He kisses me on the top of my head, then walks out, leaving me a little stunned.
Maybe Talon and I will get along after all.
It’s afternoon when Arrow finds me outside, while I’m practicing throwing knives into a target, with “Don’t Let Me Down” by the Chainsmokers playing in the background. I like to hone my skills and make sure I can still handle each weapon. Even though I’m a mother now, I’m still me, and I still like to know how to defend myself. In fact, after having kids, I’m more determined than ever, because the day may come when it’s solely up to me to protect them.
“Don’t fuckin’ stab me,” Arrow says in warning, coming to stand next to me. I glance to my right to look at him. His beard is even longer than usual, his brown eyes pinned on the target board.
I hand him a knife, and he takes it.
“What’s up, Arrow?”
He throws the knife, right in the bull’s-eye, before he replies. “I want to do something nice for Anna, you know? Something—”
“Romantic?” I cut in, smiling wide. “You big cutie, Arrow! Who knew you had it in you?” I pause, then add, “Certainly not me.”
He groans and puts his hand out, palm up, silently asking for another knife. I pick one up from the ground, where I have them buried in the grass in a line, and hand it over, handle first.
“Not exactly the romantic type,” he grumbles, then throws the knife. “I need help coming up with an idea.”
“Why don’t you cook her dinner?” I suggest, racking my mind. “With candles. Or take her away, on like a cruise or something? Oh, and buy her something. We like presents.”
“That simple, huh?” he says, crossing his arms over his chest and studying me. “Dinner, candles, look into a vacation and a present.”
I nod. “I can come shopping with you, if you like.”
He rubs the back of his neck and sighs. “Yeah, all right. Sounds good.”
“Okay. See, an old man can learn new tricks.”
“I’m not old,” he growls, looking grumpy, just like someone his age would.
“You’re pretty old,” I say slowly, wrinkling my nose.
“Don’t tell anyone about this.”
“I won’t,” I say, rolling my eyes. “And what’s the big deal anyway? Anna’s a lucky woman to have a man who wants to spoil her a little, especially while being far out of the honeymoon stage.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he grumbles, but I just smile. Arrow is a very private person, and he doesn’t like people knowing shit about him. I’ve known the mercurial man next to me for so long, and for some reason, I just get him. We could stand like this for hours, in silence, throwing knives, and I’d be okay with it. The silence between us is more than the loud conversation between others. It’s filled with friendship, love, and acceptance, with a bond that can only form from being to hell and back with someone.
“Do you ever think about her?”
“Who?” he asks, even though I’m sure he knows who I’m referring to.
“Mary.”
He takes a few moments to reply. “Yeah.”
“Me too,” I say, my voice tinged with sadness.
And now we have two ex–Wild Men under our roof.
I guess you never know what will happen next.
“I better get to work,” I say, wiping my hands on my jeans. “The feds want my help with a case.”
“I don’t know why you want to help them,” Arrow grumbles, shaking his head.
I grin and place my hand on his shoulder. “Need more contacts, so next time you go to jail I can get you out sooner.”
His lip twitches.
I say ’bye and make my exit.
None of the men like me working for the feds, but I’ve always been a woman with a plan. The more connections I make, the more power I get, the more I’ll be able to protect my family. My ambition—it’s for everyone.
They just need to trust me.
SIX
Sin
Four hours later
WHEN Faye doesn’t answer her phone, again, I start to panic. She was supposed to be at home at six o’clock, but it’s now seven. I picked up Clover from school with Asher, as I always do when Faye is working at the firm, and Faye always comes straight home so I can head to Rift or the MC. On the off chance she doesn’t, she will always call or text.
A bad feeling settles in my gut. Something is fuckin’ wrong, I just know it. I put the kids in the car and drive to Rake and Bailey’s house. When Rake finds me standing on his front step, Asher on my chest and Clover at my side, he quickly opens the door.
“Everything all right?” he asks, lifting Clover in his arms and giving her a big hug.
“Yeah,” I say in a light tone, but the look in my eyes says something else, and Rake doesn’t miss it. “Just thought Clover could play with Cara while we have a quick chat.”
We walk into their living room, and Clover runs over to Cara, happy to be seeing her friend. Bailey walks into the room, her smile dropping as she looks between us. She walks over to me and takes Asher from my arms, along with his baby bag. Then, she says one word, a word that lets me know that Rake has indeed chosen the perfect woman. “Go.”
Go, just like that, for us to handle our shit, because she has the kids and the home covered.
Now that is a fuckin’ old lady; not even one question asked.
I walk back out front and Rake follows, closing the door behind him. “Faye is missing.”
Three words.
Fuck I love you; those three words, Faye is missing, would incite pain and fear in the strongest of men. From all the men in this club. From every person Faye’s beauty and strength has touched. Especially from me.
The queen is missing, and we need to find her, real fuckin’ quick, before I blow up this whole motherfuckin’ city. I honestly don’t know how to deal with the prospect that someone is hurting her right now. Faye is the love of my life. I’ve never really been a romantic, or one to believe in soul mates and shit, but that woman was made for me. A hundred fuckin’ percent. And without her . . .
