by Kay Maree
"You watch your mouth girl. Don't make me teach you some manners." I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Every mark you leave on me, will be returned to you tenfold. Good luck." He pulled his hand back and closed his fist, bringing it down again. That was the last thing I saw before darkness. Please let Corey be there when I woke up again.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Corey
We got to the clubhouse as the other guys were arriving. They all looked confused but we went into the chamber as procedure calls. Ignoring the chamber, I went to see what Duke had found.
"Duke, please tell me you have something for me?"
"Havoc, why must you insult me with something a child could do?" He pulled up the video footage and on the screen Toby and I watched from the point of them being dropped off to them being taken. My hands balling into fists and the asshole who had orchestrated this came into view. Since he had called, I had been wondering what in the hell possessed the two of them to blindly follow someone. Now I knew. Someone back in Ireland was going to pay for this but first, I needed to give Raven a heads up of the shit storm that was raining down on us.
"Thanks, Duke."
"You need anything else?"
"Can you put a trace on Abby's number and Rosa's? Also check traffic camera footage to try and track where they went?" I wrote down Rosa's number as he rolled his eyes at my request but got to work. I squeezed his shoulder and left the room. For a genius, he was a pain in the ass. I stopped by Raven's office to see if he was there, hoping that I could pre-warn him before we got into the chamber. Seeing him sitting there at his desk, I knocked and went in, Toby following right behind me. I could feel the anger radiating off him as he followed me from room to room, not entirely sure what is going on. "Boss, I am sorry to call you in on this. I need your help."
"What's going on?"
"It's the girls... Abby and Rosa went shopping this morning for something to wear tomorrow. Toby dropped them off because he had some things to do at work and we were just going to get them for some lunch. When I tried to call the girls though, I got no answer. We both tried a few times but nothing. Then I got a phone call from Paul telling me that I wouldn't get a hold of them because he had them. I still don't know if I believe him because if Abby saw him, she would stay the fuck away. I asked Boy Wonder to get me security footage of the time they were dropped off and track them until they disappeared. We have just checked it and it's not good."
"Why the hell would Abby blindly go with someone she doesn't know? She isn't stupid." I tried to ignore the insinuation that Rosa was stupid enough to do that. He didn't know the situation and Hailee would kill me if he had a black eye before his wedding.
"She didn't. Rosa knew him though, so do I."
"Okay..."
"It's Eoin. He is one of the founders of the Irish chapter that Derrick tried to set up. When that didn't go as planned, he left and Liam took over because he didn't like the way you ran things here and wouldn't be associated with that. He is the one who told me that Rosa was the secret Paul was talking about. He must've followed us over here or something, I don't know. I haven't called Liam to find out if he knows anything about it yet. I was waiting to talk to you." Raven ran a hand over his jaw and let out a sigh.
"If they are all involved then this is bigger than just Abby and Rosa." I shook my head.
"I don't want to believe it is. Liam was a big part in killing your father. I don't think he would do this. Isn't it weird though that it's my father, sister, and girlfriend? It feels like this might be a personal attack. I just don't fucking know why!"
"Call Liam and get the all clear from him that he isn't part of this and find out what the fuck Eoin is doing here. If he isn't part of this, tell him that he will have a body to come and collect by the time we are done. I am assuming that Duke is already working on phone traces and any cameras from surrounding buildings to know what we are looking out for?"
"Traffic cameras but yes."
"Good, make the call and I will send the guys home. I will keep the main ones here though, not everyone needs to be brought into this just yet." I gave him a nod. He stood up and moved past both of us.
"You okay?" I felt stupid for asking Toby that question given the situation but needed to check.
"No... It's my fault! I shouldn't have left them. You would have stayed with them. Everything could have waited, they were only gonna be a few hours!"
"Toby, don't beat yourself up over this. If they wanted the girls, they were getting them one way or another. It's no one's fault. Look, why don't you go and sit with Duke. He might need help or you can look into the assholes behind this. See if we can't get some indication of why they want the girls. Also, see if you can't find phone numbers for Paul. He has to have something, even if it isn't through the normal channels." He nodded and left the room. Taking a seat, I pulled my phone from my pocket. Searching for Liam's number in my contacts, I tapped his name followed by the phone symbol. When it started ringing, I held it up to my ear and waited for him to answer.
"Corey, to what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call?"
"Something has happened and I am praying to every God out there that you had nothing to do with this or Raven will be after blood. That will be if I don't get there first."
"What's going on?" Deciding I needed to see his face while we had this conversation, I pulled my phone away and hit the button for Facetime. When he was staring back at me, I went on.
"Something has happened to Rosa and my sister. They went shopping this morning for something for Rosa to wear to a wedding tomorrow but we haven't heard anything from them since they were dropped off. It's not like my sister to go MIA so we started to dig deeper. The path ends with the Irish."
"I don't know what you mean, I don't know of anyone over there."
