by Sophia Gray
“Nah, I would have noticed. Girls with those highlights are freaks in the sack, and my dick hasn’t been wet in days.”
I looked around the newly remodeled bar area and saw plenty of newbie biker girls who would probably drop to their knees if asked to. Why those local girls thought it was so cool to be used up by us never made sense to me, and I never really questioned it. But after having spent time with Beth, and getting to know Maddie, I’d kill anyone who treated my girls that way. No fucking way Maddie was going to grow up to be a MC whore.
I gave Darrell a shove on his shoulder with an approving nod, but focused my thoughts elsewhere. Gray wasn’t anywhere to be seen and no one seemed to know where he was.
I shot him a text, but heard nothing.
I text Beth to see if she’d heard back from Brittany, but she wasn’t answering me either. I’d have to head back to her house soon. She couldn’t be alone right now. She would be beside herself with worry and do something stupid. I needed to get back there as soon as possible.
Thick, heavy smoke hung in the air around the bar area. I’d forgotten how hard it was to breathe in there sometimes. Music blared in the background and every few minutes another toast went up for Tristan. I looked around at my brothers, wondering who the fuck they really were. Half of them didn’t even question how Tristan died, just took whatever bullshit Gray handed them. The other half had questions, but didn’t have the balls to raise their fucking hand.
The only strong connection I had was with JC. He was my eyes and ears while I was off playing vigilante. He informed me most of the members thought the vote getting Gray into the chair was a bunch of bullshit, and they trusted Gray as far as they could throw his beer bellied ass, but no one said a word to anyone who countered. When the gavel was raised, they all bowed their fucking heads.
I didn’t blame them. Not really. To stand up to the president was like suggesting someone kick your ass—unless you had a position to back it up. If you had voting rights, you had clout. But even those members around the table turned their heads. Maybe Gray bought them, made them think they’d be getting a kick ass pay increase with the new drug crew.
Only trouble was, Javier was in a bad way. If he died, did that deal he was trying to make with Gray go flat?
Keeping myself focused on one asshole at a time, I pushed my way through the crowded club. A few girls tried to claw their way into my arms, but I managed to pry them off me. Even without Beth waiting at home, I had more important things to get to.
Gray’s office sat empty. The computer screen was dark, the windows all shut, which was odd for Gray. He was paranoid about closed in spaces. He refused to admit he was claustrophobic, but had to have windows open in every room he was in, and never did I see him get into an elevator.
“Hey!’ JC stopped me as I made my way back through the crowd. “I’ve been looking for you. Heard you were here.”
His normally composed expression was all twisted up with stress. His eyes were wide, and he sounded like he’d been running around. “That girl from the bar, she was over at the funeral home tonight. Talking with Gray, he got pissed at her and she left. But she’s friends with your girl, man, right?”
“What girl? Purple streaks?”
“Yeah, that one. She walked in and Gray all but shoved her out the fucking door. I heard them arguing in the lot and then she took off.”
“Did you hear what they were saying? It’s important. Think.” I grabbed him by his jacket, gripping it hard.
He shook his head. “That’s why I’m looking for you. I heard them saying something about your girl and her kid. Beth’s got a little girl, right?”
“Fuck!” I released his coat and dragged my hand through my hair. “Madison is her daughter. When I dropped Beth off tonight she wasn’t there. Fucking Brittany texted her and told her to do whatever he says. Gray is the fucking he. And he has my girl.”
Chapter Nineteen
BETH
I couldn’t think straight. Rafe was gone. Madison was gone. The house was empty, and aside from the fridge dropping an ice cube now and then there was no sound.
I thought about calling the cops, but then got too scared. If Brittany had Maddie and was with someone else, the cops couldn’t help.
It all led back to Rafe. I never should have talked to him in that bar, and I sure as hell never should have talked to him after.
My phone danced on the kitchen table and I nearly tripped over my feet running for it. Another text from Rafe. I screamed at the phone and slammed it down on the table, immediately regretting my actions. Checking to make sure I hadn’t broken it, I sunk down into the chair and let the tears come again.
Frustration at just sitting and waiting around for what was going to happen next was driving me crazy. I need to get out there and look for her. I needed to find my baby.
Chrissy was on the late shift. I jumped into the car, my first time actually getting to drive it, and stabbed the ignition with the key. The car handled a hell of a lot better than my old one. Nothing rattled when I turned, and I wasn’t afraid the engine would combust if I hit the gas to hard. Which worked out great, because I was flooring it down the side streets.
It was late, after midnight already. Maddie would be so tired. Was she asleep? Was she scared? The wheels squealed when I turned into the parking lot of the diner Chrissy worked at. I found her at the counter. Not many people were looking for a burger or coffee at that time of night.
“Beth?” Her eyes widened when she saw me run through the door “What’s wrong?” Her face paled and she ran around the counter to meet up with me. “What’s wrong?” she asked again when I didn’t answer her.
