Chasin rolled the rest of the way off Genevieve. As soon as she was free, she moved off the bed and started to pull on yesterday’s jeans san panties. Shit. He wished he could tell her to relax, slow down, and find a pair of underwear, but he knew it would be a fruitless endeavor.
“How long ago did she call you?”
“Thirty minutes. But she hasn’t been to the house. If the alarm is disarmed, I get a notification.”
“Let me go check and I’ll call you back.”
“Do you think she’d go alone?”
“Bobby knows she can’t leave the farm without someone. It’s all good,” he said, but deep in his stomach, he knew it wasn’t.
Chasin yanked on a pair of jeans, realizing as his own words sank in that Bobby wouldn’t think twice about walking across the field and through the woods to get to McKenna and Nix’s house. To her, it was all just one big farm.
Fuck.
“You’ll call me back?”
“Yep.”
Chasin disconnected and Genevieve whirled on him.
“What happened to Bobby?”
“Grab your shoes, baby, and I’ll tell you on the way downstairs.”
He yanked a tee over his head, grabbed a pair of socks, nabbed his boots, and they were out the bedroom door. The door to Bobby’s bedroom was wide open, bed made, and Chasin’s gut clenched some more. He fought back the urge to sprint down the stairs. He didn’t want to freak out Genevieve anymore than she was, but they needed to get a move on it.
“Bobby called McKenna and asked to borrow a pressure cooker. Bobby’s not answering—”
“Yo! ‘Mornin’!” Holden bellowed from the kitchen, and Chasin’s chest tightened.
“Fuck.”
“Fuck what? You’re scaring me.”
“You seen Bobby this morning?” Chasin asked.
“Nope. Haven’t seen anyone.” Holden stopped, immediately caught the vibe, and added, “What’s goin’ on?”
Chasin filled them both in while he was putting on his socks and boots.
Holden was making his way to the front door when Chasin stopped him. “Need you to stay here with Evie. She can’t be—”
“I’m going,” Genevieve snapped.
“No, babe. You stay here.”
“You both need to be out looking. Maybe she just went for a walk up to the barn. She likes it up there. But someone needs to get to Nixon’s. Since I can’t be alone, I’m coming.”
Chasin hated she was right.
“Let’s go.”
They were out the door and Holden took off like a shot, heading across the field, uncaring he was trampling the fledgling corn. Chasin and Genevieve jogged to the barn, called Bobby’s name, and when they got no response, they took off toward the woods. They were nearing the glade that Nixon had widened and cleared for the ATVs when he heard Holden’s angry expletive.
“Oh, God,” Genevieve whimpered.
Chasin tightened his hand over hers and moved them faster through the opening. Then he stopped dead and yanked Genevieve to a halt, pivoting her so she couldn’t see what Holden was looking at.
Blood. Lots of blood. Along with that, pictures of Genevieve scattered around. Like someone had tossed them in the air and they floated down and landed where they landed. Some had splatters of blood, some didn’t.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Holden spat.
“Take Genevieve back to the house and call Nixon.” Holden came unglued and Chasin tried to pass Genevieve to his friend. But she wouldn’t release the grip of steel she had on his hand.
“Baby. You need to go with Holden. Right now, Evie. I need you safe in the house and I have to go look for Bobby.”
“Oh, God.”
“Hold it together, Evie.”
She nodded but didn’t let go.
“Trust me, Genevieve. I’ll find her, but I need you safe.”
“There’s—”
“Don’t think about that. Let me go so I can help her.”
“Please find her.”
“I will.”
“Promise.”
“You’ll find her safe?”
He couldn’t promise her that. There was so much blood there was no chance Bobby was safe, unless by some miracle that wasn’t her blood and she’d gutted the man who’d met her in the woods.
“Come on,” Holden stepped in. “He’s gonna find her.”
“Be careful,” Evie called over her shoulder as Holden tucked her close and threw his arm around her shoulder.
