Before I had the chance to say anything, Cane shouted out to the other Feral Son’s. “Your president is fucking crazy. Any fucking idiot can see that. This isn’t going to end well. For you, or for him. I’m gonna give you one fucking chance to lay your guns down and get the fuck out of here. If Leo wants to prove how much better he is than Caleb, he can fucking fight him one on one.”
“Or he can turn himself in and go to fucking prison for what he did to Amber,” I added, although I hoped that wasn’t the option he would take.
A murmur of voices followed suit. Then, one after the other, five guns were thrown into the center of the room.
“Fuck you, you fuckers,” Leo said with a note of panic in his voice.
He walked into full view. His gun held in the air above his head. I stood and faced him, while my brothers came out of their hiding places with every one of their guns trained on him.
He glanced over his shoulder at his men who emerged behind him, their hands raised in the air above their heads.
Cane motioned them to the exit we’d come through. “See them out and secure them,” he said to our brothers nearest the door.
“Good fucking riddance,” Leo called at their backs.
He dropped his gun to the floor, and my brothers lowered theirs. I placed mine on the ground by my feet.
“You made a decision?” I asked.
Leo casually walked over to the nearest chair, smashed it on the floor, and removed a leg from the broken pieces.
“I guess you have,” I said as he hefted it in his hand.
Heart thumping, I barreled forward, driving into Leo like a battering ram. He flew backward, managing to keep his footing. He smashed the chair leg into my arm. The fucker aimed a second swing at my head.
I ducked. Anger swept through my veins. Years and years of suffering all cuz this fucker had Daddy issues. I lashed out with a sweeping kick to his leg. And missed. But didn’t let up.
He swung the leg at me again. This time, I caught it, twisting it in his hands. He had two choices: let it go or risk breaking his fucking wrist by keeping ahold of it. He let go.
I dropped it, punched him in the face, and smashed my foot into the back of his leg. His knee buckled, sending him to the ground. He flailed around for the chair leg, I kicked it out of his way, and punched him again, holding onto his collar to stop him from falling.
He laughed.
I stopped.
Blood dripped from his nose. His lip was cut in a second place, and his eye was black from our earlier encounter. Still, he sat on the ground laughing at me.
“You think you’ve won,” he said and spat a clump of blood at my feet. “But my men are with the girl and know what to do with her.”
His words were like a stab wound to the fucking chest. “Rex,” I called into my comms unit. “Rex, fucking answer me.”
I turned to Cane and saw my own panic mirrored in his eyes. They darted from me and back to Leo on the floor behind me. Before I had a chance to turn a gunshot rang out.
In the blink of an eye, Leo had pulled a second gun. But somebody shot him before he had the chance to shoot me. I looked back at Cane, in the doorway behind him, the one we sent Leo’s men out, Tom emerged, gun in hand.
He put it away and walked toward me, looking down at Leo. “I heard there was a break-in,” he said. “I’ll call it in and let them know I’ve got the perp.”
A strange gurgling noise came from Leo. I looked at his face. Blood bubbled from his mouth and dripped down the lion tattoo on his neck. It took me a while to realize he was still laughing.
“She... she’ll be dead by morning,” he said. His final words.
“Rex,” I called again. There was still no answer.
Chapter Sixteen
Amber
“Are you okay?” Thea asked.
I looked at the untouched bagel on the plate in my hands, placed them both on the end table, and stared at the clock on the wall. It was a little after ten. Rex had been in a few minutes ago to let us know that Caleb, Cane, and the others were still watching the bar and that there was nothing to report yet. Although, he was concerned that the weather was playing havoc with his comms signal, as he called it, and he was worried he would lose contact with the others.
“I can’t stand sitting here, waiting, not knowing what’s going on or if he’s safe. How can you be so calm?”
Thea sighed. “Maybe I’m just good at not showing how worried I am.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I am trying to be calm, for the sake of the baby, but it’s not as easy as you may think. I guess I’m just good at hiding away my true feelings.”
