by T. L Hodel
“Over here,” Logan waved, pointing at a blue shoe on the ground.
Riley’s shoe!
“There’s drag marks.” His green eyes swung up, “I think someone took them.”
Chapter 28
Lana
It really was beautiful out. A nice clear sky, full of twinkling stars. I inhaled the earthy scent in the air and allowed my body to relax. When Parker had told me about the ritual and what I’d have to do, I was excited. Both to be a part of something everyone whispered about, but mostly to become Parker’s forever. Yes, we were married, but this ceremony was different. It was more real than a piece of paper filed downtown. It was raw, and carnal. A true bonding, because the man I loved picked me. Out of every other girl in this town, he wanted me.
My hand pressed down on my stomach, calming the kicking inside. The babies were active today. They must be able to sense my unease. The braziers and robes were fascinating. It was the goons pushing the Sheriff around that bothered me. He didn’t want to be there, and I remembered how that felt. The frustration and anger at not being able to do anything. Yes, things turned out well, Parker and I were happy. But what if they hadn’t?
I tipped my chin up and gazed up at the night sky and the bright moon shining down. A round ball of light watching the world below. Watching me. Doing nothing about the heavy weight holding me down, or the sweaty grunts assailing my ears.
‘Fuck, you feel good.’
I closed my eyes and shook the image back, using the breathing techniques Mr. Kessler taught me.
“It’s just a bad dream, Lana,” I whispered, taking a deep breath in through my nose and releasing it from my mouth. “Nothing happened. It’s all in your imagination.”
“Are you alright?”
My eyes snapped open and I jumped back. Standing a few feet behind me was Lilliana. She looked different today. Less uptight, and more free. Her blonde hair was down, flowing in soft waves over her shoulders, and I think this was the first time I’d seen her in pants. They weren’t jeans, but at least it wasn’t her normal pencil skirt.
“I hope everything is okay.” She tilted her head and gave me a smile, “I know how difficult this stage can be. You just want it over with.”
She pulled out a gold case and clicked it open, to pop a cigarette in her mouth, before offering me one. I declined with a head shake. Was she being nice to me? On purpose?
“I heard your grandmother is in the hospital?”
“She was in a car accident,” I nodded, “But she’s fine.”
More than fine. The nurses had to convince Nan it was in her best interest to stay. She would only agree if I promised to bring her some real food in the morning.
Lillianna exhaled a stream of smoke. “I’ll have to send her a fruit basket.”
“That would be nice.”
Were things supposed to be this awkward with your mother in-law? Even the babies quieted down when she was around. It was weird, standing alone with nothing but the breeze, the crickets, and her.
I should go back inside.
“Do you have any names picked out?”
“What?”
“Names,” she said, pointing the lit end of her cigarette at my belly. “I assume they will have some.”
“Oh, um, yes.” Parker and I’d had their names picked out for a week now, but we were keeping them secret. Though if Logan suggested Logan for a boy and Logan for a girl once more, I might tell him just so he’d shut up.
Lillianna stared at me.
I stared at her while animals called somewhere in the distance.
“Well, I should get back in there.”
I moved and stepped around her, but stopped when two beams of light cut through the inky blackness. My hand moved up to shield my eyes as I watched an unfamiliar car roll down the dirt road. Were there more people coming? Or perhaps things had gone really bad in there and they had to call in backup? A shiver ran up my spine, tensing my muscles. Was I about to see a body?
My thoughts were cut off when a bony arm wrapped around my neck and something wet was held against my face.
“I won’t let you taint my family,” Lillianna hissed in my ear.
I fought with everything I had, throwing my arms back while trying to twist away. But heaviness settled in my limbs, weighing them down as blackness seeped into my vision. The last thing I saw was Riley, running towards me with fury on her face.
I rolled over and smacked my lips together. Holy crap was my mouth dry. What the hell did I drink last night? Wait… My brows pulled together. I was pregnant, I couldn’t drink.
