Page 224 of Malice and Surrender
“Hey, I need you to know before anything else that the proposal wasn’t to take her away from you. I can tell you all about the why later, but I needed you to know that, and—”
I held up my hand to stop Jace. “I don’t care. None of that is important right now.” Jace nodded. “All that matters is getting her back and killing the fuckers that took her.”
“Fair enough,” Jace said.
“Both of you going to be good with that?”
“Killing them?” Jace asked. He looked at Avro, who lifted his head, and there was a conviction in his eyes that reminded me of the day he came to my house to tell me Raine was gone the first time.
“I don’t care what happens to them,” Avro said, and we locked stares as we shared an understanding. Whatever happened after we left this house was never to be spoken of to anyone. No cops, no other friends, no drunken nights out and rambling to others because you couldn’t deal. It was ‘lock it up tight and throw away the key’ kind of shit.
I glanced around the small home that seemed extra tiny with the five of us in it and spotted her backpack sitting in the corner.
“Fuck,” I growled. “I don’t know how to find her.”
“We’ll track her, but we’re going to need a lot more weapons,” Wilder said, and I blinked in confusion.
“Her bag is sitting there. How do you propose I track her?” I pointed at the black backpack. “I only had one.”
“A tracker? On Raine? Damn man, you’re brave. If she found that out…,” Jace said, and I glared at him. “What? I didn’t say I was going to say anything, just that it’s ballsy, but it explains how you found her so quickly.”
“We will track her like normal.” Wilder tilted his head as he looked at me. “With the other trackers.”
“What other trackers?”
“The ones I put on her,” he said matter-of-factly, and I wanted to kiss him for doing it and punch him for the same reason.
“You put more trackers on Raine?”
He nodded. “Yes, a bag is okay, but as you can see, it can get left behind. I slipped one into the sole of all her shoes.”
Roach whistled. “That’s smart. Fucked up, but smart.”
“So why do we need more weapons?” I asked, ignoring Roach’s shocked appreciation.
Wilder held his phone out to me, and I took it. The screen showed what looked like an overhead view of a really large farm. “What am I looking at?”
“That’s where they took her. It’s a property about an hour outside the city, but if you zoom in, you’ll see the armed men. There is also a security gate with four watch towers. This must be where they take those they decide to keep long term,” Wilder said.
“So, who are these guys, and why would they want Raine,” Jace asked, and Avro spoke before I could answer.
“They’re the fucking guys who attacked her years ago and sent Kai to prison. He’s been hunting them down,” Avro said. “My guess is you were getting a little too close to finding them, and they’ve taken her as collateral or punishment.”
“Yes, that would be my assumption, as well,” Wilder agreed.
“There had to be a camera in the house. We should’ve sat on it to see when Frank fucking returned.” My hand clenched into a fist as I kicked myself.
“Let’s go. We need to ride out,” I said, and Wilder grabbed my arm and shook his head no. “Don’t fucking shake your head at me. I’m going.”
“No, you can’t, at least not yet. You will be dead before you ever reach the gates. We need a plan and a lot more firepower. I have trusted you with all my questions, but this is my arena. Attacking impenetrable targets and staying alive is what I do best.” Wilder let go of my arm. “If you want her alive, and you alive to be with her, then you need to listen to me.”
I glanced around the room, and no one else was disagreeing. “Every second Raine’s there…they could be doing anything to her,” I growled at him, my heart hammering hard.
“True, but if you go alone or with just a few of us and no plan, the chance of success is still zero, but now we are dead and cannot help.” His face was void of all emotion, just like it always was, and for once, I wished I could be like him. Not feeling this terror as it tried to choke me out would have been welcome.
“If it makes you feel better, I do not think they will kill her until tomorrow around mid-day.”
I swallowed. “Why?”