I gave her a wry smile. “I’m pretty good at that myself.”
Thea took a sip of water and glanced at Charlie. She was curled asleep on the couch next to me. I hadn’t wanted to put her back to bed when she fell asleep. I was too worried that something might happen, and I wouldn’t be able to reach her.
“It must have been hard staying away from Caleb when you obviously never stopped loving him.”
“Some days it was easier than others.” The sound of the rain, battering the windows, and the wind outside made my head pound. I wished for all the world that the weather would change, and Rex could listen in to what was happening back in Castle Rock.
“I knew he would be upset and hurt,” I continued, talking about Caleb. “I guess... I just told myself that he would soon move on and get over me. I thought it was for the best. I wanted to stop him—” I huffed and shook my head “—I wanted to stop a night like this from happening.”
“Soon it will be over, and we can go back to worrying about making Sophia’s wedding day the best she’s ever had.”
“I just wish I could be there for her now. We were meant to be spending some time together before the big day, and now she’s had to do everything by herself.”
“She understands.”
“I know. That’s what makes it so much worse.”
The wind rose and lashed the rain against the window. “Let’s watch a show and drown out the noise. It’ll give us something to focus on.” Thea lifted the controller and glanced at Charlie again. “Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t think. Will the noise wake her?”
I smiled. “If the storm hasn’t woken her, I doubt any noise from the television will. She’s a pretty heavy sleeper.”
Thea smiled and turned on the television, flicking through channels until we settled on something to watch. But the windows rattled, and the house moaned, and it became harder and harder to focus on anything else.
“It’s a good job Rex brought Billy and Stan inside or they’d be on the brink of hypothermia by now,” Thea said after a while.
I stood and moved the curtains to look outside. It was pitch black with nothing to be seen except the occasional shadows of branches moving in the wind. “These old houses are lovely, but in weather like this, you do get the sense of being battered about like a ship at sea.”
Thea joined me at the window. “At least we don’t have the chance of sinking.”
Before I could respond, the lights dimmed, and the television shut off. For a few heartbeats, the lights flickered as though fighting to stay on. But they too shut off, plunging the room into complete darkness.
Thea grabbed out for my hand.
“Charlie,” I said, and we moved in unison to the couch, feeling our way in the dark.
I lifted Charlie in my arms but pushed my foot against Thea’s to make sure we kept in contact. I strained through the bustle of the storm, listening for any sound that was out of the ordinary. There was none.
“I can’t hear Rex or the others moving around,” Thea said, and I realized she was right. “I think we should go to the hiding place, Rex mentioned.”
I don’t know how long I stood there, too afraid to move or even breathe. I was convinced that if I listened long and hard enough, I’d hear Rex and the others calling out our names. He knew where we were.
&
nbsp; “Okay,” I whispered eventually and pulled Charlie tighter against me.
Thea reached for my hand and I felt how cold and clammy it had become.
“We’ll be fine,” I said, although from the nausea churning in my stomach I wasn’t sure we would be. “The storm probably put the power out.”
“I know. I’m just... I’m not very good in the dark.”
I held her hand tighter. Neither was I.
“I can feel the couch against my leg, so that means the door is this way.” Thea tugged me to the right and I followed.
We groped along the wall until we found the door. I was breathing fast, and my heartbeat thundered when we opened it. Beyond, the hallway lay in complete darkness.
We froze. My breath hitched, and I sensed that Thea’s had too. “I don’t think we’ll be able to find the hiding spot in the dark,” I said.
“Let’s go to the kitchen. I saw a box of matches in one of the drawers. We can use them.”
“There might be a flashlight or some candles in there too.” I pulled Thea in the direction of the kitchen, feeling along the walls as I went.
“I can just about make out the shape of things,” Thea said. “I think my eyes are adjusting to the light.”
