived next to Caldwell for years. It was their parents’ place. I wasn’t surprised that neither of them had ever moved out. They were both socially awkward and struggled to maintain a job, especially Lucas. The poor guy could barely leave the house without his brother close by. Everyone knew they spent most of their days sitting by their living room window watching the world go by, so if anyone was messing around at the school, they would know about it. Curious as to what they’d said, Cotton pushed, “And?”
“Haven’t seen or heard anything.”
“Fuck.”
Cotton looked like he was on the brink of losing it when Big came up and asked, “You said there was a chance Lauren could be at Demarco’s warehouse?”
“Yeah, Phillips seemed to think he’d either bring her here to get the log or take her back to his warehouse.”
“Any idea what’s in the log?”
“Don’t have a clue. Just know it’s gotta be pretty fucking important for him to go through all this to get it back.” Cotton shook his head with disgust. “We’ll figure that all out later. For now, I just want to focus on getting Lauren back.”
“You thinking we should head on over to the warehouse?”
The rest of the brothers started to circle around us as Cotton said, “Yeah, but I don’t want us to go in half-cocked. We need to think things through. Make sure we handle this thing the right way.”
“Phillips mentioned an issue with the power over there.” I doubted any of them wanted my input, but I was giving it anyway. “Do you have the means to do something with that?”
“I’ve got it covered.” Big motioned his head towards the SUV. “Should only take a few minutes to have the entire place in the dark.”
“Before we do that, we’re gonna need to know how many guards he has lurking around.” He thought for a moment, then said, “Phillips said there were security cameras all over the place. You think you can link into them? Maybe give us some eyes on the area before we kill the power?”
“I could definitely try.”
“How long is that gonna take?”
“Won’t know until I get there and see what kind of system Demarco is using.”
“Fine. Let’s head over there and see what you can do.” Cotton’s voice was filled with anguish and worry as he continued, “But let me be clear, I don’t want to take any unnecessary chances. Not with Lauren being in there alone.”
“I know, Prez.” Big tried to reassure him. “Everyone here has Lauren’s best interest at heart. You gotta know we’ll do whatever’s necessary to make sure we get her out of there safe.”
“That’s what I needed to hear. Now, let’s go get my girl.”
With Cotton in the lead, we all filed back in the SUVs and drove towards Port Angeles. As I sat there next to Q and Maverick, I couldn’t get over how unmoved they were. I was practically shaking in my fucking boots and rightly so. Pappy had given me some lessons on shooting, and we’d done some target practice, but damn. I’d never killed anybody. Hell, I’ve never even considered the idea. I hoped it wouldn’t come down to that, but I had no qualms about doing whatever was needed to bring Lauren home safe.
I looked out the window, and my heart started to race when I realized we were getting close. I’d never spent much time down at the harbor. Never had any reason to. It was mainly a place for industrial workers or folks
with fancy yachts or extravagant boats. Since I was neither, I usually just drove by without a second thought. That wasn’t the case tonight. I was taking in every detail—every road, building, and vehicle to make sure I was completely aware of my surroundings.
I could feel the tension in the SUV building as Cotton directed Stitch to turn into an abandoned lot. We all sat silently as we waited for Big and Two Bit to pull up next to us. Once they were parked, Big rolled down his window and said, “Give me a minute.”
He grabbed his laptop out of the back seat and set to work on hacking into Demarco’s security cameras. I’d seen him track Lauren’s phone and how he and Wyatt were able to get her call records; I also remembered Cotton telling him not to bother with hacking into the school’s security system. But I didn’t know if his talents truly reached this far. My curiosity had me turning to Q and asking, “You really think he’ll be able to do it?”
“Do what?”
“The security system. Can he really hack into it and see what’s going on in there?”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Q scoffed. “There’s nothing Big can’t do with that fucking laptop. Hell, he could hack into the Taj Mahal if he wanted to. Just wait and see. He’ll have eyes on that warehouse in a matter of minutes.”
I didn’t have time to respond. Before the words even came to mind, Big announced, “I’m in.”
“Holy shit.”
Q leaned towards me with a smirk. “Told ya.”
“I should’ve never doubted him.”
“Never make the mistake of doubting one of Fury’s brothers. It’ll just end up biting ya in the ass.”
“I certainly hope that’s the case with Demarco.”
“It will be,” Q replied with confidence. “You can count on it.”
All the brothers turned their attention to Big as he said, “Looks like there’s two guards watching the door and two more inside with Demarco.”
“Any sign of Lauren?”
“No, sir.” He glanced back at his computer screen, then said, “Looks like there’s an office and another room next to it. She’s gotta be in one of those.”
“No cameras?”
“Maybe, but they’re not integrated in with the main system. It would take me some time to find them.”
“That’s time we don’t have. We’ll just have to pray that’s she safe in one of those rooms.”
“Then we’re ready to make a move?”
“Ready as we’ll ever be.”
The guys got out of the SUVs and slipped on their bulletproof vests. Then they started pulling out the artillery. Everyone was cocking their guns and checking their ammo while I stood there looking like the odd man out. I wasn’t going to complain until Cotton came over and said, “Wait in the truck.”
“What?”
“You heard me.” He motioned his head towards the SUV. “We can’t take the risk of you seeing things you shouldn’t.”
“Are you kidding me? I just watched Stitch hot-poker some dude’s ass with a knife blade, and you’re worried about me seeing something I don’t need to see?” I was talking a mile a minute, but I wanted to get my point across. “I know damn well you’re about to go in there and shoot somebody. I want you to shoot ’em. Hell, I want to shoot them myself! Give me a gun. I’ll shoot whoever you need me to.”