Fucking hell. He wanted to remind Holden who he held in his arm. Wanted to remind him that he had Chasin’s life in his hands.
But he didn’t.
Holden knew.
Chasin hadn’t hidden it. Genevieve was his world and Holden was the kind of man who would protect that.
30
“You holding it together?” Holden asked when I disconnected the phone call from a very angry Kennedy, who’d been ordered to the office by Jameson. She and McKenna were currently locked behind a state-of-the-art security system.
She was pissed because she and McKenna had wanted to come over here, but they were ordered—that was the word she’d repeated multiple times, emphasizing it in a way that told me she was extremely displeased she was being told she couldn’t do what she wanted—to stay there.
I appreciated them wanting to come and stay with me. But I agreed with the guys. It was too dangerous. I felt better knowing they were locked behind an alarm and not out bleeding in the woods somewhere.
“Sure,” I answered Holden.
“Viv, it’s okay to be—”
“To be what? Scared out of my head? Scared for Bobby? Scared for Chasin? Pissed off at some motherfucking freak who won’t let me alone? So angry that I want to scream and hit something? Why? Why did he take her? Why is he doing this to me? Why can’t everyone just leave me the fuck alone and stop fucking with my life?”
“Yeah, it’s okay to be all of that. And anything else you want to be. Only thing I can tell you is that Chasin’s gonna find her. He’s good at his job—the best. He’ll track her and find her. And he’ll be safe while doing it.”
“No,” I rasped. “Oh, no.”
My stomach started to twist and turn as the realization hit me like a ton of cinder blocks dropped from a skyscraper.
“Chasin—what if it’s a trap? The threats? What if he wants Chasin to go after Bobby so he can kill him?”
“Then Chasin will be ready for it.”
“How do you know?”
“Because Chasin’s smart. He’s good. And, Viv, he’s not gonna let anything happen to him when he’s got you to come home to. He’ll find Bobby.”
God, I hoped that was true.
“It’s been hours and there was so much blood.”
My phone rang and I brought it up to look at the screen. The name that flashed before my eyes turned my blood to ice. I knew. Fucking knew in my soul why he was calling.
“Where is she, Bent?” I snapped.
“Fuck,” Holden chided in a low, husky growl and started approaching me.
I shook my head and started to back away. He already had his phone out of his back pocket and was dialing as he took angry steps toward me.
“I’m sick and fuckin’ tired of your attitude, Vivi,” Bent hissed.
Was he for real?
“I tried being romantic, taking my time, knowing I couldn’t rush you. But you fuckin’ ignored me, even after you knew it was me!” he yelled.
Romantic? Yeah, he was fucking crazy.
“Sending me creepy letters isn’t romantic, Bent. It’s just creepy.”
Holden’s eyes snapped to mine and he didn’t hide he was beyond furious I’d taken the call. His eyes went back to his phone and his fingers jabbed at the screen faster than a teenage marathon texter.
“Did you even read them?”
I hadn’t, I stopped reading them after I’d received the first few. I stopped looking at the gifts that were sent, too.
<
br /> He gauged my silence correctly and spat, “Ungrateful bitch.”
Ungrateful? I didn’t ask for him to freak the fuck out, lose his mind, fall off the turnip truck, and become a raving lunatic.
I didn’t voice this, instead, I went back to our current situation.
“If you want me, why’d you take Bobby?”
I’d tried to soften my voice the best I could. All my life I’d heard you attracted more flies with honey than vinegar. I wondered if that applied to psycho, crazy stalkers, too.
“Because the bitch was in the way. She never did know when to keep her trap shut. But she’s quiet now.”
Oh, God. No.
“I didn’t know the letters were from you. You didn’t sign them. How was I supposed to know? You know how it is.”
“I left clues only you’d understand. You would’ve known if you’d fuckin’ read them.”
Whoa. Shit. Wrong thing to say.
Holden caught my attention, nodded, and made a motion with his hand that I hoped I was reading right. He wanted me to keep Bent on the line.
Right. Good. They could trace the call.
