Guts & Glory: Hunter (In the Shadows Security Book 3)

by Jeanne St. James

  “Jesus,” he muttered under his breath and on the second ring pushed from his chair and away from the small table.

  He was not in the mood to be ridden hard and put away wet after speaking to Frankie in front of the rest of his team.

  Ignoring the kissing noises coming from around the table, Hunter stepped into the shadows before sliding his finger across the screen.

  He heard her before he could even put the phone to his ear.

  “He’s gone!”

  The shriek on the other end of the phone made his blood turn to ice. That ice slithered down his spine and made the hair on his arms stand up.

  “He’s gone! He’s gone! He’s gone!” she screamed. A loud, broken sob then filled Hunter’s ear.

  “Frankie,” he whispered, his heart no longer beating, instead it had seized in his chest.

  “I went to pick him up at daycare after my shift and Patty said his father picked him up. His father!” she shrieked into the phone again. “You stirred up this shit and now he has Leo.”

  “I’m gonna call MGPD and get them to you. Get them on this ASAP. Then I’m heading up there.”

  “Too late,” she cried.

  Hunter’s lungs emptied and his chest tightened at the desperation and pain in her voice. He spun on his heels and rushed back to the table, where all the men were now on their feet, eyes glued to him. Hunter hit the phone’s speaker button so they could hear everything.

  “I’ve lost him,” came the cracked voice over the speaker.

  She was losing her shit and he was struggling to hold onto his.

  “No, baby, he’s just... We’ll get him back.”

  “What if he kills him?”

  “He won’t.”

  “How do you know?” she demanded in a scream.

  He didn’t. The man tried to kill his own child by pushing his mother down a flight of steps and kicking the shit out of her stomach. He was capable of anything. Just like his father Buzz was.

  Fuck.

  “Stay put. Call your Mom. Have her come to you. I’m getting a hold of Max Bryson and we’re heading up there.”

  “Hunter...” Frankie’s whisper was broken.

  “Yeah, baby?”

  “I’m scared.”

  “Yeah, baby.”

  So am I.

  Hunter didn’t wait for his team. He jumped on his bike and roared through the night. He made the three-hour trip in record time. The rest of them were following after they grabbed equipment and a couple of vehicles.

  Being on his bike, he couldn’t make phone calls, but he had Walker touch base with Manning Grove PD.

  He almost dumped his bike in Frankie’s driveway in his haste to get off it and get to her.

  Two cruisers were parked haphazardly in her driveway. Her mom’s car was on the street.

  Before he could approach the house, Frankie was down the front porch, across the yard, and her body hit him so hard, he was knocked back two steps. He finally caught his balance and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight.

  She was shaking so badly, if he didn’t know better, he would have thought she had hypothermia.

  He pressed his face into her hair and held on for dear fucking life. “Anything?”

  “No,” came the answer muffled into his chest. “No vehicle description. Nothing. He went into the daycare, claimed him and the one girl let... him... go... with that monster!” She was screaming again.

  He wanted to scream, too. What fucking daycare just let a child go off with a stranger? It was unheard of.

  “Was this a licensed daycare?”

  “I couldn’t afford a licensed daycare. And none of them would watch him the odd hours I worked, anyway. Patty watched kids out of her house, but she couldn’t keep good help. Which is apparent since this newest idiot girl just let Taz take Leo! Patty never would’ve let him go if she’d been there. She knew better.”

  Jesus fuck! He had no clue some unlicensed hack was watching Leo. He would have put a stop to it before he left Manning Grove. Frankie didn’t burden her mom with the responsibility of watching Leo on a daily basis because Diane had various health issues, like migraines, that put her in bed for sometimes days at a time.

  But all that didn’t matter right now. Taz had Leo and they needed to be found.

  His gaze shifted to the house, where every light inside seemed to be lit. “Who’s inside?”

  “Max and Marc.”

  He had no idea who Marc was, but at least the chief was on scene. “Why aren’t they out looking for him?”

