“It will be one day, right?” she asks. I nod and pull her into another hug, holding her a little longer this time.
“I’ll keep time on the phone. Just call me,” I tell her before sending her on her way. I watch her walk back the way we came, and it breaks my fucking heart to leave her behind, but what the hell can I do? I can’t have her sleeping, only God knows where, as I do.
I board the bus and get settled in when my phone chimes. I open up and see a picture, so I click it to make it larger.
“What the fuck?” I ask myself when I see it’s River. Tears stream down her cheeks, and her wrists are cut. Did she try to kill herself? She wouldn’t do that. Would she? I close the picture and look at the next message.
“You shouldn’t miss fights,” I read out loud. This was Brent. That motherfucker. If he did this to her, I will kill him. I will fucking gut his no-good ass for laying a hand on her.
I debate calling him, but I don’t want him to know I’m coming. Instead, I dial Jeremy and pray he has time on his phone.
“Yeah?”
“Where the fuck is River?”
“How should I know?”
“Brent sent me a photo of her with her wrists cut, Jeremy.”
“What the fuck? She wouldn’t do that.” That’s the same thing I was thinking.
“I didn’t think so either, and it came from Brent’s number. If he did this …”
“We’ll kill him,” he growls into the line.
“Don’t do shit until I get there. I’ll meet you at the warehouse.”
“We’re going to handle this, Royal. There’s no way in hell we let him hurt her.”
“No shit. That’s going to fuck us over, you know that, right?”
“I know. We’ll figure out something else.”
“Glad we agree. I’m not letting him take this shit out on her,” I tell him as my heart pounds in my chest. I’m so pissed right now, but there isn’t anything I can do while I’m on the fucking bus on the way back.
“You on the way?”
“Yeah, I’m on the bus. I just don’t know what the hell she’s doing. How did he get to her?” I ask more of myself.
“It’s hard to say. Maybe she came looking for you,” he says.
“I don’t know. This is fucked.” I run my hand over my face and sigh.
“We got this. Don’t worry until you get back. Try to stay calm.” The line goes dead, and I pull the phone away from my ear, sliding it back into my pocket. Stay calm. How the hell do I stay calm when I’m this pissed off? He hurt her. He had to have hurt her. River wouldn’t do this to herself.
The bus ride seems to take forever, and then I have to change buses. It’s all a bunch of bullshit, and as soon as I get off the last one, I take off running toward the warehouse.
As soon as I get inside, Jeremy is there waiting.
“I’ve been asking around,” he says.
“And?”
“Brent has her. He’s pissed you missed the last fight.”
“So he took her?”
“Looks that way. He’s holding her at the gym from what I can find out.”
