The scent was strong as if he’d been exposed…recently.
Before I could remind myself why attacking the underboss of the Fola wasn’t wise, my rage swiftly returned, rising high and crashing into me like a tsunami wave until all I knew was the name he’d called me earlier. What was it again?
Oh, yeah…
Vengeance.
Snatching my knife from the hidden sheath by my hip, I lunged.
COBY
A few hours before…
With no idea who took her, I went to the only person who could get her back.
Wayne, the doorman at Glainne, tried to stop me at the door, but I managed to convince him with a knife to his throat. Hunter’s idea of a Christmas present had finally come in handy. The receptionist had taken one look at me and reached for the phone. Somehow, I knew he wasn’t calling the police, so I kicked the back of Wayne’s leg to make him kneel and waited.
I’m sure the scene I’d caused in the lobby was a sight to behold when Ocean finally stepped off the private elevator to see me with his doorman on his knees and me crying uncontrollably like a lunatic. That knife at Wayne’s throat shook in my grip, cutting him a little in the process.
Ocean observed it all with the casualness of someone watching a bird drop a deuce. “This is a surprise. How can I help you, Coby?”
“What did you do?” I demanded. All the betrayal I felt curdling in my gut was reflected in my voice.
“Coby, drop the knife.”
“Someone took Hunter,” I told him desperately.
Ocean repeated his command as if I hadn’t spoken. The attentive man I’d grown used to was nowhere to be found. “Drop…” He stepped forward, and I inhaled sharply. “The knife. I won’t ask you again.”
Forcing my fingers to relax, the knife fell from my hand and clattered on the marble floor. A moment later, I was engulfed in Ocean’s strong arms as he wrapped them around me and attempted to console me.
For a moment, I forgot why I came.
“Ocean,” I sobbed his name as I came to my senses and pulled away. I tugged on his shirt, attempting to pull him to the door. “Please, you h-have to h-help h-her.”
“Coby, calm down,mo aingeal.”
“No! Don’t tell me to calm down!” Unable to force him out the door, I turned and started shoving at his chest. “This is your fault! You did this!”
“And I’ll fix it, but first, I have to take care of you. Come here.” Before I could say no, Ocean lifted me into his arms and then carried me into the elevator. Already, I could feel my muscles relaxing and exhaustion creeping in. “Hush,” he soothed when I fought off sleep to beg him some more. “I’ll get her back. No harm will come to Hunter. Not even a scratch. You have my word.”
Believing him because I had no other choice if I wanted to see Hunter again, I closed my eyes and allowed my mind to settle as the elevator descended into the underground garage.
OCEAN
Temptress.
She was a restless soul.
Hunter stayed in the streets like it was a second home. I knew she kept company with thieves, hitters, and corner boys—some of the worst in Black Veil. And she did it without any regard for the danger she courted. No longer just pixels in a photo but flesh and blood, Hunter stood before me now with murder in her eyes.
I should have seen the blade coming before it was inches from my heart, but her aura was a distraction that nearly cost me. At the last moment, I grabbed Hunter’s wrist before she could plunge the hunting knife between my rib cage and quickly disarmed her.
She cried out her frustration and anger when the knife clattered to the asphalt. I gripped her fingers, pushing her hand into her face and transferring my hold to her thumb, and then I grabbed her elbow before shoving it down until it forced her back to bend into a ninety-degree angle with her face toward the ground.
“Let me—”
I locked my elbow to apply pressure to her wrist until it cinched, and she screamed. “Go?” I finished for her. Hunter focused on controlling her breathing rather than responding. “You’re Coby’s friend. I’m sure you mean a lot to her, which means I’d prefer it if I didn’t hurt you and upset her.”
