by Faith Gibson
“Why does he care now? After ten years, why is David all of a sudden worried about what happens to me?”
“You think he’s worried?”
“You don’t?”
“I think he’s trying to get you back so he can take you to Haven.”
“Then why not take us to where Lucy is?” Rhi looked around as the vehicle started rolling again. “According to the GPS, we have twenty miles to go.”
“Maybe that was to throw us off? So we wouldn’t send someone ahead? Who the fuck knows? I sure as hell don’t. I’ve seen some crazy shit in my time, but this takes the cake.”
The SUV continued until it pulled into the parking lot of what looked like an abandoned warehouse. It was steered around the back of the building and through a large, roll-up aluminum door. There was just enough light coming through the opening to show the building was empty. When the car stopped, Ryker tried the door again, but it wouldn’t budge. He unbuckled, ready to climb into the backseat and kick out the windows. An industrial-sized flood lamp turned on, momentarily blinding Ryker. The locks clicked, and Rhi’s door was slung open. Ryker turned to grab her, but a large rifle was pointed at him. David Spencer pulled his daughter out of the car.
“Stop! Dad, what are you doing? Let me go!” Rhi fought her father, but he was too strong for her to get away.
“Stop fighting me, or I’ll put a bullet between his eyes,” David said. Rhi immediately quit struggling. She looked at Ryker, her eyes wide with fear. “Thanks for keeping my daughter safe, but I’ll take it from here.” David released the rifle and replaced it with a handgun. He aimed and pulled the trigger. The sting against Ryker’s neck was immediate as was the dizziness. He slapped at his neck, finding a tranquilizer dart.
“Rhi!” Ryker was able to push the door open, but he fell to his knees as soon as his feet hit the cracked concrete. “Rhiannon!” Ryker struggled to stand, using the door as leverage. His vision blurred, and he was unable to remain upright.
“Let’s get you home,” David said.
“Stop! Dad, let me go! Ryk—” Rhiannon’s shouts were cut off after a car door slammed shut. A few seconds later, another door closed. Squealing tires were the last thing Ryker heard before he passed out.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Rhiannon
“Put your seatbelt on,” David said. Rhi tried the handle, but the door wouldn’t open. “Don’t make me sedate you, Rhi. Put your seatbelt on. Now.”
“Why are you doing this?” Rhi grabbed the buckle and fastened it when her father barreled out of the parking lot, gravel flying behind them.
“To keep you safe, of course. I’m sorry, Rhi. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.”
“Like what? Like kidnapping? Harassment? Murder? How could you kill those men?”
David snapped his head toward hers. “I haven’t killed anyone. How could you think that?”
“Maybe because I don’t know you? You’re not my dad.”
“What are you talking about? Of course I’m your dad.”
“No. My dad died the second he took me to Haven. You abandoned me. Left me with Josiah for ten years. Do you even know what he did to me?”
“Did he hurt you? I swear if he touched you—”
“Stop. Just stop it!” Rhi hit her fist against the window, trying to break it. When that didn’t work, she kicked both feet against the windshield.
“For God’s sake, stop!” David yelled. The car swerved when he reached over to grab at her leg. Rhi turned in the seat, trying to kick his hand. “Jesus Christ, Rhi. You’re going to make me wreck!” Now, there was an idea. Rhi released the seatbelt and lunged for the steering wheel. A sharp pain hit her chest, and she dropped back against the door. David was holding the same pistol he’d used to shoot Ryker with.
“You shot me,” she whimpered.
“You left me no choice.” David pulled the car over, but before it stopped, Rhi’s vision blurred. The passenger door opened, and David grabbed her under her arms, dragging her from the vehicle. She couldn’t fight. Couldn’t move. Couldn’t…
Rhiannon’s head was pounding. That was the first thing she noticed when she awoke. The second thing was the soft mattress against her back. The third was a hand brushing her hair back off her forehead. The movement wasn’t helping the pain. She groaned against her will, and the hand stopped. The bed she was lying on dipped then rose, and a soft click sounded with the closing of a door. Rhi squinted her eyes, but the room, or wherever she was, was blessedly dark save for a light shining through a cracked-open door, presumably a closet, on the other side of the room.
