“What about you?” I ask.
“I’ll be fine. I’ll crawl back into bed, and they won’t come near me. They never do anymore.”
“Mom.” Galen’s voice cracks.
“I know, son. We’ll talk again. Soon.” She stretches up, kissing his cheek. “I love you so much, honey, and I need you to be safe, or else, it’s all been for nothing!” Her voice elevates a few notches again. She gives us another push. “So, go!”
I grab Galen’s arm, and we run out the side door as Alisha flees back out into the hallway. We race through the garage toward the SUV, and I thank our lucky stars Galen moved the car from the front of the house before we headed to bed. “Wait,” Galen whispers when we reach the Lexus. His eyes narrow, and I can almost see the wheels churning in his head.
My mind instantly syncs with his. “Good plan,” I say. “Let’s find out what they’re up to.”
He clasps my hand. “Keep behind me, and stay low. We can’t be spotted, so we’ll go around the back. There are no cameras there.”
I zip my hoodie up and creep out of the garage behind Galen. It’s still dark out as it’s the middle of the night, and the only illumination is the crescent moon high in the sky and the odd flickering outside light. We stay close to the wall, keeping our eyes and ears peeled, as we walk around the back of the property and past the empty pool and the pool house.
“Down,” Galen hisses as lights flood one of the rooms at the rear, spilling through the naked windows, casting a dim glow on the patio a few meters ahead. “They’re in the ballroom,” he whispers, and I hear the unspoken curiosity behind his words. There is nothing in that space anymore. Just an empty room with old chandeliers and heavy drapes. We crouch down, crawling until we reach the first ballroom window. “Stay down,” Galen whispers, popping his head up a little so he can see inside the room. “Holy fucking shit.”
“What?”
He crouches down. “See for yourself. Be careful and be quick ’cause they have a guy going around the room closing the curtains.”
We trade places, and I inch my head up until I can see into the room. The middle section of the floor is wide-open, revealing a hidden room underneath. It’s not a huge space, but it’s deep enough that steps are mounted on either side to access it. Men, wearing The Sainthood’s leather cut, traipse into the room from outside, carrying boxes of various sizes down into the compartment.
Galen fists my hoodie, yanking me down just as a man approaches the window. We stare at one another, barely breathing, only relaxing once everything goes dark and the light fades. “Fucking hell,” I whisper. “Guess now we know how your mom gets access to drugs.”
“It wasn’t just drugs,” he whispers back. “Judging from the size of some boxes, they’re hiding weapons there too.”
“I wonder how long it’s been going on?”
“He installed the cameras two years ago. Said it was for mom’s protection because I was often gone for days at a time, but that was bullshit. He fitted cameras to protect his investment.” His jaw stiffens, and anger burns in his eyes again.
I need to get him away before he loses control. I squeeze his hand. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Even though the curtains are now drawn, we take no chances, bending down low until we pass the ballroom, and then, we race back the way we came.
I round the corner first, slamming into a hard chest. I open my mouth to scream when Galen’s hand wraps around my mouth from behind, stalling me. “It’s Saint!” he whispers. “Chill.”
I look up into the foreboding face of Saint Lennox. He’s dressed all in black, and he has a hood over his head, cloaking his features. “What the actual fuck is going on? I’ve been blowing up your cells. Why did neither of you pick up?” he snaps. His blue eyes pin me in place, and anger bleeds into the air on all sides of me.
“We left our cells upstairs, and there wasn’t time to go back for them,” Galen explains. “What’s wrong?”
“We’ve got a problem to solve.”
“At four a.m.?” I ask.
“The Bulls have been set free, and they’ll be coming for us. We need to strike first.”
“You have a plan?” Galen asks.
“Of course, we do.” I hear the smirk in his tone. “Let’s get the fuck out of Dodge. You can update me on the way to meet the others.”
CHAPTER 29
Harlow
“I’M SO FUCKINGsorry, man,” Saint says after Galen has given him the cliff notes version of my convo with Alisha. He didn’t miss much, confirming he wasn’t in such a deep sleep after all. We also explained what we saw going down in the ballroom. “Fuck that bastard!” Saint slams his hands down on the steering wheel as aggression rolls off him in waves. The car swerves on the road, and it’s a good thing it’s empty this time of night.
“Pull over, and let me drive.” I poke my head through the gap in the two front seats.
