Page 168 of Unchained

“You got it, baby. Stay this side of the fence, alright?” he says, and then kisses me so hard the room starts to spin.

“Do you honestly believe I’m dumb enough to get in there with that bull?” I tease.

“Well, I am.”

I roll my eyes. “Then that was an insult, hubby.”

CHAPTER EIGHTY-EIGHT

Colten

Song- Animals, Nickelback

“Easy, boy,” I say to settle Seven as I saddle up.

It’s Ace’s beast of a stallion; of course it has an attitude problem. He’s probably just as concerned as I am about his owner's behavior.

Tate tosses me the rope, and I let Seven trot around the table where Levi and Cesare are wide-eyed and sweating.

I don’t know if Levi’s hair is slicked back with grease or gel. His body is twitching in the chair, which ain’t a good sign this early on. Makes me wonder what Jett drugged him with.

Neither of them has any cuts, so it appears Jett’s kidnapping etiquette is improving. Tate pulls out the chair between them and flips it, taking a seat.

“I ain’t sure how long I can hold this one back!” Xander calls out from the chute.

Gravedigger thrashes against the metal, which vibrates through the room.

Bringing Seven to a stop behind Levi, he huffs and stomps his foot.

“You heard the man. We ain’t got a lot of time. Now, I’m proposing a deal. I’ll remove your gags, and you can both tell me what I need to know, in the fastest way you can think of. If you do that, we can get you out before Gravedigger comes out to eat his lunch,” Tate explains.

He leans over and rips the material from Cesare’s mouth first.

“You can go first. Why were you following Colten?” Tate asks.

The bull kicks out again.

“I was following orders.” He looks terrified as the bull's sounds grow louder.

Tate nods slowly. “And who gave the order? What exactly was the order?”

“Didn’t catch a name,” Cesare spits.

Tate stands and tosses the chair across the dirt with a thud. His fist rockets towards Cesare’s jaw. Blood sprays from his mouth and a tooth flies across the air.

“You’ve got fifteen seconds,” Tate seethes.

“Fuck you. Filthy cowboy,” Cesare responds, his Italian accent rumbling through.

Tate taps his fingers on the table. “Okay. So we have one player,” he says, turning his attention straight to Levi, removing his gag. “Your turn, sunshine. You told Gianna you had some intel and you wanted quite the bag for it. We don’t pay for that shit; we get it anyway.”

Levi spits on Tate’s boot in return. Tate grips his hair, tugging his head back aggressively, and spits right back in his face. “Cesare I understand. He has loyalty. You? You are only loyal to the one with the highest price. And what is more valuable to you than your life? Silence is only going to put a bullet through your skull, Levi.”

Levi grins. “I already sold my soul.”

Tate releases him, and I move Seven back into the far right corner, not before catching a glimpse of my wife. She’s watching on intently, with that devious sparkle in her dark eyes.

Tate gives Xander a thumbs up, tipping his head and moving to the side. Ace jumps over the fence in his padded vest, just as Xander opens the chute.