Gritting against the pain, Rhi opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. She had to be dreaming. Falling back in time, Rhi was surrounded by all the things from her childhood bedroom. The jewelry box her mom gave her for her twelfth birthday sat atop the white dresser. Next to it was a photo of her and her mom, smiling at each other, their faces smudged with dirt. Rhi was young in the picture. Back when everything was right in her world. Before the incident with the bunny. Before her parents argued. Before her mother died, and her father dragged her off to Haven. The poster of her favorite pop star was just as she remembered. Time hadn’t faded the color or curled the edges.
Across the room, the small TV sat atop the chest of drawers, her video console and controllers stacked just the way she left them after she and her friends played for hours before her mom fed them pizza for supper. The lilac curtains were tied back with the darker purple sashes. The window was cracked in the bottom left corner from when Jimmy Turner hit it with a rock trying to get her attention late one night after she’d gone to bed. Jimmy had been her best friend. The one she sat with on the bus. The one she helped with his math homework when he didn’t understand algebra in the seventh grade. The one who held her hand after her mom died. The one whose mother held her as she cried after the funeral.
Rhi rubbed her chest where her father had shot her with the dart. Whatever was in the tranquilizer had done a number on her head. Was Ryker also lost to the past the way she was? Was he remembering something that was no longer there? Had he been whisked away to a happier time? Or was he lost to the days after his wife and unborn child had been stolen from him? Ryker. Rhi blinked back the tears as she prayed to her goddess. Prayed that Ryker was okay. That whoever was holding Lucy hadn’t harmed her. That when Rhi woke from this fog, she wouldn’t be back at Haven.
Curling up on her side under the soft blanket, Rhi noticed the stuffed rabbit with the long, floppy ears. Jimmy had won it for her at the fair. She had told him the story of the baby bunny she nursed back to health, leaving out the part about her gift. Daisy had made her promise to never speak to anyone, even her best friend, about her ability to heal things. Rhi had kept that promise until she set her hands on Ryker. Rhi didn’t count what happened at Haven, because she had never uttered a word about what she could do. Whether her father had told Josiah or the preacher had seen it with his own eyes, she never mentioned her gift. She’d been found out anyway, and Josiah had used Rhi for his own gains.
Tugging the bunny to her chest, Rhi closed her eyes and prayed for peaceful sleep. She also prayed that when she woke next, she would be back with Ryker and this all would be a sordid dream.
Ryker
Ryker’s Gryphon was pissed if the roaring in his head was any indication. He pushed himself to sitting and looked around. “Fuck. Fuck!” He climbed to his feet and leaned inside the driver’s door in search of his phone. He didn’t have to look hard because it was ringing. “H-hello?”
“What the hell, Ryot? I’ve been calling for an hour.” Sultan was pissed.
“After Spencer took control of the SUV, he drove it to a warehouse, shot me with a tranq, and took Rhi. I just came to.”
“Godsdamnit. Do you know where you are?”
“Yes, but don’t worry about me. You need to get to the meeting spot and see if Lucy’s still there.”
“Lucy’s fine. She used her voice on the men holding
her.”
“Why didn’t she do that in the first place before they could take her?”
“I’ll let her explain that part to you.” Sultan sounded proud of Lucy.
“Did she get any information out of them?” Ryker pulled himself up into the driver’s seat and leaned his head back.
“Yes. They were working under Josiah’s orders, not David’s. They said Josiah is losing his mind because David has gone AWOL.”
“Where are you?” Ryker transferred the call to Bluetooth after starting the engine.
“We’re still at the meeting point. I didn’t know what you wanted to do with Josiah’s men.”
“If your car wouldn’t start—”
“Yeah, about that. After about twenty minutes, everything came back online. It’s working fine now.”
“That doesn’t make any fucking sense.”
“I guess Spencer wanted us out of the way so we wouldn’t interfere in his plans for getting Rhi.”
