Kirill hums but doesn’t speak right away. I want to yell at him, to scream, but I don’t. “I will be there with my men by tomorrow morning,” he states.
“And then what?” I ask. “Do you know where he is?”
“No,” he says simply. “But Sebastian has been vocal about not loving the way that he’s been making money to pay me back. I have a feeling he’s attempted to do something very stupid. If it wasn’t him, I’d be surprised. Either way, my men and I will come down there and sort all of this out.”
“How will you find him?” I ask.
He laughs softly. “Do not worry over much, karsavitsa. I have my ways, yes?”
“Okay,” I murmur.
“Text me the address of where you’ll be staying. We will meet with you before we hunt.”
My eyes widen at his words and I lift my gaze up to meet Wyatt’s. His brows rise in surprise, then a slow smile appears on his lips, as if he likes the idea of hunting Sebastian down. I can’t deny that maybe I like it a little too. He has been a pain in my fucking ass since the day he swept into my life.
“Okay,” I agree.
The call ends and I glance down to make sure that Kirill is off of the line. When I lift my gaze back up, I’m met with three curious looks. Although, I have to admit, I’m glad they are no longer angry expressions.
“That was interesting,” Louis mutters.
“So, he knows Sebastian is missing…” Rylan points out.
Nodding, I don’t know what to say. I feel numb from the inside out and I know that something is happening, something big. I just hope that Ford is okay, wherever he is. Deep inside, I feel as though he isn’t. I just feel so lost and sad. I don’t voice any of that though, these men don’t want to hear it.
“Ford wouldn’t like him coming here,” I whisper.
Louis’ body jerks. “Why?” he demands.
“I know why,” Rylan mutters. “He doesn’t want Stephanie or himself indebted to the mafia. I mean, think about it, do you want to be?” he asks Wyatt and Louis.
Louis clears his throat at the same time Wyatt lifts his hand and runs his fingers through his hair. “They could be anywhere. If he’s the one who has him, they could be anywhere. There are thousands and thousands of acres surrounding us where they could be hiding out.”
“Kirill, he said something,” Wyatt says. “He said Sebastian didn’t like what he was doing for money. Maybe we can figure it out and it could be a lead?”
“When did we become the Hardy Boys?” Louis asks.
“The moment Channing was kidnapped and nobody would help us,” Rylan snaps.
“That’s true,” he mutters.
Picking my phone up off of the coffee table, I find the Safari icon and Google Sebastian’s name. The first thing that pops up, it makes my stomach clench.
“What is it?” Wyatt demands.
Lifting my eyes to meet his, I grimace. “Porn. He’s been in porn,” I breathe.
“Which means what exactly?” Louis asks.
I shake my head. “I’m not exactly sure, but maybe he kidnapped Ford to blackmail me? I mean, how much more could he make if Sterling LaRue was starring in a film?”
“Fuck,” Wyatt hisses. “Fuck.”
“Ford is beautiful, I know you guys don’t see it, but he is. He’s strong, he’s masculine and people would pay to see him in his glory, trust me,” I whisper. “There are videos on here, some with Sebastian and other men.”
“You think he’d try to blackmail Ford into doing that? He wouldn’t do any of it, he’d fight him,” Louis grunts.
Licking my dry lips, I shrug a shoulder. “He got to him, took him somehow.”
“Drugged him,” Rylan rasps. “It’s the only way someone could get that big bastard off of his land, the only way they could get to Starlight. He loves that horse.”
“He chased her in the middle of a lightning storm,” I point out.
Wyatt snorts. “More than once he chased that horse down. When the storms are really bad, he would sit in that now broken chair next to her stall to keep her calm. He fucking loved that animal.”
“He’d never let anything happen to her,” Louis rasps.
“Call Beaumont, get him here. We’re going to need all of us if we’re going to get him back,” Wyatt barks.
“He’s on a plane already,” Louis announces. “Called him right after I called Deputy Hernandez.”