"Funny that, the last time you didn't know of one of your guys over here, they were behind the disappearance of another one of the girls relating to this club."
"You can't pin that all on us. It was one of yours that started that!"
"True but yours still helped and they were headed to you. I have a feeling that might be happening again."
"Okay so who on your side originated it and who do you think is working from this side?"
"It's not who I think, I have video footage of who it is and I can send it to you if you don't believe me, but Eoin is here and has teamed up with Paul. They have taken Abby and Rosa, now I need your help to get them back or you will have a body to come and retrieve."
"I'm sorry... Want to repeat that name?"
"You heard me. Would seem when I came digging, he turned some stones of his own and found Paul. Props to him though because I can't even do that half the time." Liam let out a breath and ran a hand over his face.
"How can we help?"
"I need phone numbers so we can try and track him through his phone. I need credit card information in case he is using one of those. I need any other connections you have over here in case someone else is helping him. I need to know how he got here and how long he has been here. Get me anything you can to help me find this asshole."
"Got it. Let me go wake up the team and we will get whatever we can."
"Have everyone keep their eyes and ears on every way to get in and out. If he is coming back, he will need a way. Be there waiting on the other end."
"Will do. Let me know if you hear anything."
"I will." Hanging up after saying goodbye, I let out a breath. Within seconds, I had any number connected to Eoin. Raven came back into the room and raised a brow.
"How'd you go?"
"Said he didn't know anything about it. He was going to start checking everything though to see if he could find a trace on him. I have his numbers so I am going to pass them on to Duke to work his magic with. Toby is helping him any way he can."
"We'll get them back, Corey, we haven't lost anyone yet." I nodded and sunk lower in my chair. He was right, we hadn't but never ha
d I been in this chair with two people I care about in the hands of a mad man. "I told Hailee. She and the girls getting on to postponing everything for tomorrow."
"Can you tell her how sorry I am?"
"She knows bud. Don't beat yourself up, it's not your fault." I snorted.
"Yeah, I just told Toby that same thing."
"Then believe it. Thing about these girls is we can try to watch them twenty four / seven but they are going to get sick of that, real quick. You had no idea this was going to happen."
"But I should be prepared for this kind of shit. They always seem to hit when our guards are down like mine was! I got too complacent."
"No, you didn't. You were enjoying your life. We have all watched you with Abby over the years and you have taken on more than one person should. You have put your life on hold while she needed you and we all admire you for that. It was time that you started living for yourself though." He let out a breath and sat down.
"She is going to hate me for this but while you were away, Abby sat me down because she was worried about you resenting her because of everything you have done for her and sacrificing a chance for you to be happy with someone. I'm guessing when you got back and she met Rosa, she relaxed a little because that wasn't an issue anymore. While yes, it was quick but I can't judge. I know some things happen over time but they can also happen in an instant. We will get them both back but you can't let this make you go back to the way you were before. Have your guard up, that's fine. Don't lock yourself away."
"I can't lose them... Either of them. Abby has been through so much already and was just starting to be herself while I found someone I can really see myself with. I hate them for taking them both away from me."
"We will get them back Corey, don't give up hope. We have only just started to look into this. Duke will find something and we will bring them both back home." I took a deep breath and nodded.
"Okay, so what now?"
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Corey
The hours ticked by as we waited for something to come through on the traces. They were all turned off and the traffic cameras led us in a circle before disappearing. If they were in Vegas then we would never find them without something, but if they were still here then there might be a slim chance. I tried to think of all the things Paul would want. I know he wanted to see Abby but this was overkill. There had to be something more. That's when the thought occurred to me. This was a ransom. He was waiting for the time to pass before he made his demands. He wouldn't have gone too far away because he would want to be close enough to get whatever money he was going to ask for in return for Abby and Rosa. That was providing Eoin hadn't left the country with her yet. Liam rang a little while ago and told us that he had every place on his end covered and had spoken to some people that Eoin might try to contact to get someone out of the country without too many people asking questions. Walking into Raven's office, he hung up the phone.
"Any news?" I shook my head.
"Not yet but I had a thought. Paul isn't doing this just to see his daughter, he wants something."
"What do you think he wants?"
"Money. We need to get some cash together just in case."
"You need help?"
"Do we have access to any?"
"We should have enough depending on the amount he is after. We can always call on the Irish to do their bit though as it's one of their men behind this too. I'll make it happen." I nodded and pulled out my phone. I left Raven's office and called Liam to check in with him.
"Corey."
"Liam. Have you heard anything?"
"No, should I have?"
"Just wondering if Eoin had been in touch with you."
"I haven't heard from him since the day we went to see him. I don't usually speak to him which is how we missed that he was up to something."
"If he couldn't get back, would he call you to try and get you to help him?"
"Unless he had something to hide, I don't see why not. He doesn't know that we are on to him though which will work in our favor."
