“Henn!” Blaze yells and I turn as everyone runs out to their bikes.
Right.
I follow behind them, my mind racing and worry eating away at me as I climb on the back of my bike and the engine fires to life.
Why didn’t she call me?
Has she really lost all faith in me, in my ability to keep her safe? The thought makes me sick. I can’t lose her but each day that passes, she feels farther and father away from me and I have no clue how to pull her back in. I understand that what she’s been through has to be hard on her and I know there’s a little part of her that blames me but we can find a way around this, can’t we? Shaking off those thoughts, I turn to Blaze and nod. I can’t afford to be distracted right now. My girl needs me.
We ride out of the clubhouse in a line, Blaze in front followed by Storm and Smith before the rest of us and the roar of the bikes drowning out everything else around us. As we head out of town, I’m thankful that we live so close to the clubhouse. Then again, Hannah and Kady were probably coming from the clinic and it’s really not far either. If Kady and whoever is following her get to the cabin before us…
I can’t even picture it.
The rest of the ride is a blur and my heart is hammering in my chest as we pull up to the cabin. Hannah’s car is sitting in the driveway, still running, and they both appear to still be in the car. The SUV is parked along the dirt road leading up to Kady’s house and I jump off my bike, not even caring if I scratch the damn thing as I march over to the SUV and rip the driver’s side door open.
“Henn!” Blaze yells from behind me but I ignore him, intent on releasing some of this damn rage I’ve been carrying around for the past few days.
“Noah!” Kady screams and I glance back at her long enough for the man to jump out of the SUV and land a punch to my jaw. Smith, Chance, and Moose all jump in, grabbing him for me as I turn to look up at my girl. Tears are streaming down her face and it kills me but I can’t deal with that now.
“Take her inside, Hannah,” I instruct, turning back to the object of my anger. He smiles at me.
“Biche wanted to make sure y’all got your gift.”
I can’t hold back anymore as I clench my fist and slam it into his stomach. The satisfying wheeze of him trying to catch his breath again does nothing to quench the fire licking at my soul so I do it again.
And again.
And again.
And again before landing one to his jaw. In a haze, I keep punching until exhaustion takes over and I stumble back. The man in front of me is a bloody mess and barely conscious as I step forward and grab him by the collar of his shirt.
“You tell Biche that I’m coming for him,” I snarl, my face inches from his. “You tell him that when I’m done with him, he’s going to pray for death. I’m going to make him pay for everything he took from me and when that’s all said and done, I’m going to make him watch as I marry Kady and make her mine for the rest of eternity.”
I study his face for a second.
“You got all that? You need me to write it down?”
He shakes his head and I release him, letting his body slump to the ground as I back away, tears stinging my eyes as I struggle to breathe.
Fuck.
“Chance and Storm, tie him up and take him somewhere in town. I want him far away from here,” Blaze instructs and they nod before getting to work. He turns to me. “Go inside and see your girl, Henn. We’ve got this.”
I nod and turn toward the cabin, my stomach rolling.
Shit.
Now I’ve got to deal with this.
Kady is sitting on the couch next to Hannah when I walk in, her entire body shaking and I stop in the entryway as we stare at each other, neither one of us sure what to say. That’s never happened to us before. We’ve always been able to talk to each other and I hate the way it burns through me to know that’s changed.
“Why didn’t you call me?” I ask, my voice sounding far more accusatory than I intended and she sucks in a breath as her gaze hardens and she stands.
“Go to hell, Noah.”
She stalks past me and I reach out, grabbing her hand to stop her. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
“Let me go,” she whispers, fury in her tone as she rips her hand out of mine with so much force that I have to take a step back to catch myself. She takes off down the hallway and I take a step to follow her when Hannah steps out in front of me and plants her hand on my chest. She’s just as angry as Kady, visions of murder playing out across her face.
“You’d better pull your goddamn head out of your ass before you lose her, Noah… for good this time.”
She follows Kady down the hallway and I stand in the entryway like an idiot because I have no clue what to do in this situation. Obviously, Kady and I got off the rails somewhere along the way but I have no idea how to fix it.
Do I talk to her?
Do I leave her alone?
Finally, I decide to try and talk to her so I walk down the hallway and lean against the door frame as Kady throws clothes into a bag. My heart stops.
“Going somewhere?”
She glances up, anger warring with the pain in her eyes. “Yes. I’m spending the night at Hannah’s.”
“Don’t you think we should talk? Try and work this out?”
“I’m beginning to wonder if we even can,” she admits, tears filling her eyes as pain pierces through me.
“Please don’t say that, baby.”
Throwing her hands up, she tosses the bag on the bed. “I don’t know what else to do. You won’t talk to me, Noah. We’ve always been able to talk to each other but ever since I told you about Thomas, you’ve shut down on me.”
“Maybe you guys just need to take a breather,” Hannah suggests, all the anger gone from her expression. Kady sighs and meets my gaze.
“I think that’s a good idea.”
I shake my head. “Please, Kady. Don’t leave tonight. Stay here and we’ll work this out.”
“No,” she whispers, dropping her gaze to the floor and my stomach feels like a goddamn rock. “I think we need a little bit of space. I’ll be back tomorrow.”
I can’t even speak as she picks up her bag and walks across the room. With me in the doorway, she can’t get past me and I open my mouth to object again when she gives me a pleading look. Sighing, I move so she can step past me and she reaches out, grabbing my hand and giving it a squeeze before she disappears into the living room with Hannah on her heels. It’s almost like she was saying good-bye and I press my fist to my chest as it tightens.
Fuck.
Is it already too late?
Have I already lost her?
Chapter Seventeen
Kady
“Good luck,” Hannah says, flashing me a sympathetic smile as I stare up at the front door of the cabin and suck in a breath. I haven’t spoken to Noah since I left with Hannah yesterday despite all the texts he sent me during the night, begging me to come back. If I could, I might just stay away forever but I know he and I need to talk. Too bad I have no idea what I’m going to say.
“Thanks, Han.”
She nods. “Of course. Text me if you need anything, okay?”