“Lana…”
Was that Harper? No, it was too deep to be my best friend.
“Come on Lana, wake up.”
My eyelids were too heavy, they refused to budge. I had no idea what was going on, or who was calling me. But I did know I wasn’t at home. Every morning I woke up to inhale the sweet scent from the garden outside. Right now, all I could smell was salty air, with a faint tint of fish. I stretched out on the hard bed and flopped my hand down. My confusion grew when my fingers brushed against the cool rough surface beneath me. Was I on the floor?
“Lana, please,” The voice desperately cried, “Wake up.”
Riley?
It all came rushing back to me then. The ritual, Lillianna, and the car.
“I won’t let you taint my family.”
I shot up, eyes springing open to check my belly. Relief washed over me when a hard bump jabbed me from the inside. Thank god, they were okay. My babies were safe. I didn’t realize Riley was behind me until she threw her arms around my shoulders and hugged me tight.
“You’re okay,” she whispered into my back, “You’re okay.”
I took a minute to search the room, looking for some hint of familiarity. Unfortunately there wasn’t much light in here. I could tell that we were about the only things in here. Our breathing echoed around my ears.
“Where are we?”
“I don’t know,” Riley jumped up and walked into the darkness, “But there’s a metal door over here.”
I think she kicked it, because the next second I was covering my ears to dampen the ringing bang vibrating through the room. What kind of metal door made that sound?
“Where’s Lillianna?” I asked Riley when she came back into my sight and began inspecting the closest wall.
“You mean Parker’s cunt of a mother?” her rage filled blue eyes rolled back to me, “I haven’t seen her.”
Why would Lillianna take Riley? What purpose did that serve, beyond attracting more attention? Lord knows what she told Parker… Oh my god, Parker! He must be going out of his mind right now. I had to get back to him.
Forcing my heavy body off the ground–which was not at all easy when you were over seven months pregnant with twins–I waddled over to the opposite wall. We might be trapped in here, but that didn’t mean I had to be useless. If there was a way in, there had to be a way out, right?
“Lana, you shouldn’t be up…”
“I’m fine.”
“But…”
“Seriously, Riley,” I glanced over and gave her a stern look, “I’m fine.”
Her mouth pursed, but she nodded. “Okay. Look for something sharp.”
“Like a weapon,” I asked, gliding my hands over the wall.
“Exactly. Something I could stab these assholes with.”
Assholes? “What about Lillianna?”
“Oh, she’ll get hers too,” Riley promised, “But right now I’m more interested in the two pricks that brought us here.”
I thought back to the mystery car and didn’t know what was scarier. Lillianna being bold enough to take not only me, but Riley too, while Micha and Parker were a few feet away? Or that she was prepared with backup to do it? Nan was right, Parker’s mother was evil. I felt so stupid for falling for her shit. Quietly sniffing back a shuddered gasp, I quickly brushed away the tear trickling down my face. If I had just listened to Nan…
“Don
’t do that,” Riley placed her hand on her cocked hip, “This shit is not your fault.”
I couldn’t help but snicker. Leave it to Riley to give me the ‘don’t blame yourself’ speech in the middle of a hostage situation. “You sound like you’ve done this before.”
I was joking of course. Riley had never been kidnapped.
“Yeah, well,” she returned to inspecting her wall, “Last time there was more stabby shit to use.”
Or, maybe she had?
“Um… okay?” I wasn’t quite sure what to say to that. There were a million questions swimming through my head right now. Like where, when, and by who, but I suppose we had more important things to do. My first priority was getting back into my husband’s arms, and getting Riley back to Micha. On the upside, she was the Sheriff’s daughter. Which meant the Ashen Springs police force was probably scouring the town right now. If we were still even in town?
After who knows how long, we gave up and sat by the far wall. There was absolutely nothing in this metal room. No sticks, no bars, not even a grain of sand. It was disturbingly clean. As bad as that was, Riley’s plans were even worse.