“But why didn’t he kill me? He had a rifle, but he chose to tranq me instead.”
“Maybe he knows you’re important to Rhi? Fuck, Ryot. Who knows? I’m glad he didn’t.”
“Yeah, me too. I’m headed your way. I’ll be there in about twenty.”
“We’ll be here.”
Ryker’s mind was swirling. He was happy to know Lucy was okay, but now he was worried about Rhiannon. David was missing from Haven, but what did that mean for Rhi? Ryker would like to think the male wouldn’t hurt his daughter, but he had ignored her for ten years. That didn’t incite warm and fuzzies. Not all fathers were as good and kind as Sutton. Some were pricks, and some were sadistic bastards.
He rolled up to the meeting spot, where Lucy was pacing alongside the SUV Sultan had been driving. She turned, and when she saw him getting out of his own vehicle, she ran straight at him. He braced himself for impact, spreading his arms, catching her.
“Oh, Little Dove. I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“I’m sorry, Uncle. I promise I’ll find Rhi.”
“Hey, none of that. You’ve done nothing wrong.” Ryker kissed her temple, then set her on her feet. Sultan was there, relief shining in his green eyes. His job in the MC was to protect Ryker.
“But I’ve done nothing right, either. I thought David was the one who sent these guys after me. I went with them knowing I could use my Gryphon voice at any time things started going sideways. I didn’t expect David to intercept you. That man is pissing me the hell off.”
“You and me both. At least the fucker tranqed me instead of shooting me. What I can’t figure out is why. Sultan said Josiah sent these men after you.”
“Yes. It seems David has gone missing from Haven. Not only does Josiah not have Rhi to do her thing with the sick people he’s been bringing in, he doesn’t have David either. According to the driver, David has been instrumental in the success of Haven. Josiah might recruit new members, but David’s the one who was controlling the money and bringing in the guns. You and I both know with a couple of keystrokes, David could wipe them out.”
“But why? Is someone at the GIA getting too close to the truth?”
“I’ve been thinking about that. My job was to track government movement and what relationships they’d formed with the Ministry, if any. It’s possible whoever took my job found something relating to David and his work with Haven, but given his skill level with a computer, I doubt that’s the case. He’s too good at covering his tracks and wiping out anyone else’s.”
“Back at Stefan’s, David used a drone to speak with Rhi. He told her he had to get her ‘out of there because she wasn’t safe.’ But we’re trying to protect her.”
Lucy kicked a rock and watched it tumble across the ground. “We are, but maybe he doesn’t know that. What do you want to do with these bastards?” Lucy jerked her thumb toward the car where Josiah’s men were unmoving.
Ryker thought about it for a moment. If he sent them to the FBI, that wasn’t a guarantee Haven would be taken down quickly with all the bureaucratic red tape. “Have you called Xavier and told him you’re safe?”
“Yes. He had just arrived at the airport when I called. He, Tamian, and the others are headed to Haven now. Tamian wants a piece of Josiah for kidnapping me.”
Ryker knew how the male felt. He also wanted a piece of Josiah, but he would have to be okay with Tamian doing the dirty work for him. He walked over to the car and opened the door, speaking to the four men. “Go back to Haven. If Josiah’s there, tell him David showed up with several men, overpowered you, and took Lucy. Tell him Anna willingly went with her father.” The driver nodded, and Ryker closed the car door and waited until he could no longer see the taillights before he turned to the others.
Sultan ran a hand over his scalp. “This is some next-level shit. I knew the technology was out there, but him taking over driving your vehicle? I’ll stick to my bike.” Hawk and Judge mumbled their agreements.
“You’re not wrong. That was one of the most disturbing encounters of my life.” Ryker didn’t miss the way Lucy flinched, so he went to her and grabbed her hand.
Lucy’s eyes were filled with fire. “We need to get back home so I can talk to Henry. See if he can figure out where David would be holding Rhi. We also need to find a way to clear your name with the feds.”
“Shit. In all the excitement, I forgot about them. The last thing I need is to be locked up.”