“Where’s Brittany!” I demanded, a bit louder than I intended.
“Brit? I don’t know, why?” Her fingers dug into my arms. “What’s going on? Where’s Maddie?” she asked, as though it just occurred to her what time it was and I was alone.
“I don’t know! Brittany has her!” I pulled away from her. “Who’s the guy she’s been seeing from Anarchy’s Reign? Do you know?”
“Anarchy’s Reign?” My eyes nearly crossed. If she kept repeating my questions I wouldn’t get anywhere with her. “Oh! That guy. Yeah. Short blond hair? Kinda gross teeth?”
“Gray?” I stepped back from her. “She’s been dating Gray?”
“That sounds right.” Chrissy pulled out her phone and started tapping away. “I’ll just call her.” She watched me as the phone began to ring, and ring. And ring. “Fuck.” The voicemail picked up. “Hey, Brit, can you give me call right away? I need you. Thanks.”
“She’s never going to call you back.” I could feel my heart hammering away in my chest and air was quickly becoming a luxury I didn’t have.
“Hey, hey. Don’t worry. She’ll call back.”
“No, she won’t. She took Maddie, Chrissy. She stole my baby!” I ran fingers through my hair and grabbled for my phone as it began to vibrate in my back pocket.
Leave my sister out of this. Get gone.
Chrissy tore the phone from my hand and looked at the message. Her smile dropping and her head started to shake. “What’s wrong with her?”
“Did she tell you about the bruises? The ribs?” I asked with the panic growing bigger and bigger in my chest.
“Ribs?”
I was going to lose my shit. “Yes, she had a few bruised ribs. Fucking Gray’s been beating on her and she helped him kidnap Maddie.” I dragged my hands through my hair, vividly aware of the small crowd in the diner staring at me. I must have looked quite the crazy person.
“Why would she do that? She didn’t mention anything about her boyfriend hitting her. Are you sure? Why wouldn’t she tell me?” The panic rose a little in her voice, too.
“I don’t know. I gotta go.” I snatched the phone from her hand and ran out the door. “Please call me if you get a hold of her,” I yelled as I blew through the door and back out into the cool breeze of the night.
Brittany and I had
been friends since forever. I couldn’t remember a time in my life that she wasn’t in it, and now she kidnapped my daughter. For what? A guy? A fucking biker?
Who was I really to judge? I’d brought Rafe into my life, into Maddie’s life. If I hadn’t done that, Gray wouldn’t be using my baby girl to get at him. Gray obviously had something to do with Jason’s death and he wanted to keep Rafe from either finding out or doing something about it, and he was using my daughter as leverage.
Once back in my car, I pulled out onto the main road, completely unsure of where to go next. For the last five years Maddie had been completely my responsibility. It was just the two of us together against the whole world. What would I do without her?
Just as I started to turn down the road that would lead me to the highway my phone went off.
“Hello?” I answered, not giving a shit about the hands-free law.
“Beth.” A deep voice that sounded too damn cheerful responded. “How’s it goin’?”
“Gray?” I gripped the phone hard, my fingers were tingling from the pressure. “Where’s my daughter?”
“She’s fine,” he assured me. I tried to listen to the background noise.
“Where is she?” I demanded. I couldn’t hear anything behind him. Either she was sleeping, locked away somewhere, or he wasn’t with her.
“She’s tucked in real nice for the night. No worries. Look. I need you to do me a favor, Beth. I need you to get Rafe and get him on board with a few things I have coming up. Now, I don’t usually like to get a man’s old lady involved, but ever since he sunk his dick in you I can’t get him to think straight.”
“The club? You want me to get him to do what you want for the fucking club?” I screamed into the phone. “I don’t give a fuck about your fucking club! I want my daughter back. Now.”
“Hey! Hold on, baby. I know you do, and she wants you, too. Keeps crying for mama, it’s getting annoying. Brittany ain’t much help either.” He laughed.
A car drove past me on the road, the driver looking over at me with an annoyed expression. I realized I was barely moving anymore. I pulled over to the side of the road.
“Gray, tell me where she is and I’ll come get her. I’ll get her out of your hair.”
“Great. So meet me in the morning, out by the old ware house off of 31 and Main. You know it?”
“Yeah, I know it.” The old paper mill. A fire had shut down production and it wasn’t worth the expense of fixing it up. The building had been abandoned at least ten years by then. “I can be there in twenty minutes.” I shifted the car into gear, still not used to the smooth transition between gears, unlike my old car that ground a little bit every time I shifted into drive.
“Hold up, sweet tits.” The way the words slid from his mouth, slick with arrogance and crudeness, made my stomach twist into a knot. This man was with my little girl. He held her safety in his hands. “I’m not in the mood to be heading out that way just now. Besides, the brat’s finally sleeping.”
“She’s not a brat!” My fingers went numb from griping the phone so hard. I could hear traffic passing by me and listened for the roar of a bike. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I hoped Rafe would drive past and see me. Save me from the terror I was sinking into.
