Well, he can be upset, but I’m mother fucking pissed. “Where the fuck is your brother, Drake?”
“At the local hospital. He was shot, which we got from the CTV. He’s sitting in the operating room. Bullet is lodged in his chest, but the doctor thinks he’ll be fine. Mom’s with him; otherwise, I’d be there, too.” Drake grabs his hands, twisting them together.
“Motherfucker.” That word seems to be something that’s on repeat around here.
“Did you guys call Easton? I had him put a tracker on her phone earlier this month. I know we have some equipment, but Easton has it all,” I ask.
“Yeah, man. We already know where she is. We were just waiting for you to get here,” Bridger says with a twinkle in his eye.
“You and me, when we get Taylor back and she’s safe and sound, your ass is mine,” Travis grunts. I ignore his remark, go to my office and pull out my extra Glock. I make sure I have two extra clips before making my way back up front.
“Kellie, you can lock up and call it a day. It’s late for you to be here anyway.” I nod at Bridger, letting him know I’m not a fool.
“Thank you, Slade. I’ll be saying a prayer for Taylor. If you don’t mind, I’ll go wait at the hospital with Drake’s mom in case she needs anything?” She already has her bag on her shoulder.
“She’d appreciate that. Thank you, Kellie,” Drake says.
“All right, let’s rock and roll. I have a woman to get back, my woman.” I walk out the front door, heading right to my SUV.
I hear Travis growl, but right now he could be on fire and I’d probably ignore him.
“You’re not driving. I am,” Bridger says. I throw the keys at him, slide in the passenger side, while Travis and Drake get in the back.
“Drake, I know you want to be there front and center, but your shoulder isn’t going to allow that. I want you in here on medic in case shit goes sideways,” I tell him without giving him an option. He nods his agreement. I look at Travis. “We have shit to discuss, and we’ll do that later once Taylor’s safe, but do you have your sniper rifle ready and a way to exit without being seen?”
He lifts it up to show me he’s holding it as if it were his baby and nods. “Yeah, we do, but part of this is my fucking fault. I should have known that cocksucker had a screw loose. He didn’t re-up, said something about being needed stateside. I saw the twitch in his eye, but thought it was all the action he saw overseas. Little did I know that fucker was watching us all. Especially when Taylor was on calls with us and sending us care packages. One of my men let me know after I told him about Taylor that he walked in on Eric one time, and it wasn’t a good thing. I’m sparing you the details because I’m going to kill him, slowly.”
“Not if I get my hands on him first,” I grunt. We’re only in the car for a few minutes when Easton comes over the phone. “Damn, we sure are having fun when we find the woman of our dreams,” he says with a chuckle. “I triangulated her cell phone. This guy is a fucking imbecile, by the way. Then I picked him up on the traffic cameras. I sent Bridger the address. You’re going to want to enter on the north side of the warehouse. There’s a door there and a door up front. You should have a clear vantage point, Travis, up on the catwalk. Anything else y'all need?”
“Keep the cops at bay until everything’s taken care of. I want to get Travis out of there before I have to answer to the cops, and Easton?”
“Yeah?” he asks.
“Thank you for helping. I know you moved away to do your own thing, but I’m thankful as hell to have you in my corner,” I grunt.
“You helped me out not too long ago with Cam. I’ll be on standby. Have fun, boys,” and he clicks off the line. I check to make sure my gun is ready as we pull in on the north side of the warehouse.
“You sure you’re okay?” Drake asks as I go to climb out.
“Yeah, you going to be okay here?” I respond, and he nods.
“Let’s go, princesses. We have a lady to rescue,” Bridger says.
“Someone should duct tape his mouth shut,” Travis grunts as the three of us make our way to the door, silent on our feet. Bridger clears the entrance then allows Travis in. I’m bringing up the rear, watching him get in place the entire time.
I can hear Eric’s piss-ant self, talking to Taylor, and it takes everything I have not to gut him like a stuck pig.
Our coms are in our ears, one of the things we did when we got ready on our way over. Travis is in place, so this is when I make my appearance known. I walk on steady feet the entire time. If anything happens to anyone, it’s going to be to Eric or to me, but with Travis and Bridger having my back, I feel like we have this under control.
“Eric,” I holler, getting his attention from the bound and gagged Taylor. He has her under a light and her arms and legs are tied to a chair. Tear stains mar her cheeks, fueling my anger for the fear and pain he’s caused her. When Eric realizes it’s me coming farther into the room, his face goes as white as a sheet.
“Slade, don’t come any closer or I’ll shoot her. If I can’t have her, then no one else will either.”
It pains me to not look at Taylor, but I need Eric’s attention on me for Travis to do his job. “I won’t, but why don’t you put your gun down and talk man to man?” I suggest.
“No, I know there are men all around. I bet we’re surrounded.” He does a full circle, waving his gun. I dive to Taylor, holding her head so she doesn’t knock it on the concrete floor. I hear the bullet whizzing through the air and the grunt of someone falling down. “Are you okay?” I ask Taylor as I gently pull the duct tape off her mouth.
“I am now. Who shot Eric? Why the hell did he take me? Where’s Leo?” She has a bruise forming on her forehead, her arms are scraped up as well as her knees.
“Travis took family leave. Apparently Eric had some sick infatuation with you. Leo’s in the hospital, but last we heard, he’ll make a full recovery. Which is where you’re going as soon as we can get you out of here,” I tell her as I unbind her wrists and ankles.
“I love you, Slade.” She tightens her arms around my neck, holding on tight. “I had no doubt you’d find me, none at all.” She kisses my jaw, and as much as I want to take her mouth, I need to get her the fuck out of here.
“Go, I’ll take care of the cops then meet you at the hospital. Travis already found the bullet and dug it out of the wall, so he’ll be going with you. Eric and I will be having a nice little discussion when the cops come rolling in,” Bridger suggests.
“Thanks, man. I owe you. You want me to see if Kellie will pick you up?”
“I got it covered. I texted her a bit ago. She’s picking up a truck and heading here now,” he says with a shrug.
I pick Taylor up, wrapping her in my arms and carry her outside to where Drake and Travis are already waiting.
“She’s got a nice goose egg on her forehead and a few scrapes. I’d feel better if she got checked out at the hospital,” I state as I slide in the back with Taylor in my arms.
“Travis Adam Daniels, what were you thinking coming home and not telling me?” she chastises from the backseat even though she’s groggy.