I felt like the wind had gotten kicked out of me, like there was no air getting pulled in to breath, like I was tight in the chest and fuzzy in the head.
I needed to focus.
I couldn't let my fear run away with me.
That wasn't going to help get Shy back.
"Okay," I said, nodding at the door to the car, a silent demand for Huck to close it. "They have Joss and Shy," I told him, then rattled off the details again.
"Why would she chase him?" Huck asked, running a hand through his hair.
"Eddie said he might have been on the phone," I told him as Teddy told me. "Maybe she overheard him say something, and was trying to chase him down to tell him to wait for us. I don't know. I don't... I have to get her back," I said, hearing the roughness in my own voice.
"Hey," Huck said, grabbing my shoulder, squeezing it hard. "Don't lose it on me, okay? We need your head in the game. We are going to get her back, but you need to keep your shit about you right now, okay?"
"Yeah," I agreed, nodding, even though my stomach felt like it was in a vice grip.
"I'm gonna fill the guys in. And then we will roll out of here."
With that, that was exactly what happened.
We all got into our cars and made our way back to Miami like nothing had happened. All but for Seeley who stayed behind to make sure there was no surveillance footage in the house that could identify us when the cops eventually did get a call about the bodies.
Another time, maybe we would have gathered them up, fed them to some hungry 'gaters or something, but there wasn't time. And there was Betty to consider too.
By the time we got there, Teddy was already waiting out front for us, giving us the lowdown on the security footage from the building, and eye-witness accounts he'd had his driver get from some of the people who'd seen the SUV peel out.
When we got upstairs, handing off Betty to Sass and Harm for some comfort, it was Belle who spoke first.
"I thought she was just coming out of the bathroom," she mumbled, half to herself. "That's why I didn't get up. Not until I realized she was running. Then I got up. By the time I did, I heard her screaming for Teddy. I don't know why I went to the window instead of chasing after her. I should have gone after her."
"Hey, hon, this isn't your fault," Huck said, shaking his head. "And if you went after her, and got taken again too, we'd be worrying about you right now as well. Believe me, Belle, I am going to get Shy back. And rip the throat out of the fucker who took her and you."
"I was useless," Belle mumbled to herself, looking close to tears.
"Belle," Teddy called, making her head jerk up.
"Yeah?"
"Do you think maybe you should talk to Betty?" Teddy suggested. "Since you're the only one here who could have any idea what she might have gone through," he added.
"Oh," Belle said, her eyes no longer glistening. No, instead they looked determined. "Right. Yes. Of course," she said, nodding vigorously, then turning to go back to the master bedroom to find the girl.
"That was smart," Huck mumbled.
"She needed to feel useful. As one of the less useful members of this little ragtag group, I understand her."
"You've always been useful," Huck insisted. "Where would the girls and kids be tonight if you weren't here?" he added. "We can always count on your help in a pinch."
"Okay," Remy said, walking in from the hallway. "They were hit with bats, right?"
"Right," Huck agreed.
"Well, it doesn't last long. A glass bottle to the head gives you, what, three minutes max? A bat could last longer if they get a concussion. But not long. Long enough for them to get bound, sure. But they'd start creating issues in the car quickly. He couldn't have gone far."
"Got a point, or just spouting off shit you know?" Huck asked, brow raising.
"He can't go back to his clubhouse. We didn't link anywhere else to him when Arty did his search. He's probably squatting somewhere for the time being, trying to figure out what his next move is, calling in what is left of his crew."
"Right," Huck agreed.
"So we need to hit the ground and look for some abandoned buildings in the area. At least until Arty or Booker have something for us to go on. We're useless standing here."
"True. Alright. We are going to roll out. Eddie, you feeling alright to hold down the fort for now?" Huck asked.
"I'm fine, boss man. Sorry I let that kid sneak up on me," Eddie said, holding an icepack to his head.
"It's not your fault. We shouldn't have ever left everyone with only one guard. That's on me. Seeley will be back soon. But the prospects are making their way here too to hang with you. Let's roll," he added, waving a hand in the air.
We crammed into the cars, including two we'd borrowed from Teddy's collection, not wanting our bike sounds to give us away. Phones on to a group call, we made our way around the immediate vicinity, looking for abandoned buildings.
"Yo," Donovan called through the phone. "I might have something," he added.
"Don't stop, but what do you have?" Huck asked.
"An old bakery. All boarded up. All by itself too, everything around it is closed for the night. And there's a black SUV on the street."
"Where are we meeting?" Huck asked, turning around since Alaric had gone in the opposite direction we had.
I didn't question why everyone else had gone off in their own cars, but Huck had insisted on my going with him. He was worried about me going rogue.
And while I usually prided myself on being the most rational person in the club, even I had to admit that my mind wasn't working right since the moment I'd heard that Shy'd been taken.
My stomach had worked itself into a million knots, making bile rise up in my throat, even as an oppressive weight pressed down on my chest, making it impossible to take a deep breath as my imagination came up with more and more disturbing ideas about what might be happening to Shy.
I would never be able to forgive myself for not protecting her if that motherfucker hurt one hair on her goddamn head.
I hadn't said it yet. I had barely been able to admit it to myself yet, knowing it was too soon, knowing it was irrational, but unable to deny it either. But I was falling for that woman. For her quiet toughness. For all her sweetness. For her thoughtfulness and her good heart. For her clumsiness and obsession with fucking Eddie's cooking.
Hell, I wasn't falling.
It was past tense.
I'd fallen.
And I had to fucking get her back.
"Hey, head in the game, McCoy," Huck demanded, snapping in my face as he pulled into a parking lot where the others were all parking and climbing out of their cars as well, save for Che, who stayed.
You always needed a wheelman, just in case.
He pulled his car up beside us, cutting the engine, waiting to listen to instructions.
"I know," I agreed, cracking my neck, trying to pull myself together.
With that, I climbed out of the car.
"Okay. We are going to surround it," Huck said. "Che is going to move in as soon as he sees us get inside. You know the drill. No one lives through this but Shy and Joss."