Thank God. We need all of the help we can get, because I have a feeling whatever Sebastian has planned could break my Cowboy.
Chapter Thirty-Six
FORD
The door flies open and I’m not surprised to see that it’s Sebastian, followed by a man. He’s big and looks menacing. This must be his hired hand. I should have known he had some kind of help. There is just no way he could have brought me down all by himself, he couldn’t have even carried me away from my barn by himself.
“What happens now?” I ask.
Sebastian grins, tilting his head to the side. “Now? We wait. I just wanted to make sure you were still breathing. Naturally, I knew you’d have use of your body again, so I needed to have backup in case you tried to overpower me.”
“You think that you can drug me and force me to make porn? That’s your plan, right?” I ask.
He nods his head, pressing his lips together. He looks thinner than he did a couple of weeks ago, in fact, he looks gaunt. He’s probably been doing drugs to cope with going from being a shitty actor to a shitty porn actor. I refuse to call him a pornstar, he’s no fucking star.
“I don’t think anything,” he snaps. “I know.”
“And you don’t think you’ll be found out?”
He shrugs a shoulder. “Told you, I’ll have Sterling here doing it too. Once I’m debt-free, I don’t give a fuck what happens to either of you. In fact, I’ll probably just have you disposed of.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “Good fucking luck on any of that.”
He leans over, his eyes finding mine as he snarls. “I don’t need luck.”
Without another word, he spins around on his heels and marches away from me. His goon follows, and the door is slammed before I hear the sound of the lock clicking into place. Pinching my eyes closed, I wonder how much longer I have until I’m going to need to fight for myself and for Stephanie.
I try not to move, to allow my body to rest so that I can have as much strength as possible to deal with what is headed my way.
I have no doubt at all whatsoever that I have the fight of my life coming and I need to be rested and fully prepared for it to occur any fucking minute.
STEPHANIE
I don’t sleep. I try, but I can’t. Louis demands that I come back to his house. He has more space than the others, and his baby is coming, but it’s not here yet, so his house is quieter. It doesn’t matter how quiet or loud it is, I simply cannot sleep.
Beaumont arrived and before he even went home, he came straight to Ford’s ranch and was updated on everything that happened. The anger that crossed his face, the pain that replaced it when he found out that this was probably going to get really fucking ugly, it broke me all over again.
There’s a knock on my bedroom door, sitting straight up, I call out for whoever it is to enter. It’s Tulip, her big belly entering the room before the rest of her. I smile at the sight of her. She’s simply gorgeous, and if ever the pregnant glowing thing was true, it certainly is for her.
“I brought you some coffee. I just knew you couldn’t be sleeping,” she says softly as she makes her way over to the bed.
I scoot over and dip my chin to her. Reaching out, I take one of the mugs from her grasp as she climbs up on the bed.
“Hot chocolate,” she says as she lifts her mug to her lips. “I miss my coffee, but this is a close second.”
Taking a drink from my cup, I moan as the delicious roast hits my lips. “I put a little chocolate and milk in it. Louis doesn’t like creamer and I haven’t used any in so long, I didn’t have an
y left to give you. I hope that’s okay?”
“It’s amazing,” I whisper.
“How are you? I mean, I know the guys have been helping, but how are you, really?”
I think about her question. How am I? Terrified? Miserable? There are no words to describe it, and yet, I feel selfish for feeling any of it, because I’m safe and Ford’s not. It’s all my fault too, all of this.
“I feel like a bitch,” I admit.
She frowns but doesn’t push me for more right away. I know that she wants to hear it though, so I let out a sigh and explain myself.
“I’m here safe and he’s not. It’s all my fault. This mess is all because of me, and he’s the one suffering.”
She doesn’t say anything right away, but then she takes her hand and covers mine with it. “You’re not selfish. Trust me when I tell you that Ford wouldn’t want this any other way. He would not want you to be the one in danger, ever. He would gladly take the brunt of whatever is being thrown his way to keep you safe. You have to know that.”
