He turns his head up to look at me and that adorable blush is on his face. “What do you plan to do when we get there?”
“Who said anything about we?” I frown at him.
“You might need me.”
“Need you to stay right here and continue learning. I’m not leaving for good. Not yet.”
“I don’t like it,” he says and pouts.
I tap his nose. “You don’t have to. You’re staying here. My plan only works if you’re here covering my ass.”
“Why do you have to go?”
I freeze. I’ve given John enough time to contact me. Okay, it’s been a day. The phone came this morning. I haven’t called him because if he sent the phone, he has to have the number. He should be the one to reach out, not me.
However, I want to know the truth. Is his brother really in some type of trouble or did he leave because of what happened between us—or should I say what didn’t happen between us. Whatever the case may be, I want to hear it from his mouth face to face.
Which is why I had Torque track him down and I’ll be purchasing a plane ticket to Seattle. That much he told the truth about. Torque was able to trace his credit card there. He’s staying at some swanky hotel.
Curiosity is killing me. Why a hotel? What’s going on with his brother? Why leave and not say something?
I trusted him and he left. I don’t like the way that feels. So, I’m going to get answers.
“You have training in the morning. You should head to bed. You’re doing so good. Thanks for the help,” I say.
He stands and tugs me into a hug. I force myself to relax and hug him back. I think this kid has grown since we’ve been here. I’m sure he’s about an inch or two taller now.
“Be safe. I… I don’t want to lose you too.”
I cup his cheek. “Hey, I’m going to be fine. I’ll be back before you know it.”
“What if they don’t let you come back? What if I can’t get to you if they find out and tighten security around here?”
Moving my hand to his chest, I smile up at him. I don’t miss the fact that his heart is pounding. Giving a reassuring pat, I lock eyes with him.
“You worry too much. Nothing can keep me away from you. I’ll be back for you or I’ll die trying. And we didn’t lose Natasha. I have to believe we’ll find her,” I say.
“Is that why you’re going to Seattle?”
I open my mouth to say no, but I lie instead. “Yeah. If I can make this happen, I have hope we’ll find her sooner than later.”
Well, it’s not a complete lie. I do plan to find out if John’s full of shit or if he’ll be willing to help us. If he’s not, I’m absolutely ready to take this all on by myself.
Torque pulls me into another tight hug. “Be safe. If you need me, log into that app I downloaded to your phone. I’ll be watching.”
“I’ll be fine. Get to bed.”
I watch him drag his way out of my room. Releasing a long breath, I get ready to put my plan in motion. I grab my small knapsack and slip out of the room. The halls are quiet. Everyone’s fast asleep for the night.
Great, that’s exactly what I need. I’ll slip out the back and head right through the brush. Looking down at my phone, I see my ride will arrive in ten minutes. That should be enough time to get into place.
I pause as I hear heavy footfalls ahead. Clinging to the wall, I don’t take a breath. As the tall guy walks past, I can hear the music coming from his headphones.
I relax and slip through the shadows, avoiding making a sound or getting caught. I jog silently down the stairs and dart to the back door. The alarm system blanks, informing that it’s engaged.
“Thanks, kid,” I mutter to myself as I use my phone to disarm the thing.
Torque really is learning fast. He’s been so eager to learn more. I know it’s because he thinks we can use it to find Natasha.
I’m hoping he’s right. It’s come in handy so far. If only I knew where to start, I’d find her and kill the rest of those bastards in the process.
I grind my teeth as my thoughts go back to the shit we had to go through. I can only hope that Natasha is hanging in there while I figure things out. Once through the bushes, I find new hope. I made it out.
“I might be able to pull this off.” I grin as I jump into my ride. Once in the back seat, I pull up the website to purchase my plane ticket. My smile grows as I enter the numbers from one of the cards John gave me by memory. Apparently, I have a thing for numbers. “John Black, here I come.”
John
“What’s up, Nate?” I breathe as I answer my phone, tossing my arm over my face.
“I think you have a visitor heading your way,” he replies. “Told you the money was a bad idea.”
I sigh and sit up. “How do you know she’s heading to me?”
It’s a dumb question. I know Nate’s team is one of the best. If I didn’t have my brothers to have my back, I’d want to have Nate’s crew.
“Watched her walk right off the property. Had one of my guys follow her to JFK. She boarded a flight to Seattle about five hours ago,” he says.
“Roni,” I groan.
“Told you, you were taking on more than you bargained for,” he says.
“Yeah, I know. Listen, the wedding is in a few hours, but I’ll handle this. I’ll get her back to you.”
He snorts. “Good luck.” With that, he hangs up.
I get up and swing my feet over the edge of the bed. If Roni boarded her flight five hours ago, I have about an hour before she lands. That gives me time to shower and check-in with Wyatt before she’ll be able to receive calls.
I dial Wyatt first. I want to see if he needs anything before I get my day started. We’ve all been moving around to get last minute things done for him and Nellie. I haven’t had time to sit down with my brother or his bride to be.
“Hey, John, what’s up?”
“Checking in. You ready for this?”
“Yes and no.”
“Want to talk about it?”
He sighs. “I feel like Nora is holding on for today. I wish there was a way to drag it out and keep her here longer for Nellie. Man, I’ve never felt so powerless in my life,” he says, pain clear in his voice.
“Bro, this has to be hard. I’m here when you need. Whatever you need,” I say. “Maybe you and Nellie should take a vacation when things settle. It’s on me. My gift to you guys.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I want to. Let me do this for you. Wherever you guys want to go.”
“Thanks, man. I’ll let you know. First, I need to get Nellie through today. I want this to be perfect for her. It has to be her dream wedding.”
“Are you kidding? Do you see the way she looks at you?” I chuckle. “This wedding could be in a cave with no light and not a crumb of food and she’ll still be happy as long as she’s married to you.”
“Yo, that reminds me. What happened to Missy? I would think she would have loved to come to something like this. She seems to like having her ass at family functions.”
I groan. “This is your wedding day, so I’m not going to answer that.”