  “They said they have nothing to go on. They put out an Amber Alert and have patrols cruising town but right now, until he contacts me, they have no starting point.”

  He could hear it in her voice, she was starting to shatter. She had done her best to hold herself together, but the longer this went, the more she was probably unraveling.

  Hell, he had almost splintered on his ride up. He had kept his throttle pegged and rode recklessly all the way there, glad he didn’t have cops chasing him. Because he wouldn’t have stopped. Not until he reached his destination.

  He gave her another squeeze and her arms tightened around his waist. “The guys are on their way up. I got a head start. I’m going to go in and talk to the chief. We need to get a bead on Taz before they do. Do you understand why?”

  She nodded against him. “I just want Leo back.”

  “So do I, baby. And that’s the primary focus. Leo’s safety comes first. But to ensure that, we need Taz. Is that understood?”

  She nodded again, still buried in his chest.

  He dropped his head and said softly, just in case the cops could hear them, “That means if he contacts you, you tell me first. Not the cops. Me. The cops can only do so much. We can do what needs to be done.”

  He tried to keep the bite from his tone, but it was near impossible. While fear had gripped him at first with the thought of Leo being taken, now he had rage flowing through his veins.

  Pure unadulterated rage and a taste for revenge.

  And he wanted his face to be the last one Taz saw. Mercy wouldn’t get a chance to play with Taz.

  Taz belonged to Hunter. He owned the fucker.

  He would not need his tactical knife or his gun to take the motherfucker out. He’d use his hands.

  “Put your phone on silent, but keep an eye on it without being obvious. If possible, I’m going to try to convince them to go out to search while I stay here with you.”

  “Hunter...” Her hands fisted at the back of his shirt.

  He pressed his lips to the top of her head, wishing he could absorb her pain. “I know, baby, you don’t have to say it. We need to stay strong, and keep the faith that Leo will come home to you very soon.”

  He dropped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side, then guided her back to the house so he could take control of the situation without tipping off men who wore badges, carried registered weapons, and swore an oath to abide by the law.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Frankie paced the small living room, phone in her hand, hoping like hell it would ring. She’d taken it off silent mode the second Max and Marc Bryson walked out the door to join the search. She was glad they trusted Hunter enough to remain behind with her while they did so. They called in every officer they had, even the ones off-duty and had the Pennsylvania State Police in the area, too.

  But they still had nothing besides knowing who took Leo. And that wasn’t enough.

  Frankie had chewed every nail down to the quick as she’d restlessly walked from one end of the room to the other.

  This was all her fault.

  All of it.

  She kept doing stupid things.

  Giving into Taz’s fake charm in the first place.

  Then getting pregnant, despite using condoms.

  Not getting out of Lancaster in time before Taz found out.

  Not getting a gun to shoot his abusive ass when he first lifted a hand to her.

/>   Not shooting his ass after he almost killed her.

  Letting Hunter talk his way into her house.

  Letting Hunter use them as bait.

  Putting herself and Leo out there for Taz to find.

  She thought she was doing right by her son. But she should’ve known better since everything she touched turned to shit.

  Think before you act, Frankie.

  And now, her very soul was missing.

  Captured by that monster.

  A monster she slept with.

  A monster she got pregnant by.

  A monster who could legally claim her son.

  And if Leo survived this, Taz’s chance to ever lay claim to her son again would be nil.

  That was if Taz even survived it. Hunter assured her he wouldn’t.

  But Hunter had also assured her he’d keep her and Leo safe. Instead, he had left. And now it was too late.

  Her son was out there with a dangerous stranger, probably scared, crying for his mother. Unable to figure out what was happening.

  She stopped short in the middle of the living room, closed her eyes and fell to her knees. She jammed her fists into her eye sockets, lifted her face and screamed until there was nothing left inside her. Until she was nothing left but a shell. Her lungs ached, her throat was raw, her brain numb.

  Strong arms encircled her, a wall of heat and muscle pressed against her back, words meant to be soothing whispered into her ear, but went unheard.