“Yeah,” I breathe as tears fill my eyes again. “I do.”
Tulip’s fingers lace in mine and we stay there in silence drinking our hot drinks for a few more minutes. “The girls are going to want to stay with you while the boys go out later. And the boys will want everyone safe and together, just in case.”
“Okay.” I nod.
“I’m just saying, because as a group we can be overwhelming sometimes, but everyone is going to want to know details and they’ll all be terrified.”
“They love Ford,” I mutter.
“And you.”
Shaking my head, I dip my chin and look down into my half-empty cup. “No, not me. Him. I get it, too. I turned my back on the most wonderful man I’ve ever known. I ran from him, then I did it again, and this time he was taken because of me. I don’t even know if he’s still alive. I can feel it in my gut that something really bad has happened.”
“You’re just scared,” she whispers.
We don’t say anything else, in fact, we sit in silence as we stare straight ahead, only moving to bring our mugs to our lips. I don’t know how much time passes, but that’s exactly how Louis finds us.
His lips twitch into a smile. “Guys will be here in about fifteen. You girls gonna get up?” he asks, his eyes flicking from one of us to the other, back and forth.
“Yeah,” Tulip sighs.
Without even having to be asked, Louis rushes to her side and helps her off of the bed. “I am ready to meet this little one,” she groans.
“Soon, right?” I ask, still staring into space.
“Just a few days,” she whispers.
We don’t say anything else as they walk out of my room, closing the door behind them. Fifteen minutes. It doesn’t seem like very much time, but honestly, it feels like a lifetime without Ford. Every minute that passes feels like an hour.
Slowly, I roll out of bed and head into the bathroom to get ready for the day. I don’t know what I’m getting ready for. I know that none of these men will allow me to join them.
I’m going to be stuck pacing the living room, being watched by the women who love Ford, and although they’d never say it, they’ll be blaming me subconsciously.
I don’t bother dressing up. Grabbing the shorts and t-shirt that I threw in my bag, I pull them on before I slip my feet into a pair of shoes. I let out a heavy sigh as I throw my hair up in a messy bun and for the first time in probably a decade, I walk toward a room full of people completely barefaced.
“Oh, Stephanie,” Channing whimpers as soon as I step foot into the living room.
Without any warning, she launches herself at me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders and starts to cry. Pinching my eyes closed, I try not to let my own tears fall. I am so tired of crying already. All I want to do is have Ford back, all of him, in one piece.
Channing takes a step back and I watch as she wipes the wetness from her eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m just… it’s Ford,” she whispers.
“Yeah,” I agree.
“How are you doing?” Exeter asks.
I shrug a shoulder, unsure of what to say. “I don’t know how I feel, I’m numb,” I admit.
The women are quiet, and I’m thankful when the room fills with the men. The doorbell sounds and everyone’s spines straighten. I almost ask who it could be, but Louis jogs toward the door. He doesn’t even look in the peephole, he just turns the knob and tugs it open.
There, standing on his front porch is a whole mess of suited hot Russians. “Oh, my,” Hutton breathes behind me.
Oh, my is right.
“Who is in charge here?” a familiar voice demands.
Stepping away from the women, I make my way toward the door and to the side of Louis.
“Ah, there she is,” Kirill murmurs.
He pushes past Louis, or rather Louis lets him pass. I have a feeling he could stop Kirill and all of his men if he really wanted to. He allows them into his home, knowing that the help of these men could find Ford a hell of a lot faster than the four of them.
“You’ve heard nothing?” he asks.
“Nothing,” I whisper.
He nods, then lifts his head and looks over me to the men. “Is there a place we can talk?” he asks.
I know what he means. Is there a place where they can talk without women and children? I’m under no illusion that this man is not some kind of open and progressive thinker. Women are not equal, not at all.
