As much as I hate that she’s gone, at least I know who she left with. Matthews would’ve taken her straight to a new Vaughn-approved hiding place.
Which means she’s safe.
That’s what I keep telling myself. It’s a mantra against the dark scenarios invading my thoughts because I’m in fucking pieces. She can’t be perfectly safe unless she’s with me.
That thought is a vice around my heart, its jaws contracting every day. It’s not rational, butrationalhasn’t been my strongest suit the past week. I’m a pendulum swinging between calculated logic and emotional overwhelm.
It doesn’t help that our tight surveillance on Vaughn hasn’t produced a single clue. I’m shooting blind, checking every location I can think of while Jackson and Ryder keep digging. So far, all we have are dead ends. Wherever Vaughn hid her, it’s a much better choice than Lakeside.
He should’ve led with that.
And I should’ve stormed into his precinct days ago. Confronting the man face to face wouldn’t have been smart, but neither is coming toDeltaknowing damn well he’ll read me my rights.
Fuck it.Smarthasn’t gotten me anywhere.
It’s time for drastic measures.
“Are they here yet?” I ask Broadway, glancing down the metal stairs.
He’s two steps below, the wrinkles marring his forehead a visible representation of his foul mood. “Not yet. You can still leave.”
“Not happening.” I whip my neck left and right but the pleasantcrackdoesn’t ease the cold dread gnawing at my bones. Maybe a glass of Bourbon will help. “Better go get me a drink.”
“Shall I prepare your last meal too?” he bites back, veering left as we reach the top.
My gaze leaps toward the back office and through the haze of dim lights, I catch Dante’s intense gaze staring right at me. He doesn’t look fazed by my presence as he moves his attention back to his wife standing before him.
She’s flushed, cheeks pink—probably from however long she spent on the dance floor—dark hair damp around her temples, chest heaving. She beams at her husband, rising on the tips of her stilettoes to reach his lips.
A sudden mounting sense of discomfort poisons my system. I slow my step, dropping my gaze. Three months ago, I would’ve smirked at this public display of affection... at Dante’sblatant manifestation of feelings, but now I can’t fucking watch.
Men like him don’t indulge quick kisses in front of crowds of strangers, but he never gave a shit. He knows he can protect Layla. Besides, no one in their right mind would dare hurt her these days so he never holds back, showing her off regardless of who’s watching.
And I know I wouldn’t—
Correction: Iwon’thold back once I find Hailey.
I look up five seconds later, checking they’re done. They are and Dante’s rapt attention is on me while Layla does a one-eighty, stilettoing away.
Shaking off the unwanted jealousy that he has what I lost, I pick up my pace, following him to the office surprised to find it empty. I haven’t looked toward the VIP table to check if Dante’s men are there.
Two lines wrinkle my forehead when he sits in his leather chair, hooking his index finger in the collar of his shirt and tugging twice. He’s not the type to pop a few buttons. Not since he became the king of the underground, perching on top of the ladder every morally gray man in America wants to climb.
His mouth opens, then falls shut when a singlebeepof the motion detector informs us that someone’s entered the corridor. Five seconds later, there’s a rap on the door.
“Come in,” Dante barks.
Broadway enters, balancing a tray on the flat of his hand like a professional waiter. He’s brought more than two glasses.
It’s five to nine in the evening, which means our weekly meeting starts soon and Dante’s men should be flocking in here.
“Where’s everyone else?” I ask, ignoring Broadway’s eyes shooting daggers my way.
“I only told Broadway about Vaughn,” Dante explains, plucking his drink from the lineup. “I had a feeling you weren’t going to stay away. I want to see how this plays out.”
He trusts his men implicitly but always tests their loyalty. I considered it an insult for a long time, especially after I took three bullets for his wife, but after I learned about the betrayal Dante suffered at the hands of a man he trusted with his life, I started testing my small crew.
Better safe than sorry.