Plan A consisted of her charging the first person to come through the door, while I ran. Great, if she weighed more than ninety pounds soaking wet, and if I could see my feet. Not to mention, I’d never leave her behind.
Plan B wasn’t much better. That one called for me faking labor. Considering the people who took us had no problem kidnapping a pregnant woman ready to pop, I highly doubted they’d give a shit if I went into labor. Plan C was simply titled, let’s wing it. Once again, I had to point out to her that speed was not my strong suit right now.
We were halfway through preparations for Plan C, which was more of an argument, when the door creaked open and we were blinded by the sudden appearance of light. I swore and threw my hand up. Riley swore too, but not because of the light.
“You son of a bitch.”
I squinted and peeked over my arm at the guy smirking back at her. His brown hair flopped over a diagonal scar in his forehead. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say someone had cut the letter L into his skin.
“Hey, Riley. How’s the new school?” The smirk on his face grew, “Evan says the library’s top notch.”
I could feel the hate radiating off her as, Riley glared back at him and quietly growled, “Noah Torres.”
Chapter 29
Parker
Fear was one emotion I had never understood. I knew how to fake it. Make my eyes big, put a quiver in my voice, sweat a little. That shit was easy. The comprehension of how to handle the cold shiver shooting through my veins was not. Everyone was here, the Kings were off somewhere digging up information, and the Knights, standing in my kitchen with me, arguing over what to do.
I could see them. The wisps of smoke coming out of Logan’s mouth, Micha’s booming voice, and the scent of tobacco coming off my brother. All of it was there. All of it real, but none of it broke through the spikes of panic crawling up my spine. My wife and my children were out there somewhere. Alone and scared. And I had no idea how to find them.
“Push it down.” Preston dropped his elbows on the island next to me and stared out at the group arguing. “Whatever it is that’s making you numb, push it back. Hold onto it in the back of your mind.” He twisted his neck, locking his grey eyes with mine, “And when the time is right, use it.”
“How?” I asked.
“Stop thinking about what’s happening to her, and concentrate on the motherfucker that took her. Stop holding back that monster you’ve been hiding all these years.” His fingers tightened on my shoulder as he leaned in and whispered, “It’s time to let him off the leash and accept who you are, brother.”
I stared at Preston, thinking about what he’d said. For so long, I fought to be normal. Played the part of good son and student, while ignoring the howling voice clawing to break free. And what for? To lose my family. If I’d have taken Lana when I wanted to, none of this shit would be happening. I could’ve protected her better.
“You two care to chime in on this?” Micha growled over at us.
“Why?” Preston challenged back, “You idiots seem to be doing a good job of fucking things up.”
Mason rolled his eyes, “I wouldn’t say we’re fucking thing up.”
“You’ve been arguing for six hours.” Preston arched a brow, “Anyone come up with a plan yet?”
They all stopped and eyed each other quietly. Of course we hadn’t come up with a plan. We didn’t even know where to fucking start. If they had taken one or the other, then maybe we’d have an idea. But both Lana and Riley? Micha and I didn’t have any enemies in common. Fuck, I didn’t have any enemies at all. I was Ashen Springs’ golden boy. Everybody loved me. Except for maybe Callaghan, and he’d never hurt Lana.
Logan ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh. “I’m gonna go check on Shelby.”
Shelby was going out of her mind, so Logan had drugged her and put her to bed three hours ago.
“That’s a good idea,” Preston nodded, “I’m gonna go see if Lou’s come up with anything. You idiots stay here and try not to kill each other.”
“Prick,” Micha grumbled as they walked out of the room.
I looked at him, understanding the fear etched in deep lines across his face. He felt just as helpless as I did. Silas and Mason sat back in their chairs, eyeing us. They wanted to say something, I could see it. But what could they say? Silence was thick in the air. Unwavering, unnerving, and constantly reminding us that doom was on the horizon.