“I’m sorry, that was rude.”
Gag.
“Goddamn right it was, darlin’, and you’re gonna pay for it when we get home.”
My stomach bottomed out and it hurt to swallow over the lump that had grown in my throat.
“Okay, Bent, I’ll pay for it when we get home. What do you want me to do?”
Fury filled the room, and for the first time since this started, I was happy Chasin wasn’t here. Holden looked like he was ready to fly apart; Chasin would’ve already exploded.
Where was Chasin?
“I’m gonna text you an address and you’re gonna meet me there, alone.”
“What about Bobby? Is she coming with us?”
“Fuck Bobby.”
Blood roared in my ears and I sucked in a breath and tried to rein in my anger.
Fuck him.
Fuck Bent.
“You know I don’t go anywhere without her,” I said through gritted teeth.
“Times are changing, darlin’, and that bitch’s days of keeping you from me are done. I’ll text you an address and you have twenty minutes to meet me there or I finish her off.”
Finish her off.
Thank God, Bobby was alive.
“That is, if the bitch doesn’t bleed out before she comes to and can call for help.”
It took more effort than I knew I possessed to snap my mouth shut and not tell him I wanted to kill him with my bare hands.
Holden waved his hand in front of my face, and in a haze of fury, I saw him. His face was set to angry, his eyes glittered with badass, pissed-off vibes, but he nodded his encouragement. Then he grabbed my free hand and held on tight.
That was a nice thing for him to do.
But it wasn’t enough to take away my unease. It had coiled and looped and wound itself around my belly, up to my chest, and slithered into my throat.
This wasn’t going to end well.
I knew it.
My heart hurt so bad I couldn’t stand it. And when Bent continued, I knew I was right.
“Don’t even think about calling that asshole. I got him in my sights and if he makes one move I don’t like, I’m blowing his head off.”
“What asshole?” I played dumb. “Who do you have in your sights?”
“Don’t be a stupid cunt.”
“I’m not being stupid. I just don’t understand why you’d want to blow anyone’s head off.”
I thought it pertinent to stay on track and not, say, tell him to go suck a monkey’s dick for calling me a cunt.
Holden squeezed my hand and I looked up at him. He made a slicing motion with his hand in front of his neck and mouthed disconnect we have him.
Thank God.
But I still knew, just because I no longer needed to hear Bent’s foul, vile voice anymore didn’t mean this was over. It was far from over. And one of the two most important people in the world to me was going to be taken. I knew it. I felt it.
“Text me the address and I’ll meet you in twenty minutes.”
“’Bout fuckin’ time you start listening.”
Whatever. His words no longer bothered me.
“See you soon, Bent.”
“That you will, darlin’,” he cooed. “We’ll be home soon and we can put all of this behind us. Just you and me.”
“Just you and me,” I repeated, and bile crept up.
I lowered my phone, stabbed the red icon to disconnect, and stood frozen.
“He’s gonna text an address,” I told Holden.
“I heard, Viv. Stay strong, honey.”
“He said if I’m not there he’ll finish her off if she doesn’t bleed out first.”
“That’s not gonna happen.”
“He’s gonna blow Chasin’s head off.”
“That is beyond the realm of possibility.”
No, it wasn’t. Bent had eyes on Chasin. He’d left Bobby somewhere bleeding and near-dead. Nothing was beyond the realm of possibility.
Then I remembered McKenna beaten. Jameson having to breathe life back into Kennedy. Something had happened to Silver and Macy, too. That was four-for-four times Gemini Group had lucked out.
I figured every winning streak had to come to an end, so thinking about those women being saved didn’t make me feel better. It made my chest clench and fear invade.
Someone is always a loser. And I had the worst luck of anyone.
My phone beeped with a text and I handed it to Holden. I didn’t even want to look. The address meant nothing to me—Bobby wasn’t there and I was not going to go meet Bent. No way was I going anywhere with him. But the clock on my best friend’s life had already started to count down, I’d already known it. I didn’t need Bent to confirm it, but now he’d given us a deadline.