  She was nothing without Leo.

  He was her everything.

  Her life. Her blood. Her purpose.

  She was pulled into a lap and curled into a hard body, and Hunter rocked her back and forth.

  But it didn’t help. Nothing helped.

  The only thing that would, would be finding the piece of her that was missing.

  What seemed like endless moments later, her fingers were being peeled from the phone she clutched so hard, those fingers had seized.

  Then she heard it. The ring. Hunter’s voice ordering her to let go.

  She didn’t. She ripped it from his grasp and blinked her vision clear to read the display.

  UNKNOWN CALLER.

  Her heart skipped a beat, then began to race. She met Hunter’s unreadable brown eyes and answered the call, pushing herself from his lap.

  She caught movement from the corner of her eye and saw her mom come from the kitchen into the living room, her face pale, eyes large.

  This could be it.

  What she needed.

  What they’d been waiting for.

  A scratchy “Taz” escaped her.

  Silence greeted her. One thumping heartbeat to the next.

  Finally, “Used my son as bait to try an’ catch me. Now I’m usin’ my son to catch you, bitch.”

  She hadn’t heard that voice in years. She had never planned on hearing it again.

  But right now, even though it froze her blood, it was the best thing she’d ever heard. What he said might mean Leo was still alive.

  She cleared the thickness from her throat. “He’s okay? Please tell me he’s okay.”

  “Put him on speaker,” Hunter mouthed to her.

  She ignored him and turned away. “Tell me he’s okay.” Her desperation bubbled up in her voice and she didn’t bother to try and contain it.

  “He’s fine. Misses his momma. So his momma needs to come see him one last time.”

  One last time.

  “Don’t hurt him,” she whispered, grasping the phone with both hands, the only connection she had with her son.

  “Don’t plan on hurtin’ him. Plan on hurtin’ you. Tried to set me up. Those fuckin’ asshole Shadows want me dead. They wanted us all dead. They’re usin’ you to get to me, the father of your child. You want the father of your child dead, Sussy. What kinda mother are you? A goddamn shitty one.”

  “Where do you want me to meet you? I’ll meet you. Just don’t hurt him.”

  Hunter reached for the phone, but she turned away again, keeping it out of his reach.

  “I won’t bring anyone with me but my mom. She can take Leo. You take me.”

  “Fuck that. No one’s gettin’ my boy, Sussy. I’m raisin’ my boy. No one else. He needs his pop.”

  “If you’re not letting him go, why would I come to you?”

  “Because if you don’t, he dies, Sussy. Can you live with that, you double-crossing bitch? Can you live with the guilt, your decision which killed your own flesh and blood?”

  “You tried to kill him by pushing me down those steps, kicking me.”

  “Did a lot of thinkin’ in the joint. Figured he was gone. Got no family, Bussard family name ends with me. He’s my blood. He needs his pop to become a man.”

  Not a man like you. Not a man like his grandfather, either.

  “Woulda left you alone, Sussy, if I hadn’t heard that fuckin’ pig mention Buzz’s name, along with yours.”

  Her brows knitted in confusion. “Buzz?”

  “Yeah. Callin’ him Buzz. After his grandpap.”

  Why was the world tilting so sharply? She reached out for balance and her palm landed on something hard. It wasn’t the wall, it was Hunter’s chest. He’d been sticking close. “His name is Leo,” she whispered, though it fell on deaf ears.

  “Took my boy from me, Sussy.”

  “You tried to take him from me four years ago!” she screamed into the phone. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to slow her spinning thoughts. She needed to keep her head. “And now you have him. You didn’t want him. You insisted I have an abortion.”

  “Glad you didn’t. Spittin’ image of his pop.”

  No, he wasn’t. He looked nothing like Taz, thank fucking goodness.

  “Where are you? I’ll come right now.” She spun away from Hunter and headed toward the front door, grabbing her car keys off the hook by the door. She was focusing on the phone, on Taz and once again hit a wall named Hunter as he blocked the door, his eyes intense, his gaze locked on her.