Honestly, I don’t give a flying fuck as long as they bring Ford home. Him and his safety is all that matters to me. I’m trying not to think morbidly, trying to stay positive, but I can’t help but imagine the absolute worst.
BEAUMONT
The Russians are quiet as we make our way toward Louis’ gym. It’s the only place we’ll all fit and we can lock the door behind us so that the women can’t sneak in, because if I know them, at least one of them will try to find out what’s going on.
“What do you know?” I demand, looking directly at Kirill.
“How much do you all know?” he counters.
Rolling my eyes, I let out a sigh, deciding not to get into an argument or pissing match with the man. I don’t give much of a fuck about him, but he comes with manpower and technology that we don’t have, not to mention questionable morals.
“We know Sebastian is in porn, we know that he killed Ford’s horse and kidnapped him. That’s all,” I say, arching a brow.
Kirill snorts, shaking his head once. “We have been working on finding out more. He hired someone to go with him. Not one of my men, but we know of his kind.”
“A hired gun?” Wyatt asks.
Kirill nods once. “Muscle. A security guard of sorts, but not a legitimate one,” he states.
“Fuck,” I bark.
There is a moment of silence as we let that information sink in. “It’s the only way he could have overpowered Ford,” I say. “Sebastian is easily forty pounds lighter than Ford. He doesn’t have Ford’s brute strength, and he knows that because he’s met him. He tried to sneak into Stephanie’s place when Ford was there. He’s been planning this.”
Kirill nods, lifting his hand to wrap around the back of his neck. “The good news is that they have not gone far. I put tracking on him as soon as he defaulted on his first payment.”
“How?” Rylan asks.
Kirill’s eyes find Rylan and I watch as they roam over his tattooed face, neck, arms, and hands. He smirks, then shakes his head once as if to shake whatever thoughts popped into his head out.
“I activated the tracking on his phone, but I know that it is easily turned off. So, I also had one of my men add a hidden tracking app on his phone. Men like him are never without their cell phones,” he informs us.
I whistle, knowing just how illegal that is, but highly impressed that Kirill has done it, because it will save us a lot of wasted time searching, but also potentially save Ford’s life.
“What happens now?” I ask.
> He clears his throat. “I do not know this area. I will need your group to help me find where he is located and also help us get in and out without the local law enforcement getting involved, can you handle that?”
Wyatt clears his throat and I think that he’s going to say no, but he doesn’t. Instead, he dips his chin in an affirmative nod. “Rylan cannot join us, he also can’t protect the women with guns here. We need a couple of your men behind that you trust.”
Kirill grins, it’s almost maniacal as he flicks his gaze over to Rylan. “Felon?” he asks.
“Yeah,” Rylan grunts.
“In my culture, we wear our tattoos as a story of our lives. The things we’ve done and will do for the right price. I know that yours aren’t the same, but I recognize you for the kind of man that you are, Rylan Lindsay.”
“How’d you know my name?” Rylan demands.
Kirill chuckles. “I also had a complete dossier worked up on each of you on my way out here. I had to know what I was working with. I also know that you called the deputy, Hernandez, is it? He will not be a problem, will he?”
“He won’t, there won’t be any issues as long as we get Ford back safely,” Wyatt announces.
“Good,” Kirill says, nodding his head once.
I watch as he holds out his hand. An iPad is produced and he walks over to the bar area in the room and gently sets the device down. I see a blinking blue dot and I know that’s Sebastian.
“Your man is here. I just can’t do enough research to figure out what is around there. The land here, the maps, they are nothing like California.”
Wyatt lets out a chuckle. “You ain’t in the city anymore,” he informs Kirill. “This is private property. I know because I hunted here with my daddy as a kid. I don’t know how Sebastian found his way here, but he can’t hide out for long. That guy lives off-grid and if he finds someone on his land, he’ll shoot first and ask questions later.”
COWBOY (Unfit Hero Book 5) Page 25