Fuck.
I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life, but being terrified isn’t going to help me. I need to get her back, and right now. I need to think. I don’t need anyone to panic. I don’t think I’ll be able to handle it. I can’t even wrap my head around this.
No. Not Faye.
Not my fairy.
“What the fuck do you mean she’s missing?” Rake growls, pulling out his phone and bringing it to his ear. “I’m gonna call everyone; she has to be somewhere.”
“She didn’t come home,” I tell him, goose bumps on my flesh. “I’m going to go to her work now. Can you keep the kids?”
“Of course,” he replies, brow furrowed. “Fuck, Sin. Tell me what to do right now. Maybe she’s fine; her car broke down and her phone died, or some shit.”
I clap him on the shoulder and head to my car.
The thing is, we’re never that lucky.
When I find her car still parked on the street opposite her work, door ajar, that’s when I start to really panic. In the back of my mind, I’d been hoping that maybe there was another reason for her absence. Maybe her car broke down, or she lost her phone, or one of the women needed her for something. When something metal glistening on the floor of the car catches my eye, I bend down and pick it up.
It’s her phone.
Fuck.
Shivers head up my spine. This is not good. Something has definitely happened to her. My fingers tighten around her phone.
Whoever took her is going to pay. Trust me when I say that they haven’t known pain like the pain I’m going to thrust upon them. I’ll have no mercy. And if something happens to Faye—I’ll have no conscience left. She is the good in me. She’s my fuckin’ heart, my soul, and there is no way I’m
going to live without her.
I’m going to bring her home.
I call up Rake and tell him to get to the clubhouse. We’re going on lockdown. I want everyone in the same place, just until we know what we’re dealing with. Some of the men can stay to protect the women and kids, and the rest of us will do whatever we can to bring my wife back.
I’m coming for you, babe.
Everyone is in the clubhouse, trying to remain calm. With Faye in danger, the women are all over the fuckin’ place with worry, and a few of them are trying not to cry. I need them to stay calm though, because I don’t want the kids to start freaking out because of the tension in the clubhouse right now.
I’m pacing up and down while the men sit at the table, waiting for me to tell them the plan of action. The thing is, it’s hard for me to keep a level head here. I can’t. I just want her back. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do right now. I’m desperate, and it’s a vulnerable place to be. When I don’t speak, Arrow clears his throat. “Sin, why don’t you sit down? Let us do the planning. We’re going to get her back, brother. Whatever it takes.”
I shake my head, running my hand through my hair. I’m the president. Faye is my wife. I’m going to be calling the shots. They don’t know the thoughts in my head right now, and they don’t need to know.
Did I tell her I love her before she left for work today? I can’t remember. What was the last thing I said to her? I shake my head again and try to concentrate. Faye needs the MC president in me right now, not the devoted, loving husband. She needs the ruthless me, the man who gets shit done.
The man who never loses.
“Tracker, try and get camera footage from her work or any surrounding buildings. You might have to wait until tomorrow for that though,” I say, gritting my teeth. We don’t have time to waste right now. “Unless you have any contacts? Cop buddies? Any resources you have, use them. Take Irish with you. I want everyone in pairs, just in case whoever we’re dealing with has something else up their sleeves. If they want anything from us, they need to be able to contact us. I think we should close down Rift, just in case. Last thing we need is something going wrong there and innocent people getting hurt. Talon and Ranger, make sure the Wild Men aren’t behind this shit in any way.”
They both nod.
“Arrow, get in touch with the Kings of Hell. We don’t have very many enemies, so if it’s not the Wild Men, I’m thinking it has to be the Kings. Who else would fuck with us?” I look to Talon. “We need to figure out who your rat is, and fast.”
Talon nods and pulls out his phone. “I’ll call Slice.”
Dammit, if we found out who that fucker was sooner, this whole thing might have been avoided.
Who else would be that fuckin’ stupid?
Whoever it is, it’s their funeral.
“You want me to pay them a visit?” Arrow asks, an evil glint in his eyes. “I’ll be more than happy to.”
He looks a little too trigger-happy for my liking, so I say, “Rake, stick with Arrow. Keep him out of prison, please.”
Rake nods. “I’ll handle it.”
“Ronan, you and the prospects stay behind and protect the women and children,” I say, cracking my knuckles. “Vinnie, you and I are going to go drive around, see what we find, try to get some information from anyone who would know anything.”
Vinnie nods, looking solemn. Yeah, no one is happy right now. Faye means so much to everyone, and I know they’re all feeling this. But to be honest, all I can think about is myself and what she is to me. I breathe this woman, and without her, my oxygen is going to get cut off. I can already feel my chest getting tighter and tighter as time passes without knowing where she is.
This emotional pain is worse than any physical pain I could experience. It’s bringing me to my fuckin’ knees.
“Let’s bring her home,” I mutter, staring straight ahead, and everyone stands.
