by Brook Wilder
“I should’ve done.” I felt helpless, useless standing there. “Liz was still a target and I didn’t put a guard on her to keep an eye on her.”
Diesel sighed.
“It’s as much my fault as much as yours. I’d only just left here; she told me to go home. I could have done something.”
“But then you would have ended up dead. George wouldn’t have let you live if he knew you were here.” I huffed and ran my hands through my hair. “Look, Diesel, we can keep blaming each other all we want, but it’s not going to get us anywhere. We need to find George and Nate. But I don’t know where to start. And I don’t know how those two managed to connect. Or what George would get out of it.”
“I might have an answer to that.” Mason’s voice behind me made me jump. “And you’re not going to like it.”
I turned and saw the look on my boss’ face. This was not good at all. Mason looked furious that he had missed it.
“What do you mean?”
“Mason?” Diesel moved closer to the big man. “What’s going on?”
“I had a friend check out Nate’s background.” Mason was speaking through gritted teeth. “He was put into foster care when he was seven with a little brother. They were separated when they were adopted. Two weeks after they were put up for adoption, the little brother was adopted by the Tzeriz family.”
I thought I hadn’t heard correctly. That was something I had not expected at all.
“George and Nate are brothers?”
Diesel whistled. “I did not see that coming.”
“None of us did.” I shook my head. “But that doesn’t explain where they fit in with Ruiz. They have to be in this together.”
“They are,” Mason said quietly.
“How do you know?”
“Because that’s what else my friend found on Nate. He and Ruiz’s brother, Carlos, were at high school together. They were best buddies. Nate was even one of the witnesses questioned when Carlos was shot and killed thirteen years ago.”
At least we now knew who had betrayed me. But it didn’t help us find Liz. We still had no idea where she was. And that was what hurt me the most.
It was then that I heard Hunter crying. Cassie and Amber’s voices reached my ears, but Hunter was still upset. He wanted his mother. That broke my heart. Mason nodded towards the door.
“Go to Hunter, Noah. He needs you right now.”
Chapter 44
Liz
My head hurt. I felt sick. My stomach was churning so much I thought it was going to turn inside-out. And it hurt. Badly. Was the baby okay? Was I miscarrying? I could feel the panic building.
Then I realized that I could hear a small bleeping noise in my ear. It was regular and insistent, a high-pitched noise. And it was driving me mad. Forcing my eyes open and swallowing back the nausea, I found myself strapped to a chair. My hands were tied with something sharp behind the back of the chair and my chin was on my chest. Velcro scratched my neck and cheek.
My head hurt like hell, but I managed to get my head up, something digging into my neck as I moved. It caused me to gag and I almost threw up. Something was tied tightly around my neck. I could feel it rubbing against my throat.
And I couldn’t see anything. The whole place was in darkness. I could hear someone’s footsteps, but I couldn’t see anything. I was beginning to wonder if I was actually sitting there with my eyes open.
Where the fuck was I? I had no idea where I was or what was happening. My last memory was of Georgie Tzeriz arriving out of the blue at my house. Now I began to realize that his appearance at my house was unusual. I knew George, but we didn’t converse much. And I didn’t realize he would be there. How did he know? I hadn’t told anyone outside of Cassie and Noah that I had gone back, and I very much doubted either of them or my family would have said something.
Was he the one who had hit me? And what about Hunter? Where was he? Were Gloria and Amy okay? Had George killed them? Was he the one who had set Noah up?
There were far too many questions going through my head. I couldn’t answer any of them. I didn’t even know where to start.
Then the lights went on. They were so bright I had to shut my eyes again as the light seared into my head. Now my eyes were hurting as well as my head. I cracked my eyes open slowly and tried to take in my surroundings.
A big room, barely anything in it. It looked like a storage container. The floor was concrete and the only light in the room above my head was uncovered.
Someone was sitting on a chair near the only door in the room. He was lounging there, going through his cell phone and humming. It was like he was waiting for a doctor’s appointment. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
“Nate?” My mouth felt very dry and I tried to wet my lips, without much success. “What are you doing here? And where am I?”
“You’re somewhere nobody’s going to find you.” Nate glanced up at me and smirked. “By the time they do, they’ll be ready to see you die.”
“What?”
I tried to stand up, momentarily forgetting about my hands. The thing holding them together dug into my hands and I felt burning pain through my wrists. That was enough for me to cry out and sit back down. Nate sat up, shaking his head as he held up his phone.
“Don’t get up, Liz. It’s not armed right now, but it will be once I press this button.”
“Armed?”
I looked down. It was then I saw I was wearing a black vest that was very bulky in several places. Then I saw the wires sticking out and going to something around my neck that I realized was a metal collar.
Fuck. He had strapped a bomb to me.