“Why don’t you guys head back to Stefan’s? If David contacts the feds and they show up there, you can voice them. I’ll go home and get busy,” Lucy suggested.
“You’re not driving back by yourself. What if David decides to sabotage the car while you’re driving?”
“I’ll ride with her,” Judge offered.
Lucy smiled at the Hound. “I appreciate that, and if you don’t mind, I’d like you to drive.”
“Lucy, if you would, call Henry while you’re on the road. I’d rather stay in the area in case he can get a location for David. I don’t want to get to Stefan’s just to have to turn around and head back this way. It seems all I’ve been doing these last few days is running in circles.”
“I’ll do that. Hang in there, Ry. I know this shit is upsetting. Hell, I’m frustrated. When we find David, and we will, I want a shot at the bastard.”
Ryker doubted Lucy was more frustrated than he was. Rhi was his mate. They were off to a rocky beginning, but he had to believe he’d been put in her path for a reason. If Quinn hadn’t rescheduled their meeting, he never would have been in the area when Rhi escaped from James.
“I’ll do what I can. Keep your eyes open, and if you run into any trouble on the way home, call me.”
Lucy kissed him on the cheek, then got into the SUV with Judge. He watched them drive away, lost as to where to go from there. Ryker gripped his hair tightly, pulling until the pain registered.
“Talk to me, Ryot.” Sultan stood just off to the side, not getting in his way.
“I haven’t felt this useless since Juliette was taken. Fuck, man.” Ryker released his hair, flexing his fingers.
“We’ll get her back.”
“Yeah? David has been two steps ahead of us this whole time. He has mad computer skills with technology available to him we haven’t seen before. Hell, they could be out of the country by now for all we know.”
“They could be, but give your mate some credit. Rhi’s smart, and she’s determined. If anyone can get away from David, it’s her.”
“Not if he keeps her drugged or tied up or… Fuck!” Ryker’s lion tried to break free. He crouched down, but Sultan stepped into his space.
“Not here. We’re too exposed.”
Ryker took several calming breaths, his beast retreating. When he stood, he closed his eyes. “I pushed her away. When I first met Rhi, I pushed her away even though I felt the pull. My Gryphon claimed her within minutes of meeting her.”
“Come on. Let’s take a walk.” Sultan took off toward the interior of the park, and Ryker fol
lowed. When they were hidden by trees on the walking path, Sultan asked, “Why did you push her away?”
“She’s young. Rhi has been through a lot in ten years, but she has no real-world experience. Hell, she’s a virgin, and I’m not exactly the gentlest of lovers. That’s why my arrangement with Cassandra was perfect. She was an assassin. She gave as good as she got.”
“Cassandra wasn’t mate material. If she had been, you would have met up with her more than once a month. Besides, just because Rhi is a virgin doesn’t mean she won’t be feisty. That much repressed need is going to need to be sated.”
Ryker thought about the way Rhi came apart when he went down on her. She held nothing back.
“What else?” Sultan asked.
“What else what?”
“What were the other reasons you pushed her away?”
“For reasons Sutton showed me were bullshit. I thought I needed to focus on being Pres and making sure our merc work was steady again. I didn’t need the distraction of a female.”
“And Sutton did all those things with Rory by his side.”
“Right. But Rory’s one of us. How do I explain to Rhi that I go out and kill people for a living?”
“You aren’t giving her enough credit. That girl has lived with monsters for ten years. You seriously believe she hadn’t thought about putting a stop to them at some point?”
Ryker thought back to when they had James tied up in Lucy’s basement. She had said she wanted to kill the man. “You’re right; Rhi is tough. And yes, I pushed her away in the beginning. But I also got my head out of my ass. After I was shot and she used her gift on me? It was like she shared her soul with me. I never thought I’d get a second chance after Juliette, but when Rhi’s energy combined with mine, I knew I would never let her go. All the reasons I had for pushing her away evaporated like smoke from a cigarette. I’ve watched War and Mav get their second chance, and now I want mine.”
Sultan stopped walking and turned to Ryker. “Did I ever tell you about my mate?”