“Oh God, kid. You’re killing me here.” Cotton tried to hold back a smile as he ran his hand over his face and said, “I don’t know if I wanna hug ya or kick your ass.”
“You can do either as long as you give me a fucking gun.”
Cotton looked over his shoulder at the brothers, who were now snickering behind him. While Cotton hadn’t, they’d clearly found my display rather humorous. Stitch was almost smiling as he said, “Oh, come on, Prez, just give the kid a gun. We’ll keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”
“Fuck.” Cotton reached into the SUV and pulled out a Glock. As he offered it to me, he asked, “You got any idea how to shoot the damn thing?”
“Yes, sir, I do.” I took the gun in my hand and released the clip, checking to make sure it was loaded, then shoved it back in and breached the slide. Stitch tossed me a vest, and after I slipped it on, I said, “I’m ready when you are.”
“All right then. Let’s do this.” Cotton stepped over to Catch and ordered, “You and Tank stay here with Phillips and keep a look out. Let us know if anyone approaches.”
“You got it.”
Seeing that we were all set to go, Big glanced over at Cotton and asked, “You ready for me to kill the power?”
“Do it.”
Big walked back over to his laptop, and after a few strokes of the keys, the entire area went black. It took my eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness, but with the moon shining bright overhead, I was able to see well enough to follow the brothers down the hill and through the tall grass that led up to Demarco’s warehouse. The brothers surrounded Cotton and me. Maverick, Guardrail, and Stitch were in the front, Two Bit and Diesel were at our sides, and Big, Smokey, Clutch, and Q were following close behind. They were like a protective shield as we inched closer. When we were a few yards away from the front entrance, Big and a couple of the others stepped away from the group and made their way to the rear of the building. I was still hanging tight with Cotton and Stitch when one of the guards stepped into view. Stitch raised his hand, signaling everyone to halt.
We all stood perfectly still as Stitch aimed his gun and pulled the trigger. He’d used a silencer, so there was just a slight swooshing sound, but the guy fell dead just the same. When the second guard heard the thud of his partner’s body hitting the ground, he rushed over to check on him. That’s when Maverick stepped forward and took a shot of his own. After another swoosh, the guard was down, and our path had been cleared.
While I was scared half out of my mind, I’d never felt more alive. It was that very thought that had me wondering if moments like these were why Maverick and the rest of the brothers had decided to prospect for Satan’s Fury. I didn’t know why they’d decided to join, but I was glad they were all here now ’cause I wouldn’t have been able to save Lauren without them. Cotton glanced over at Stitch as he whispered, “Time to get inside.”
Stitch gave him the nod, then motioned his hand forward, signaling to the others it was time to advance. Like they’d done it many times before, the brothers swarmed in with military precision, and in a blink, Maverick and Stitch were at the front door. Stitch reached for the doorknob, and after a quick glance behind him to make sure we were ready to move, he eased it open and slipped inside, then we immediately followed after. I was expecting for us to step into complete darkness, but that wasn’t the case. Demarco had set up several battery-generated security lights around the perimeter of the building, and they were shining bright—which meant Demarco and his men had full view of us as we proceeded further into the building.
When I noticed movement in the corner of my eye, I quickly turned and found a heavyset man in a suit with a gun trained on Cotton’s head. I wasn’t sure if any of the others had seen what I had, but I couldn’t take that chance. I needed to act and to act fast, so I lunged at him and tackled him just as the man started firing. While the bullets missed Cotton, they hit Q’ square in the chest—sending him flailing backwards and landing on the floor next to us. “Motherfucker!”
Two Bit immediately fired, shooting the guy right in the gut. But that wasn’t enough. As he charged towards him, he continued to fire over and over again until he was certain the guy was dead. It wasn’t until then that I realized that both Q and Two Bit had also seen the man and were about to handle him. Cotton and I had just gotten to our feet when two more guards appeared. Gunfire exploded throughout the room. Stitch, Maverick, Cotton, and every one of the brothers started shooting. I wanted to join in but was concerned about Q’. Hoping to help him out, I leaned towards him and extended my hand, helping him to his feet.
Once he was standing, Q fussed, “I’m goo
d.”
“You sure?” He was wearing a vest, but I figured taking two rounds to the chest hurt like a sonofabitch.
“I said I’m good!”
Taking his word for it, I stepped away and turned my focus back to the group. I’d only looked away for a moment, but that was all it took for the brothers to deal with the two guards. Both of their bodies were lying lifeless on the ground when Cotton roared, “Demarco!”
It was no surprise he didn’t answer. Damarco was the kind of man who hid behind his oversized guards, and now that they were dead, he was nothing but a cowardly dog with nothing to stand on behind his bark. We all spread out, forming an unbreakable line, and headed towards his office. At first, there was no sign of him, and I feared he’d found a way to escape, but Maverick wasn’t giving up hope. He leaned down and looked under the desk, and then moved over to the sofa and checked behind it. “He’s gotta be around here somewhere.”
Tensions were rising as we each did our part to search for him. It wasn’t until Stitch opened the closet door that Demarco was finally revealed. He was standing in the back corner with his gun aimed straight ahead. He fired off several rounds, but Stitch was quick on his feet and pinned Demarco against the back of the closet, forcing the gun out of his hand. Seconds later, he and Demarco stepped out of the closet. Demarco looked momentarily defeated as he stood there with the barrel of Stitch’s gun pressed against his temple. Cotton immediately stepped over to them and roared, “Where is she?”
“You’re clearly a smart man.” Demarco cocked his eyebrow and huffed, “I’m sure you can figure it out.”
“You’re gonna regret this shit.”
“My only regret is not killing her when I had the chance.”