Now I really started to panic. I couldn’t afford that right now. I needed to get myself out of there. Noah wouldn’t know where I was. If I could get Nate’s phone, I should be able to get hold of him. But my hands were tied far too tightly, and I could see Nate’s thumb hovering near his phone screen.
“Where are Mom and Amy?” I demanded. “What did you do to them? And where’s Hunter?”
“Don’t worry, honey. They’re okay. For now. And Hunter…” Nate smirked. “Don’t expect him to wake up to find his mommy still alive.”
That made me go cold. I really wished I could jump him and rip him to shreds.
“You bastard,” I snarled.
Nate shrugged. He stood and stretched. Then he began to wander around the room, almost as if he was having a stroll in the park.
“It’s a pity you never agreed to a date with me, Liz. Or even just coffee. We could have had a lot of fun.”
“Would you have done this to me if I had gone out with you?”
“Probably. Just a lot sooner. Like two years ago.” Nate shook his head with a titter. “But you were very stubborn. I was about to lose my temper with you.”
“I’m sorry to disappoint,” I sneered. “Being in bed with you would have been my worst nightmare, equal only to that shitbag Ruiz.”
Nate looked amused.
“You think so? From what Ruiz has told me, you were an amazing fuck. I was incredibly jealous of that. He got you before I did, and I had been around for two years.” He pursed his lips and huffed. “And Ruiz wouldn’t share you, either. It was like you were incredibly special.”
“You know Ruiz?”
“I was his brother’s best friend. We knew each other at high school.” Nate practically puffed out his chest at that statement. “I was there when Carlos was killed. We’ve all known each other for years. He called me shortly after your man was put in jail and asked me for a favor. I was more than happy to oblige.” Nate shrugged. “Ruiz had kept me out of trouble for years; I had to return the favor somehow.”
“And that was to get me into bed with you,” I snorted. I felt sick just at the thought of being used as a pawn in Ruiz’s disgusting game to be on top. “Smooth, Nate. Wonderful plan. I don’t think.”
Nate was silent for a moment. He didn’t move. Then he did, so fast I barely caught sight of him.
He slapped me. Hard. His cell phone was still in his hand and caught me on the cheekbone. Pain exploded in my face and I could feel something trickling down my cheek as it began to burn.
That had hurt. A lot. Now I was beginning to feel really scared. I had written Nate off as an idiot who didn’t know what the word ‘no’ meant. But now I was beginning to realize that I had severely underestimated the man. He was just as much as a psychopath as Ruiz.
I was beginning to hope that Noah would kill the bastard.
Nate moved around me and knelt before me. He was too close for me to use my legs and I couldn’t scratch his eyes out. I wanted him to get away from me. As far away as it was possible.
“The idea was to pull you away from Noah, make him suffer without you, knowing you had betrayed him,” Nate said quietly. “Noah had been getting too close to things Ruiz was up to, so we had to deal with him. It’s a pity it was just two years. That’s not long enough.”
They had to deal with him.
“You set him up,” I whispered.
It wasn’t a question. Nate smirked. He really looked proud at that.
“That was my baby brother. George has always hated Noah. Because he wanted you as well and you wouldn’t look at him.” Nate grunted and shook his head almost in disbelief as he surveyed me. “It’s surprising, really. You had three men who wanted to be with you and you chose the thick-headed piece of shit.”
I wished I was able to head-butt him. But not only would that more likely have done more damage to me, but Nate would press the timer and I would end up getting blown up. I had to restrict myself to a glare.
“Noah’s more than any of you,” I hissed.
Nate snorted.
“I highly doubt it. Ruiz was getting fed up that he couldn’t get you and Noah wasn’t being put off the scent. Then he decided that, if he wanted Noah’s attention elsewhere, why not do it with the death of the woman he loves?”
“What?” I could feel my heart picking up speed. This was not what I wanted to hear. “What is this? A sick way of saying ‘if I can’t have you, nobody else can’?”
Nate sighed. He reached out and brushed his fingers against my cheek. I flinched away, but my binds kept me in place.
“Oh, Liz. You were always a pawn. A fuckable one, but a pawn nonetheless. You weren’t going to end up finishing this one alive, trust me on that. One way or another, you would have died.” He tapped his finger to the end of my nose. “It’s a shame. I would have loved to fuck that tight pussy of yours. But I have my orders.” He stood and waved the cell phone in my face. “Now, be a good little girl or I’ll set this off earlier than I should. I want Noah to look you in the eye when you die, and not be able to do anything about it.”
Chapter 45
Noah
Hunter seemed to sense that something was wrong. Cassie and Amber cleaned up the lounge as best they could, so I could bring my son into the room. But, even then, he could feel that something had happened. And he wanted his mother. It broke my heart whenever I told him his mommy wasn’t there right then and Hunter burst into tears. They soothed a little when I held him, but then he wouldn’t let me go. Even if I went to the bathroom he screamed until I came back.
