“It’s us,” Raiden whispered. “You’re safe.”
Cash pulled back, a strange plastic gun in his hand. “Do you know if there’s anyone else here?”
“Another guard,” Lawrence said, gesturing to the large storage shed. “I hit his knee and his ankle, but I ran away before I could see how badly he was hurt.”
Immediately, Cash was off like a bolt of lightning to the shed. He yanked the door open, pointed the gun, and then seemed to fire his weapon, even though it didn’t make a bang. When he turned back with a nod, Raiden took Lawrence’s face in his hands and pulled his eyes up. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Did they hurt you, Lawrence?”
Lawrence shook his head. Tears were streaming down his face, and he could barely process what had happened. “They just kept me locked up,” he said. “I don’t know who they were, but they knew both of you, and they swore you weren’t coming.” His voice cracked, and he threw his arms around Raiden, holding him tight. “They kept saying you weren’t coming,” he repeated, nearing a sob.
Cash returned and wrapped his arms around Lawrence from behind. The warm feeling enveloped him from all sides, like a barrier between Lawrence and the scary world. “We’re here, sweetheart. We’re here.”
“There’s a lot to fill you in on,” Raiden said. “But for now, let’s get you somewhere safe.”
Cash caught his breath. “Where are we?”
“A small property owned by your father’s colleague, Mackey,” Cash answered. “We pinned the kidnapping on him.”
“Mr. Mackey?” Lawrence asked as he stepped back, needing to see each of their faces and their hazel eyes. “This is his place?”
Cash nodded. “There’s been a power grab behind the scenes at Horizon Zed. Once Raiden helped me put the pieces together, we pinned it on Mackey. Since yesterday, we’ve been hitting every property attached to him, one at a time.”
“We’re in Pennsylvania,” Raiden nodded. “But there’s time for all of that later. For now, let’s get you out of here. The guards will be passed out for a while, but that doesn’t mean the site is safe. More thugs could show up at any minute.”
Lawrence’s hands began to tremble. “I was just so scared,” he whispered. “And they said that Cash was working for the men who kidnapped me.”
There was a slight pause. Then Raiden took Lawrence gently by the chin and met his gaze. “Hey, don’t you worry. Cash is a good man, and we’re both here for you, Lawrence. Now come on. It’s a bit of a hike back to the car, and we’re all going to breathe a little better once you’re safe.”
Raiden took one of Lawrence’s hands, and Cash took the other. Lawrence nodded. “Okay,” he said. “Let’s go.”
* * *
Raiden drove the car down quiet backroads while Cash sat in the back with Lawrence. They had water and snacks for him, and after only a few minutes, Lawrence laid down across the seats, his head in Cash’s lap while Cash softly stroked his hair. The further they got away from the storage shed, the more Lawrence was able to relax, until finally he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep, like he had just run a marathon and then eaten several plates of pasta.
When he finally woke up, they were pulling the car through a large iron gate. It was dark, and the stars disappeared and reappeared as they rolled under the canopy of old trees. As Lawrence groggily pulled himself up, he saw the headlights sweep across a single-story brick house with a detached garage.
“Sorry we couldn’t bring you home,” Raiden said, glancing back at Lawrence through the rearview mirror. “We didn’t think any of our places were safe. My boss offered up his hideaway. We’ll be good here as long as you need.”
Lawrence nodded, and as they climbed out of the car and unloaded themselves into the little house, he slowly crawled out of his sleep and back into consciousness. He chugged water, and Raiden fried up some eggs and vegetables from the fridge, which Lawrence wolfed down so quickly he barely tasted them. The house was largely undecorated, with just some basic furniture scattered on the carpeted floor, but the unfamiliar setting didn’t matter. As long as he was with his guys, Lawrence was comfortable and safe.
Cash drew a hot bath, and the guys slowly undressed him together, lowered him into the steaming water, and sat on the edge of the bathtub while they washed him. The trickling warm water down his neck relaxed Lawrence, and the gentle touch of the men positioning and bathing him sent trembles of pleasure across his skin. Once they dried him with a fluffy white towel and dressed him in a fresh pair of briefs and a T-shirt, he finally let his guard all the way down and had a long and serious cry.
Finally, back in the living room, they gave Lawrence the full story. None of it was surprising, although it all made him sick to his stomach. For years, Lawrence had watched his father and his colleagues play vicious power games with each other, climbing the ranks at Horizon no matter what it took. A year ago, they learned one of the CEO spots would be opening, and the battle for the promotion had played out as the executives developed Horizon’s proprietary brand of cell phone and tablet, set to take the market by storm.
Once Lawrence heard the way his father had come out on top of the project and almost secured himself the promotion, he’d nearly vomited, all of his worst suspicions confirmed. Manufacturing the phones required a rare mineral, coltan, and his father had pulled together a small coalition of crooked politicians, military men, and global business powers to steal that mineral at any costs. While most people knew about so-called blood diamonds, not as many understood that their cell phones also relied on conflict minerals and that men like his father pulled the strings to fund violent insurrections, arm oppressive regimes, and exacerbate existing conflicts, all in the name of ensuring a secure supply line.
At least Lawrence could take some small pleasure in knowing his father’s nasty plan failed. While he was committing war crimes from the board room, his colleague, Mr. Mackey, played a whole different game. He’d hired some mafia types to take his colleagues down and ensure himself the CEO position. They disgraced Mr. Peterson months ago, apparently by exploiting his son Seb, a guy Lawrence had met a few times and remembered fondly. Lawrence felt sick to his stomach when Raiden and Cash explained that the three of them had completed Mr. Mackey’s dirty work for him when they took out Mr. Rios. That left only Lawrence’s father, and with a rapidly shrinking timeline and the coltan deal ready to be finalized in Panama, Mr. Mackey had made his move and snatched Lawrence.
There was so much more, information that made Lawrence’s head spin. Cash had started off working for Reed, the man who kidnapped him, and Raiden’s security agency had been fighting Mr. Mackey’s plots for the past year without knowing it. But Lawrence only cared that the three of them were safe and together again. They heard his heart crying out and saved him, and that truth was stronger than any other.
“You came for me,” he said softly. He was curled up in the bed, with Raiden and Cash sitting on either side of him. The windows were cracked, and he could hear the sounds of the woods at night and the wind passing through the trees. “Thank you for coming for me.”
Raiden and Cash glanced at each other. A sly smile played on Cash’s lips, and Raiden grinned back. “Of course we did, sweetheart,” Raiden answered. “We need each other. And we love you.”
“We really do,” Cash said. “We love you, Lawrence, just like we love each other.”
Tears gathered in the corners of Lawrence’s eyes, but he didn’t try to hide the emotions surging through him. “I love you,” he said with trembling breath as he pulled himself to his elbows. “I love you Raiden, and I love you, Cash. I really do.”
The guys took him in their arms. Raiden’s hand found the back of Lawrence’s head, his fingers playing through the curls, and Cash kissed softly and sweetly along Lawrence’s neck.