“In that case, we’ll be faster if you lead. I still can’t see a thing.”
We did move faster as Thea’s steps became more confident. Within seconds, we were in the kitchen. With the large windows and open curtains, I was also able to discern my surroundings in the dim light.
“Over here,” Thea said and raced to a drawer by the cooker.
Footsteps sounded in the hallway and I dashed after her. The wind continued its incessant howl and the rain bashed the house as though determined to wash it from the face of the Earth. I reached up and grabbed a pan from the rack over the center island to use as a weapon if necessary, and Thea and I crouched behind the kitchen unit. I hugged Charlie’s warm body close to my own and for the first time in a very long time, prayed.
The footsteps moved through the house. There was a thud followed by a cuss. The person moved closer.
“Thea,” a voice I recognized called. “Amber.”
A breath of air rushed from my body. Tears of relief welled in my eyes.
Thea stood. “Billy,” she said at the same time as a dark figure pushed through the door.
“Thank fuck,” he answered. “Cane would have ripped my fucking head off.”
“What’s happening?” Thea asked as I found my feet.
“Rex was worried about a power outage and said he’d seen a generator out back while searching the grounds. He and Stan went to see if it was in working order.”
“Where were you?” I asked unable to keep the note of accusation from my voice.
I couldn’t see Billy’s face clearly, but from his stance, I sensed he was embarrassed by the answer. “I was upstairs using the little boys’ room,” he answered after a moment.
I laughed. The whole situation was so ridiculous, it was the only thing to do.
Before I had the chance to compose myself the lights flickered on and stayed that way. A minute or so later, Rex and Stan joined us in the kitchen.
“Generators working,” Rex said, and I laughed again.
Thea smiled at me and asked if the comms unit was working.
Rex shook his head. “Cell signal is flashing in and out though.”
For the next ten minutes, we all stayed together in the kitchen. Neither Thea nor I were too keen to be on our own again.
Billy had made Charlie a makeshift bed on the kitchen counter and I sat at one of the stools with my hand on her to stop her from rolling off while she slept. I only moved when my cell beeped and vibrated on the countertop where I’d left it earlier in the day. I rushed to check, hoping it was a message Caleb managed to get through.
I almost dropped the phone when I read it.
“What’s wrong?” Thea was by my side in seconds.
“It’s from Sophia. She’s hiding. There’s someone in her house.”
“Fuck,” Rex said. “We gotta reach Caleb.”
Chapter Seventeen
Caleb
Cane and I rushed to Greg’s pickup with the intention of heading back to the safe house. My stomach rolled and from the cording in Cane’s neck, he was fit to kill every fucker in sight if anything had happened to Thea.
A part of me thought that Leo’s final words were one last fuck over of my mind, one final way he could beat me at something, but a nagging voice in my head kept reminding me of the phone call I’d seen his group take before they entered the bar.
“Fuck,” I said and banged my fists on the roof of the pickup.
“Save it for when you need it,” Cane said, so I huffed out a breath and tried to calm the fuck down.
I reached for the door when a crackle sounded in my ears. “Caleb, Cane, Bono. Any fucker hear me?”
Cane and I froze. “Rex. Thank fuck. I can barely read you. Is everyone safe?”
“Amber, Thea, and Charlie are all fine.” I flung my head back and clenched my head in relief.
“Who’s in trouble?” Cane asked, always more perceptive than me.
My relief was short-lived. My throat dried and I found it hard to swallow when he told us Amber had received a message from Sophia a few minutes ago. She was back home, hiding, and someone was in her house.
“Fuck,” Cane said echoing my earlier words.
We jumped in the pickup and raced towards the bungalow. Cane threw his phone at me. “Sophia’s number is saved on there. Thea gave it to me when you went to Ta-Towhee.”
I scrolled through the phone and searched, while he sped off. This time, I didn’t comment on his speed. I doubted the truck could go any fucking faster.