The low chuckle of a crazy man answered me. “Tomorrow morning. Ten. Not a second later, you hear me?”
My spine tingled from the sound of his voice. Not the sort of tingle that Rafe gave me, but the sort that left my blood running cold and my heart ticking away hard against my rib cage.
“Can I talk with Brittany?” If Maddie really was sleeping, waking her up would only start her panicking again.
“She’s not with me, she’s back with the kid. You can see her tomorrow.”
I looked down the empty road and felt the panic begin to rise up in my throat. “How do I know you haven’t hurt my little girl?”
He snorted. “You don’t.” The line was silent. No grunt or laughter, just the words hanging heavily between us. He could do whatever he wanted and I had no power to stop him or find him. “Ten tomorrow.”
“Okay,” I relented. “Gray, just so we’re clear, if one little curl is bent on my baby’s head, I will hunt you down and rip your throat out with my bare hands.” My voice shook as I made my promise, not from fear but out of pure rage.
“Got it, mama bear. Tomorrow.” The line clicked, signaling he was gone. Any calm I had stored up in my body fell away and I slumped in my seat, pressing my forehead against the steering wheel. The racking sobs escaped me, making an awful sound that I was glad only I could hear in the dead of night.
After giving myself the small release, I dragged the back of my hand across my eyes and tried to focus. Where could Gray be hiding for the night? The clubhouse seemed too obvious, but maybe there was a chance. Maybe he would be dumb enough to stick it out there.
With a new purpose I pulled back onto the street and headed across town. Stephanie would know what to do.
I hoped.
Chapter Twenty
RAFE
Beth wasn’t home. I should have known better than to think the woman would actually listen to me, but I still held some hope she’d at least use her common sense.
The house was dark and silent when I pulled up to it sometime after five in the morning. Thinking she had managed to fall asleep, I let myself in, making another mental note to talk with her about the fucking lock on the door.
It was empty. Her bed hadn’t been touched, and other than a half-drunk can of generic soda on the counter there was no evidence she’d even been there. Dragging my hand through my hair I started to think of all the places she could have gone. I hadn’t slept. Not really. I closed my eyes for a few minutes in my room at the clubhouse, but no sleep actually happened. All I could think about was Maddie, and all the fucked up shit I was going to do with Gray once I got a hold of him.
I tried calling her again. Nothing. The fucking ringer just rang and rang, she didn’t even deny the call. I started to worry that she didn’t have her phone with her, or that it was dead.
As I walked back out to my bike, feeling like lead pebbles were stuck in my boots, I noticed Stephanie’s car pull up. She turned into Beth’s’ drive and I stood by my bike to wait for her.
“Rafe.” She slammed the car door and stood with her hands on her hips glaring at me. “You really know how to fuck things up.”
“Steph, I’m really not in the mood this morning for your attitude,” I growled.
“Too bad,” she shot at me. “Your girlfriend spent the night on my couch.”
“What?” My reaction got a snide little smirk out of her. I pushed my annoyance to side and questioned her about Beth.
“She’s fine. So far. Stubborn girl that one.” She pushed her sunglasses up on top of her head, pushing her chestnut curls out of the way of her eyes. “She told me about her kid.” Her voice dropped and she walked around her Camaro until she was standing in front of me. With the sun just starting to rise, her face looked soft. Like it used to before so much hatred and pain settled in her expression.
“Why is she by you? Why isn’t she here?” I sunk my hands into my front pockets, trying to keep my voice civil. Getting all hard on Steph would only send her packing back up into her car and heading out without giving me any information. And if Beth was hiding out there, Steph would make the fucking place a fortress to keep me out.
“She doesn’t want to see you, or want your help.” She leaned against her car. “Apparently, her friends are involved on the wrong side of this shit storm, and she doesn’t have anyone else.”
We never talked about family. She knew about my brother, but she didn’t talk about her family. Did she even have anyone other than that fucking ex of hers? “Did she finally get a hold of Brittany?”
“Yeah, well, sort of. Not that it was any help. The important call she got was from Gray.”
“Gray called her?” My hands came out of my pockets, balled into fists, and I took a
step toward her. Stephanie weathered more than one shit storm, as she liked to call them, while married to Jason, she kept her ground, not even flinching.
“Yeah. He’s got the little girl. The fucking prick.” Her eyes widened and her mouth went taught. Jason never could get her to quit cursing like a biker, but I think it was one of the things he found so damn irresistible about her. She didn’t take shit from anyone, but she could sure as hell dish it out when she needed to.
“What did he want?”
“He wants to meet her. Said he’d give her back the kid if she meets him this morning at eleven.”
The little hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Beth wasn’t as seasoned as Stephanie. She was smart, but she wouldn’t see what Gray was trying to pull. She was only thinking of Maddie, her little girl. And fuck if I’d fault her for it. Up until she hooked up with me, Maddie had been the most complicated thing her life.
