He rises to his full height. A moment later, Padrino and his men leave the room. The guard closes the door and I release an anguished cry as I slam the back of my head against the concrete repeatedly, hoping to erase the grainy image of Lacey lying helpless in our bed from my memory.
My fingers close around the leather bag sitting on top of my chest and her name falls from my lips.
“I’m sorry,” I croak. “So, fucking sorry.”
Chapter Forty-Four
Lacey
A shrill scream wakes me from a deep sleep. I open my eyes and quickly sit up. The house is silent at first making me believe I imagined the sound. Then, Danny comes running into my bedroom with tears streaming down his face and I quickly realize something is off. Figuring he had a nightmare I quickly jump out of bed to console him.
“It’s okay, I’m right here,” I tell him, running a hand over his sandy brown hair. “It was just a dream.”
“No,” he croaks, pointing a finger towards the door. “Lacey, there’s blood everywhere.”
Narrowing my eyes in confusion, I peel my gaze away from him and glance towards the hallway.
“I went downstairs to get some water, and I saw it,” he cries. Unraveling my arms from him, I rise to my full height.
“Stay here,” I say softly but he tugs my hand back.
“No! Please don’t leave me alone,” he begs. My gaze drifts back to his and the fear reflected in his eyes causes me to panic. Subconsciously I know I need to hold it together for his sake and so, I draw in a deep breath. I wrap both arms around him and assure him everything will be okay. Even without knowing what he’s seen, the words feel like a lie on my tongue and I grab my cell phone from my nightstand. Taking hold of his hand again, I lead us cautiously out of my bedroom.
The house is eerily quiet and at first glance, nothing on the second floor seems out of place. I start for the stairs and midway I pause, spotting the blood. Hoarsely, I order Danny to close his eyes and help him descend the rest of the stairs. Ever the obedient child, Danny clutches my hand and squeezes his eyes shut as I take in the destruction.
It looks as if someone took a roller and painted my walls with blood. I take another step but quickly freeze, fearing whoever is responsible for this might still be in the house. My heart hammers violently against my chest as I fumble with the phone in my hand. Quickly, I pull up my father’s number and my trembling fingers hit send. That’s when I notice there’s a message written in Spanish with the blood on one of the walls in the living room. I look back at Danny as the phone rings, grateful he still has his eyes closed because tears start to stream down my cheeks as all the possibilities race rapidly through my mind.
Someone could’ve taken him.
They could’ve killed us both.
They might still be here.
At some point, my father must’ve answered the phone because suddenly his voice registers with me and I realize I rambled my thoughts out loud.
“Jesus fuck, calm down! I can’t understand a word you’re saying,” my father bellows.
“Someone broke into my house,” I sob frantically, clenching my jaw as I stare at the cryptic message on the wall.
“Where’s Danny?”
“He’s right here. We’re fine but they must’ve come in while we were sleeping.”
As the words leave my lips, my stomach rolls.
“Listen to me, I’ll be—”
“There’s blood everywhere,” I croak.
“What do you mean there is blood everywhere? You just said you weren’t hurt.”
“I don’t know where it came from,” I explain. “They used it to write a message all over the walls.”
“What kind of message?”
I quickly lose my patience with all the questions and snap at him, telling him it’s in Spanish.
“Just come here. Please just come here,” I plead desperately.
“Lock the doors and take Danny into the basement. I’m on my way,” he says before disconnecting the call. Pocketing the phone, I do as he instructed and lock the doors. Dragging Danny with me, I move to the kitchen and grab a knife. Armed, I lead my little brother to the basement. When I’m sure we’re alone, I tell him to open his eyes. He doesn’t let go of my hand and I drop the knife onto the floor before kneeling and bringing him into my arms. He sobs into my neck and I hug him harder. As petrified as I am, I can only imagine how he feels. Especially after the accident.
I try to comfort him but as we wait for our father to arrive, my mind gets the best of me and I try to make sense of what happened. Why would anyone break into my house and not hurt me or Danny? In the past, any enemy of my fathers didn’t think twice before using a loved one as leverage. The fact they let us go unscathed doesn’t make sense and I start to fear this wasn’t about my father at all but rather a play against my husband. My helpless husband who is currently rotting in a cell with no means to defend himself.
I may not always be in the loop when it comes to club business, but I know enough to know Blackie might be in danger. Hell, anyone who has read a fucking New York newspaper knows he’s not safe in prison. Gang violence is very much a thing in Ryker’s Island. It’s the very reason my father sent Stryker to jail on phony charges all those years ago. He knew Blackie was a target, and he needed protection.
Riggs had mentioned it to Wolf at the arraignment, but I don’t think he did anything about it. They all left him to rot like a fucking animal.
My thoughts are interrupted as Nico bustles down the stairs with his gun drawn.
“Fuck,” he growls when his eyes landed on me. “Are you okay?”
Tears spill from my eyes as I shake my head. I’m not okay and not because some dirtbag vandalized my house while me and my brother were asleep. Something is wrong with Blackie. I can feel it in my veins, in my heart and deep inside my gut.
Nico takes Danny into his arms and holds out his hand for me to take. We make our way upstairs and as soon as we reach the landing, my brother scrambles free from Nico’s arms and runs to my father.
“It’s okay, bud, Daddy’s got you,” he soothes, turning his eyes to me.
I don’t make an attempt to hide my fear. For the first time in a long time, I don’t want to wear a mask. I want him to look at me and see what this was doing to me. I want him to know if something happens to my husband, I will never forgive him.
Never.
“We’re out of here,” my father declares. “Go upstairs with Wolf and pack some clothes for yourself and Danny. While you’re up there, pack me something for Reina too.”
“Reina?” Wolf questions. “We’re springing her out of the hospital?”
“I’m not leaving her in the hospital where anyone can get to her,” he volleys.
Funny, he didn’t have a problem sending my husband to a place where anyone could get to him.
“What about the memory shit and all that?” Nico asks from beside me. Realizing he’s holding my hand I glance down and wonder when that happened.
“She’s gonna have to do her healing in the comforts of her own fucking home until things are safe,” my father answers as I snatch my hand free from Nico’s.