Holden was on his phone. I wasn’t sure which of the guys he was talking to. They were talking about strategy and my mind wandered to Bobby. All the way back to when I first met her at the bar where she and I worked. I immediately liked her. She was feisty, fun, outgoing, and was always smiling. We’d been inseparable since. She’d stood by my side and cheered me on.
When I got signed, the first thing I did was hire Bobby as my assistant. I didn’t really need one, I just wanted Bobby to be with me and she needed money to live. Melissa had thought it was stupid, she’d been against it from the beginning and said if I wanted an assistant, she’d find me someone who had experience in the music industry. Leslie, on the other hand, had always liked Bobby and told me it was a good idea keeping her close so she could keep me grounded. I had to admit, in the beginning, Leslie had been good to me. She helped me navigate the industry and opened up doors that had been closed. Maybe she’d just gotten lost along the way, too.
“Viv?” Holden called. My gaze went to him to see him holding his phone out to me. “Chasin wants to talk to you.”
With more force than was necessary, I snatched the phone.
“Chasin?”
“Evie, baby. You okay?”
“No.”
“Keep holding on, we’ll have Bobby soon.”
“Bent said he was finishing her off in twenty minutes.”
“Not gonna happen,” Chasin repeated what Holden had told me.
It felt no better hearing it from Chasin.
“He said—”
“Baby, listen to me. Don’t believe anything that fuckwad told you. He doesn’t have eyes on me. And he’s not gonna touch Bobby again. You did good keeping him on the phone. Micky got a lock on his location, Nixon and Alec are headed that way now. Weston and Jonny are headed to the address he gave you. Jameson and I have a lead someone called in and we’re headed there now. You did good, baby, and it couldn’t have been easy listening to that crazy fuck, but you did it. Proud of you, baby. So proud. This will all be over soon.”
One way or another, it would be over soon.
“What
if—”
“Don’t go there. Bobby needs you thinking good thoughts, stay strong for her. Trust me, Genevieve, I’m bringing her home. Do you trust me?”
“I trust you,” I whispered.
“Good. Now I’m gonna let you go. I love you.”
“Love you.”
Chasin disconnected and Holden’s hand wrapped around mine. He pried my fingers open and took his phone.
“Let’s get you something to drink, Viv.”
I didn’t want anything to drink.
“I didn’t tell him to be careful.”
“He will be.”
I nodded because I figured he would, but I still wished I’d told him.
“I’m not offering up my life for my best friend, but I still am.”
“I’m not tracking, Viv. Let’s get you—”
“I’m not giving myself up. Bent’s gonna go to that address and I won’t be there. When he finds out, he’s gonna go back and kill Bobby. I’m not trading my life for hers.”
But I was.
When Bent found out I wasn’t there, he’d go back and finish off Bobby, then blow Chasin’s head off and my life will end.
“Viv—”
“The two people who mean the world to me, they’re my everything, are out there in danger and it’s because of me and I’m not trading myself for them. What kind of person does that make me?”
“A smart one. Trust your man to find Bobby and bring her home. Let me explain to you how you trading yourself would play out. You go to that address and Chasin will abandon his search for Bobby—he’ll pull the team off the search and we’ll go in to rescue you. He likes Bobby, hell we all do, but if the choice is between you and Bobby, he’ll pick you. You are his world, and it would kill him because he knows how much you love Bobby, but he’d still pick you. And he’d do it knowing that if something happened to Bobby it would shatter you, part of you would be lost to him. So if you leave this house, where would that leave her? You’re playing it smart, you’re trusting your man, and you’re saving three lives. Yours, Bobby’s, and Chasin’s. Hang tight, she’s coming home and so is Chasin.”
Holden made a whole lot of sense. But it didn’t do a damn thing to stop my chest from aching.
“Thanks for taking care of me.”
“You’re family, Genevieve.”
Chasin's Surrender (Gemini Group Book 5) Page 26