Page 10 of Ramshackle
Aiden looks determined over something, but it’s Kellan who’s glaring at me to make sure I’m clearly cued in on his opinion of how this all happened.
“Where?” I ask, even knowing it’s too hopeful to expect that they’ll have figured out her location and are here to come up with a plan to get her back.
He shakes his head. “We don’t know. We went back to the island for any clues, but there was nothing left by the time we got there.”
“How long have I been out?”
“About a week. We sedated you. It was the only way to let your back heal fully.”
“A week,” I repeat slowly. “He’s had her a week.” And they still don’t have a single clue to her whereabouts. A lot can happen in one week. Especially with someone who I suspect is the reason why she doesn’t see herself clearly anymore.
She told me she wanted vengeance. Was that for what happened with Vera and Dane, or something for herself?
I clench and unclench my hands in my lap. Where could she be? I killed everyone tied to GE in this city already, so I’ll have to spread my radius until I find someone who will know. Someone must know Gordon’s name and his location or contact information.
“He wouldn’t have her at all if you didn’t play villain and deliver her to the enemy!” Kellan snarls, stepping away from the door and closer to me.
Aiden sighs. “He’s not wrong. You swore you could be trusted to protect Raegan, and now, we’ve lost her.”
Kell growls at him now. “Don’t say it like that! She’s not lost.” He shoves his finger at the door. “That bitch knows exactly where she is, and she’s smug as shit about it.”
I glance to the door and back to Kellan. “Who?” I demand. If someone knows where she is, there is nothing, and I meannothing, I won’t do to get that information from them.
Aiden’s eyes narrow at me. “No. That’s not an option.” I raise an eyebrow in his direction. Sohethinks. There isn’t a single person I’ve interrogated who didn’t tell me what I wanted to know for the information they had. This one will be no different. “Vera is here.”
Well.
I’m not surprised often, but I wasn’t expecting that.
She may have started out in our group, but I was never close with her. There was always something about her that annoyed me. From the brief time I saw her on the roof of the warehouse, it looks like her irritating attitude has been amplified, and whatever good that had been in her is now twisted. Her life means nothing to me against Raegan’s.
No one’s does.
“You can’t hurt her. Any harm comes to her, and Gordon will take it out on Raegan,” Aiden adds, bringing my attention back to him. “She traded herself for Vera and our lives. As long as Vera stays with us, then Raegan won’t try to escape. And if she does, then he can take Vera back and will most likely punish Raegan by going after us.”
He can come after us all he likes. Even better, because then I have a simple trail that will lead me right to him.
I cock my head to the side, studying Aiden and wondering why he’s here. He has to know that I’m not going to sit back and wait. “Why are you both here?”
“The only way we’re going to get her back is by working together. I need to know that you’ll work with us and not run off on your own like last time,” Aiden answers. “Vera can’t find out that we’re all looking for her. I’m sure she’s still communicating with GE, and they have to believe that we’re happy enough with Vera to leave Raegan alone.”
Kellan snorts from where he’s standing.
Aiden continues, “If too many of us are missing or keep going in and out, she’ll notice. I leave enough as it is for the Guild, so I can’t go as far as I’d like, and Kellan has to stay here to keep an eye on Vera with Dane.”
Which leaves me to be able to go wherever. “What does Dane think of all this? That he may have to return Vera once we bring Raegan home?”
Kellan shifts, and I catch him rolling his eyes. “Rapunzel wants to have his cake and eat it, too. He’s all in on this plan, but he wants us to trap Vera once we find and get Raegan so she doesn’t leave.”
Aiden nods. “Dane will help try to narrow down locations and people with ties to GE. Once you’re out there, keep us updated on what you find out so we can dig deeper and point you to people with possible information. Keep your cell phone and this credit card on you. Eat and sleep so you’re not useless when we do find her location because we’ll be moving immediately using Reid.” He passes a card over to me, which I flip between my fingers. “And Jack...” He pauses until our eyes lock. “This isn’t a solo mission. We’ll find her faster if we work together. It’s already hard for some of us to trust you after what you did.”
“You pretended to be evil way too well,” Kell chimes in, and I smirk at him.
I never said I’d been pretending.
But I like this plan, and believe it or not, I’ve learned my lesson about going solo.
For now.
