“Maggie.” Connor’s growl could rival his brother’s. “I don’t think you should go alone.”
I shook my head. “I’m not. Tiff’s gonna come with me. I hope. Ryder will stay here with you.”
Before he could argue, Tiff was calling from the front door.
“Mags, where are you?”
I stepped out of the media room with my finger to my lips, Connor hot on my heels.
I frowned at Tiff. “Will you stop that racket? I’m trying to keep Jaycee calm.”
Connor moved from behind me and rushed to Tiffany, folding her in a hug.
Tiffany patted his back. “Don’t worry little bro, we’ll get her back.”
“Oh, God.” Connor rolled his eyes as he stepped away from Tiffany. “Not you too, Tee. It could be dangerous.”
Before any of us could argue, we heard Ryder’s truck come to a screeching halt. He stepped through the front door with Ethan at his side. “What’s going on?”
I gave Connor a pleading look. “Please can you take Ethan and keep an eye on Jaycee in the media room?”
Connor nodded even though he did not look happy.
As soon as the door to the media room was closed once more, I spoke. “Fred just called and he has Hayden and Zoe.”
Tiffany’s face turned a frightening shade of crimson. “That motherfucking, asshole sucking, piece of shit.”
“Tiff, he said she tried to fight. Hayden said she’s not moving.” There was no way to sugar coat it for her. “He wants me to come alone. And I don’t want to. But with the guys busy, I need to go. I’ll understand if you cannot come with me.”
“Fuck.” Ryder’s roar echoed off the walls, as he pulled out his phone. “You’re right you cannot go alone. I’ll get hold of Theo.”
Oh God, no. “Ryder, stop. He said I had to come alone. I’m risking a lot taking Tiffany.”
“Maggie, let me be clear.” Ryder’s voice had turned to granite. I suspected under different circumstances, Shiloh quite enjoyed that tone. “Either, I call him now or the moment you get in the car. Or, I will go with you and we can determine what’s happening before I call him. But we are unarmed and Fred’s a lunatic. We need backup.”
I rested my hands on my hips. “Who’s going to watch the kids?”
“First.” His eye roll was worthy of any of the teenagers I lived with. “Connor is perfectly capable of babysitting. Second, this place is crawling with security guards. There’s a reason they chose to target Hayden on his way home.”
He had a point. And it would be good to have another person as backup. “Fine. But we only call him once we’re there. They’re on an important mission.”
Ryder was right, but part of me was hoping that if I just did what Fred said I could get both kids out with as little damage as possible.
“I’m driving.” Tiffany walked around Ryder’s truck to her own car. “Let’s go.”
Tiffany peeled out of the driveway. “Where am I going?”
“The old drive-in theatre.” My voice was shaking. I’d never done anything like this before. “He gave me twenty minutes.”
As Tiffany pulled onto the main road, she narrowed her eyes at me. “Plenty of time.”
Her knuckles were white against the steering wheel. She wasn’t what anyone would describe as a careful driver and I found myself gripping the door handle until my hand ached. We were all silent for a good few minutes. Not peace, but tension, and each car we passed could be a potential threat. How did Theo do this? How did Shiloh?
Ryder leaned between the two front seats. “The raid at that warehouse was a distraction. They wanted Theo, actually the whole of Salinger Security, out of the way.”
“I agree.” Tiffany nodded from the driver’s seat. “I’ve seen it happen before. And Salinger Security is not immune to distraction when their target is personal. He wanted everyone out of the way because he knew he didn’t stand a chance. Let Ryder call them Mags. I’ve read enough novels to know we’re headed into too stupid to live territory.”
I nodded at the man in the back seat. “Just explain everything. Tell them they cannot be seen.”