  He shook his head but said nothing, probably not wanting Taz to hear his voice.

  She raised her eyes to him, and he mouthed, “Location.”

  “Where, Taz? I can’t come to you if I don’t know where you are.”

  “Anyone comes with you, you’re both dead. You got me?”

  “I got you. I’m coming alone.” Frankie tried to push past Hunter, but he didn’t budge. She reached around him for the door handle, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled it to his chest in a firm hold, his mouth pressed in a thin line, his jaw hard.

  A sob rose from deep within her chest as a tear she didn’t know she had left slid down her cheek. Her voice broke as she said, “I don’t know where you are.”

  “Deserted farm north off Route Six. Long dirt lane. Got a barn there. Be waitin’ in that barn. Old sign out by the road says somethin’ about fresh eggs for sale. Can’t miss the sign. Me an’ the boy will be waitin’ for you. Got a good view of the lane, Sussy. Means that if I see anyone other than you comin’ up it, I’m slicin’ his fuckin’ throat. Then you can come hug him one last time before he bleeds out and afterward, I’m finishin’ teachin’ you that lesson you never learned about not mindin’ your man. You fuckin’ got me?” The last came out in a roar and Frankie flinched.

  She wobbled on her feet and strong hands gripped her elbows firmly to hold her up. “I got you, Taz. I’m coming alone. I promise.”

  “’Bout fuckin’ time you listened.” The phone went dead.

  She stared at the blank screen, her knuckles white, no feeling left in her fingers. She lifted her head and said, “I’m going alone.”

  “The fuck you are. His ass is mine, Frankie. You’ll stay here with your mom until the rest of my team gets here. They’re not far out. One of them will stay with you. The others will follow me. Do you hear me?”

  ‘Bout fuckin’ time you listened.

  He shook her. “Frankie, listen. This is important. I will handle this shit. Not you. Tell me where he is.”


  As if in a trance, she repeated the location word for word as Taz told her.

  Then Hunter was in her face, holding her chin, making her meet his eyes. “You do not leave this house. You do not call the fucking cops. You stick with your mother. I got this. This is my mess. I’m cleaning it the fuck up.”

  This is my mess.

  This was her mess, too. Leo was the flesh of her flesh. Blood of her blood. She needed to be there with him.

  “Frankie!” Hunter barked in her face. “Tell me you’re going to listen.”

  ‘Bout fuckin’ time you listened.

  Another tear slid down her cheek, followed quickly by another. And another. The tears seared her skin, burned her throat, ripped her heart in two.

  She looked him in the eye and nodded.

  The pad of his thumb broke the trail of tears as he swept it across her damp cheek, then he gave her a sharp nod back. “He calls you again, you say you’re on your way. Don’t give him an ETA. Just say you’re struggling to find the farm. That’s it. Nothing else, Frankie. Just keep him hanging. Keep him waiting.”

  She nodded again, unable to get words past her constricted throat.

  He gently pulled her car keys from her fingers. “Need your car. My Harley’s too loud, and he might think it’s you in the car if he spots it. When I get there, I’m gonna ping the rest of the crew my location. Frankie...”

  Frankie’s gaze rose from her keys in his hand to his face. He tucked two fingers under her chin, pressed his lips to her forehead and whispered, “I will take care of this. Trust me. Leo will be home soon.”

  Her feet felt like they were made of lead as he released her, walked out the front door and closed it behind him.

  “Funny how you needed to use my boy to get to me. Used him as bait. Couldn’t get me any other way. Skills ain’t what you thought they were, were they?”

  “He’s not your son.” Hunter frowned and cursed his slip of the tongue.

  “The fuck he ain’t. He certainly ain’t yours. I made him by laying between Sussy’s sweet, soft thighs and pumping my dick in and out of her as she cried out my name, shooting my load deep. That boy’s one hundred percent mine. Not yours. I got every right to have him. You don’t.”