“We’ll find her, Sin,” Arrow rumbles, looking determined. “I’m not fuckin’ losing her.”
The thing is—I don’t miss the flash of worry in his eyes. And he has a right to be worried, because we don’t know if Faye is okay. What if they’ve hurt her? What if they don’t plan on giving her back to us alive?
The pain in my chest intensifies, the emotions—the fear—I’ve been trying to hide coming to the surface all at once. Arrow, the man who shows the least emotion, ever, the man who cares the least about anything . . . Fuck . . . He’s telling me he won’t lose her. Losing Faye isn’t an option. My whole world will fuckin’ crumble without her in it.
“Me either,” I say, my voice cracking at the end.
I’m not a man who is weak, ever.
But every man has a weakness, and right now, mine is fuckin’ missing.
My fuckin’ heart is missing.
I don’t know if I can do this anymore. This pain, I can’t go through it again. How can I? A man can only take so much. Faye might be the center of this club, but she’s my whole fuckin’ heart, and I refuse to be in this situation again.
No one can ask that of me.
The men pat me on the shoulder one by one as they pass me on the way out. Reassurance. We’ve got this, they’re telling me. We’re the WDMC, and we don’t do defeat.
We triumph, always.
But until Faye is back in my arms where she belongs, I’m not going to be able to breathe easily.
Vinnie is the last to leave the room. He puts his hand on my back and leads me out the door. “We’re going to find her, Sin.”
“I know,” I say, lifting my chin up.
Eyes on the prize.
I need to keep my head clear. I can’t miss anything. We just have to figure this out. List our enemies, or anyone with a motive, and be smart about it. There’s no point calling the cops; finding a biker president’s wife isn’t going to be first on their priority list. Besides, they aren’t exactly our favorite people. They’d probably make me a suspect, search the clubhouse, and find a reason to arrest all of us. Yes, Faye is a lawyer. But I don’t know. She has been working with the feds. Maybe this has something to do with that? I told her not to fuckin’ do it, but when Faye wants something . . . I’ll look into the case she was working on, just in case.
We have the contacts, we have the manpower, and we have the weapons.
More than anything, we have determination. We have something to lose, and we aren’t going to give up.
We can handle this.
All the women and kids are in the lounge room, watching a movie. I kiss Clover and Asher, who is asleep in Anna’s arms now.
“We’ll be back. Ronan is here with you all,” I tell Anna softly.
She nods, her eyes a little red. She’s been crying. Anna has been here the longest after Faye, and I kind of need her to step up to the plate in Faye’s absence. I know she can do it.
“Keep everyone together,” I tell her, and I don’t mean physically. We need to unite right now, be there for one another.
She nods.
I leave the room and head outside to my bike. Vinnie is already waiting for me. When he steps to me and hands me a gun, I take it. Who knows what we’re up against, and better to be safe than sorry. Although all of us are good fighters, sometimes you need to be strapped. If I find out where Faye is, I’ll be shooting first and asking questions later, that’s for damn sure.
“You ready?” I ask him.
He nods and gets on his bike. I do the same. I lead the way to our first stop, to a man who I know for a fact sees everything that goes on in this city. If you sneeze, he hears about it.
And I need all the information I can get my hands on.
SEVEN
Faye
“SO tell me,” I say, tilting my head and studying him. “Did you get all those men to take me down because you knew I’d kick your ass one-on-one?”
“You n
ever shut the fuck up, do you?” he snarls, dark ominous eyes filled with hate pinned on me. “How does Sin fucking put up with you? You must be really good at sucking dick.”
So he knows Dex. Just who is this man?
“I am,” I agree, trying to get out of the binds at my wrists. “One of my many qualities.”
I have to wonder why I’m here.
What does he want—to use me as leverage of some kind? He has to know that Sin won’t let him live after this, no matter what he barters with to hand me over. He’s clearly an idiot.
“What’s your plan? Stop being stupid. We’re both adults here. Why don’t you just tell me who you are and what you want?”
My concern is that I’ve been here several hours and he hasn’t contacted the MC. Wouldn’t he do that if he was using me as a hostage? To demand whatever he wants from them? This doesn’t bode well for me. However, I’m not one to concede defeat. There’s a way out of this, and I’m going to find it. These assholes kidnapped the wrong woman.
Were the men who helped bring me here from an MC? They must be, right? Their faces were covered, so I never got to see them. I’ll find out who they are though, just wait and see. The only man I’ve gotten a good look at is the one standing in front of me, and he seems to be the leader. But I have no idea who he is.
He grins, a little too evilly for my liking, and says, “What I want is the Wind Dragons to leave me the fuck alone. Everyone thinks they’re so smart, but they’re all fucking stupid.”
My eyes widen. “Are you with the Wild Men or the Kings of Hell? People are just changing MCs like they’re changing their underwear, aren’t they?”
Could the man in front of me be Talon’s traitor?
He slams his hand down on the table he’s sitting at, making me jump. “We’re going to use you as bait. When Sin and the rest of those fucks come here, we’re going to kill you. In front of them. No one fucks with the Kings.”
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