“Hey.”
We all turned to see Luke standing in the kitchen doorway.
Luke’s bright eyes only reminded me of my girl. The comfortable nights watching T.V., or playing a game. The conversations we’d had over a drink, and the fun times. As happy as I was to see him, I didn’t want him here.
“Now’s not a good time, Luke.”
“I know,” he said, which made Micha and I cock a brow.
“What do you mean, you know?”
His gaze met mine, “Lana’s gone, right?”
How the fuck did he know that?
“And Riley,” Micha added.
I tipped my head at the flare in Luke’s nostril as his glare narrowed in on Micha. He didn’t like him. No, scratch that. He fucking hated Micha. But why? I’d never seen the two of them talk, or even look at each other.
“Riley was collateral damage,” Luke declared without so much as a twitch in his expression.
Micha was off his stool and across the room in half a second. I was right behind him.
“How the fuck do you know that?”
The corner of Luke’s mouth lifted at Micha’s question. “I know a lot of things you don’t, brother.”
The air in the room shifted ten degrees closer to hell as chairs screeched across the tiled floor and rage flooded Micha’s eyes.
“You killed my cousin’s parents!” Silas bellowed.
Luke simply lifted his gaze over Micha’s shoulder and smirked. “Slit your aunt’s throat myself. She bled like a stuck pig.”
It was a good thing Micha grabbed him and slammed Luke back against the wall, because none of us would’ve had the control to not kill him. This was the prick that had handed Junior and Finn over to Ryker. Because of him, the little boy that was pumped to take on the world, was now broken.
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you?” Micha growled down at him.
“You want to find your precious Mouse, don’t you?”
Micha pushed his forearm deeper into Luke’s neck. “Why should I trust you?”
That was a fair question. I’d trusted Luke. A part of me still did, aching for the friendship I thought we had. Was any of it real?
“I don’t give a fuck if you trust me. I didn’t come here for you.” Luke’s eyes locked on mine. “I came for her.”
Lana. He came here to save my Lana.
“Let him go, Micha.”
Micha’s jaw clenched and his fists balled, but he took a step back. That was when Luke pulled a folder out of his jacket and passed it to me.
“Everything you need to know is in there.”
Mason and Silas took over guard duty, while Micha and I flipped through pages. Every single one was about my Lana, and not at all anything I would have expected. She wasn’t a scholarship kid, her tuition was paid for in full. From an unmarked account that deposited money into Greta Crawford’s account every year. Which happened to be the exact amount for tuition at Ashworth. I had to hand it to Luke, he’d marked every dot and crossed every T. Traced the money back to an account owned by Nikolai Ivanov. The head of the U.S. chapter of the Russian Bratva.
The last pages in the folder was a letter from Nikolai’s wife to Greta, and a copy of paternity papers. Lana wasn’t just a girl in a small town, she was a mafia princess. Her father was Nikolai Ivanov, and his wife had been paying her Nan to keep it a secret. Guess I knew what Greta was hiding now. Surprising information to have, but…
I looked at Luke, “What does this have to do with Lana being kidnapped?”
“I gave that same file to your mother three months ago. Last I heard, she was trying to get ahold of the Italians.”
My mother was involved? I should’ve known. ‘She’s not outside.’ Fucking cunt set this shit up. Played me like a fool. Just like Luke did.
“What would the Italians want with a mafia princess no one knows about?”
Micha had a good point.
“Nikolai doesn’t have any other kids,” Luke explained, “He can’t. Which makes your son…”
“Heir to the Russian throne,” I finished.
“Exactly. Kid like that is powerful to have.”
There was still one thing I didn’t get. “Why are you telling us this?”
If he didn’t say anything, Riley and Lana would be gone, and he’d win.
“I know you don’t believe me,” when Luke’s eyes met mine I could see the regret shining in their depths, “But I really do consider you and Lana my friends. I called it off months ago.”