"Unless he puts two and two together."
"Have the traces brought up anything?"
"No which has me worried that it might be more than just the two of them. I don't see how else they could hide."
"So I am back to praying that no news is good news."
"I hate to ask this but how are you for money if they are asking for it in return for the girls?"
"Raven is working on it now."
"Let me know if I can help out. I have accounts over there you can access if you need it."
"Thanks, Liam, I will let you know."
"We are flying out as soon as we have some things sorted."
"I will give Raven the heads up."
"Appreciate that Corey." We said goodbye and I hung the phone up again. I had never felt more useless in my life. I was doing everything I can to find them, we all were. I hated having to sit and wait around for news. I made my way back to let Raven know that the Irish would be on the move soon and landing tomorrow before I went to check back in with Duke. As I got to the room, he was running out the door. Stepping back out of his way, I held my hands in the air.
"Woah, where is the fire?!"
"It's Paul! His phone has been turned back on and has been active for about ten minutes now. I can't get a trace on it but it's a small start. It's not usually been on this long." Before I could say anything, my phone started ringing. We both moved into Duke's office. Looking down at the screen, I checked the numbers we had and it was one of theirs. Calling out for Raven, I nodded to Duke who started to work his magic.
"Corey speaking."
"Ah son. Worked out that we are serious yet?"
"What the fuck have you done with them? I swear to God if you have harmed one hair on their head, I will rip your brain out through your nose!"
"Is that any way to speak to your father, boy? Do I need to teach you some manners like I have taught Abby?"
"I will kill you. I will make sure of that. You can leave the girls and run now but I will track you down if it's the last thing that I do and I will kill you."
"You are insane if you think that I am leaving Abby with you any longer. No, she is coming home with me. You have done enough damage to her. Turning her against me like that."
"You did it to yourself, Asshole! Now give them back."
"Look, I will make you a deal son. I will give you Eoin's location and you can have your whore back but I will be leaving with Abby."
"No deal. I will be taking both or die trying."
"Five million dollars buys you one. You decide if it's going to be your sister or Cameron's. Better be quick though. Rosa disappears in a matter of hours."
"Fine. Where are you so we can exchange?"
"I think you already know the answer to that question, Corey. Meet me here in two hours and come alone. If I see or hear anyone else, both of them die along with anyone else in the area. We have this place ready to blow. No police so Abby's little boyfriend better not get any ideas." I looked over to Duke who nodded. The line went dead but we had them.
"You did not just agree to that?!" I heard Toby ask. Turning and seeing Raven and Toby standing in the doorway, I ignored them. My phone beeped with a message. It was an account number and instructions. He wanted cash and the remaining balance transferred into the account. I wrote it down for Duke.
"Do it." He looked over at Raven who was stopping Toby from getting into the room by the look of it. "I did what I had to do. How much cash do we have?"
"We have one mill." I managed to get past both of them without a fight and made my way to the chamber. The stacks of cash were in the middle of the table. I began shoving them into the bag, Toby moving to my side to help me. I was going through plans in my head and every one of them involved me coming home with both of these girls.
"So what are you going to do?" Raven asks as I continue to shove stacks of hund
red dollar bills into the bag to pay for one of the ransoms. The asshole was making me choose between my own flesh and blood and that of a brother's. The fact that I was in love with Rosa was not making this decision any easier.
"I am going to make a deal for both of them."
"Make a deal?! These are people's lives you are talking about! What if that doesn't work?" I went silent because what the fuck was I going to do if this didn't work out? I couldn't turn my back on my sister. I had always done what I could to protect her and I would sacrifice myself to make sure that she was okay. I didn't trust our father so I needed to get her away from him. It was breaking my heart to have to make this decision, but I was putting her life in someone else's hands and hoping that Toby came through for me. The look on my face must have said it all though.
"You're a fucking asshole, Corey!"
"What the fuck do you want me to do Raven? That is my sister!"
"Yeah, right there with mine!"
"Oh come off it! You have known her for five minutes. I've had parts on my bike longer then you have known her! If my memory serves me correct, you didn't even want to know she existed or do I need to remind you of that conversation?"
"What about you being in love with her. That has to mean something."
"Yeah, it's making this choice so much fucking harder."
"I don't believe you are really about to do this!"
"Yeah, well maybe you should have kept a better hold on your fucking club members so we would have a sniper who could end this shit without anyone getting hurt." I zipped up the bag and glared at him. That may have been a low blow but put him in this position and see what he does. Picking up the bag, I slung it over my shoulder and grabbed my car keys.
"Stay out of this, Cameron. If he hears bikes, we are all dead." Leaving the room, I went outside and threw the money in the back. Getting in, I turned the key and the engine roared to life. The secret to my plan was just put into Raven's head. A big part of my plan needed a sniper on the roof of the building across from us ready to go. I wasn't a praying man but please God let us all get out of this in one piece.