When I estimated we were five minutes away, I dialed Sophia’s number, prayed she had the sense to turn the ringer off, and waited.
“Hello,” she whispered, and I resisted growling in relief.
“It’s Caleb. Don’t speak, don’t make a sound. Turn the volume way down and listen. If I say anything that isn’t true, I want you to press a something on the screen. You won’t hear anything. but I will,” I said, and decided to start with the obvious. “There’s someone in your house and you’re hiding.”
No beep.
“There’s one man.”
Beep.
“Two.”
Beep.
“Three.” No beep. “Good girl, you’re doing fine. Cane and I are almost with you.”
“Three,” Cane mouthed, and I nodded.
“It’ll help us to know where you’re hiding,” I continued. I didn’t add that was in case this turned into a shoot-out and I didn’t want her in the fucking firing line. “You’re under a bed.” Beep. “In a wardrobe.” Beep. I had to think for a while. My fucking brain hurt with the effort. “The bathtub.” Beep.
I covered the phone and turned to Cane. “Where the fuck do people hide?” I asked.
He shrugged, but then it looked as though a lightbulb went off inside his head. “Thea once mentioned that she used to hide under the sink in the kitchen when she was little.”
I thought it was a fucking long shot but asked if she was there.
No beep.
Cane pulled the car to a stop a way down the street from the bungalow, we could just see it. A light was on and a shadow moved past the broken window.
“We’re outside,” I said. “I’m ending the call—”
Beep.
“I have to, to come in. Hang tight, we’ll be with you in a second.” Without waiting for another answer, I hung up.
Cane gave me a tight look and we got out of the pickup.
We jogged across the road, staying low and to the shadows. When we reached the building, we pressed tight against the wall. “How do you want to play this?” I asked.
“Same way I like to play everything,” he answered. “By walking straight up to the fucking door.”
Despite the fucking situation, I smile
d and clapped him on the shoulder. “Straight up to the fucking door it is.”
I stood tall and, next to my blood-brother, walked up to the door and knocked. “We know you’re in there,” I said. “You should know, Leo’s dead, and if you fuckers don’t come out with your hands in the air, you’ll find yourselves in the same fucking predicament.”
A shuffle sounded and, after a while, someone said, “I’m coming out.”
The door opened. One fucker walked out with his hands on his head. He moved slowly edging in a circle around us as though trying to get us to turn. Cane smirked, grabbed hold of the door and yanked it backward into the house. The crack and cry of pain as it impacted a second fucker rang through the neighborhood. A dog barked.
I punched the fucker who thought he could fool us in the face. Seeing we meant business, the final fucker, put his hands up and surrendered for real.
“Is Leo really dead?” he asked.
“He is,” I answered.
“Thank fuck for that,” he said with evident relief on his face. The others stood and echoed the sentiment.
I left Cane to deal with them, went to the kitchen, and opened the cupboard under the sink. Sure enough, crammed inside I found Sophia.
“You’re gonna be okay,” I said. “It’s over.”
Chapter Eighteen
Amber
It seemed an eternity that I sat in the living room waiting for Caleb to return to the safe house. The storm had subsided, and full cell coverage returned.
Thea and I had spent an age on the phone with Sophia, and we’re happy to note that she seemed her normal chirpy self after her ordeal. Cane and Caleb were dropping her back at Ben’s before making their way here. No doubt the two who were set to guard her were about to receive an earful.
Charlie had remained asleep and blissfully unaware, and after the call, I decided that she could finally be settled in bed. Tomorrow would bring another exciting day, and the day after was Sophia’s wedding.
My heart felt like it would leap from my chest when a pickup pulled up outside. Thea beat me to the door, running outside and flinging herself into Cane’s arms. He wasted no time in sweeping her inside, and I thanked my lucky stars that their room was the furthest away from Charlie’s.
Forever Midnight MC Collection: Books 1-3 Page 25