It was very painful to see that Hunter missed Liz. I didn’t blame him for that; I missed her too. And it was my pig-headed arrogance that had got her kidnapped in the first place. The only one at fault was me, no one else.
If Liz had a single hair on her head harmed, I was going to make sure Nate and George were ripped to shreds. Then I was going to strap Ruiz Fernandez down to a table and pull off a limb piece by piece. I wanted him to scream.
Mason and Diesel left us alone, going out to scour the city for George. I wanted to go with them, but Mason was adamant that I stayed with Hunter. Not that Hunter would let me go, as it was; I practically had him plastered to me, his face buried against my chest. Not even when Cassie tried to play with him would he break a smile. He settled down watching movies, but that was about it.
It was dark by the time Hunter fell back to sleep. He had barely eaten any of the food Amber had specially made for him and barely drunk anything. I was worried that would affect him, but I knew I was feeling the same. I couldn’t eat or drink anything right now, not when I knew Liz was out there hurt.
I carried Hunter into his bedroom. He barely stirred as I got him into his pajamas and nighttime diaper, settling him down in his crib. That baby bed from the safe house was going to get here in the morning. Hunter was far too big for a crib now.
When he was settled, cuddling his favorite blanket and snoring gently, that was meant to be my moment to tiptoe out. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t walk away, not after what had happened with Liz. I was scared that, if I went, he would disappear as well, that Ruiz would come through the window and grab hold of him too. Losing Liz was bad enough but losing both of them… that would break me.
There was a gentle tap. I turned and saw Cassie put her head around the door.
“Can I come in?” She whispered.
“Sure.”
Cassie tiptoed in, reaching the crib.
“You were taking so long I wondered where you were.”
“Sorry, I…” I looked helplessly at Hunter. “I just can’t get myself to leave him.”
He was an innocent in all this. Hunter had never asked for any of this to happen. And he didn’t deserve to lose his mother at such a young age. Cassie laid a hand on my back.
“He’s going to be okay, Noah,” she said quietly.
“I know that but…” I swallowed, rubbing my hands over my face. “I can’t stop myself from thinking the worst.”
“You mean about Liz.”
I nodded. But this was not a conversation to have in my son’s room. Taking Cassie’s arm, I led us outside, closing the door softly behind us.
“Where’s Amber?”
“She’s watching a shocking reality show on the TV. That’s why I came to find you.” Cassie folded her arms and frowned. “What’s all this about Liz? Talk to me, Noah.”
I leant against the wall and briefly closed my eyes.
“Things were a lot more simple when I was single. With Liz, everything changed. And now I can’t hold myself together.”
“Oh, Noah,” Cassie sighed. “We’re all allowed to fall apart at some point. And you’ve got someone to keep you going.”
“I want both of them to keep me going, Cassie, not just one.” I opened my eyes. “All or nothing.”
There was no chance of abandoning my family now. Once I got Liz back, I was going to make sure she knew I was not going anywhere. Not a chance.
“Noah.” Cassie nudged me, shaking me out of my thoughts. “Your cell phone’s going off.”
Then I realized my pocket was vibrating. I scrambled for my phone. It would be either Mason or Diesel, telling me they had found something that would get Liz back. But the number was one I didn’t recognize.
Normally, I didn’t answer numbers I didn’t recognize. I had ended up getting far too paranoid with them. But my gut told me I needed to answer.
So I did.
“Yeah?”
That was when I heard a familiar snigger at the other end.
“How’s life without Liz? No different than the last two years, I’m sure.”
Ruiz. I wished he was there in front of me, as I wanted to tear his head from his shoulders. That man had a lot to answer for.
“You bastard,” I hissed. Next to me, Cassie’s face went pale. “Where is she, Ruiz?”
“I thought you two weren’t even together anymore. Why should you even care about a whore?”
“Liz has never been a whore.” I tried to keep my voice down, aware that Hunter was on the other side of the door. “You raped her and you put doubts in my head that my kids weren’t actually mine. And I fell for it.”
“You’re really certain about your kids being yours truly?”
I snorted. Every time I looked at Hunter I was in no doubt.
“Unlike you, I know Liz. You may have made me slip, but I do know she would never do that.” I began to pace, resisting the urge to punch the wall. “Why are you so determined to get Liz off me, anyway?”
“Other than she’s fucking hot and I wanted a taste of her? You got too close to me. I had to get you out of the way. And if I can get Liz away from you, I’ll consider that a win,” Ruiz grunted. “I tried the whole time you were in jail with Nate, but the stubborn bitch wouldn’t go for him. Even when I fucked her for days she wouldn’t turn to me.”