Holt and I stood at Crickett’s bedside. “Crickett? It’s Holt,honey.”
She tried to pick up her head with her eyes still closed. “Raine,” she slurred, “I need her…youneedher.”
“Was Rainewithyou?”
Hearing my father ask my mother-in-law if my wife had been in the car made my entire body go into a near panic, but I knew I had to keep calm on the outside. I couldn’t let the guys know how fucking terrifiedIwas.
“We were coming to see you.” Crickettslurred.
“Who is we? Was Rainewithyou?”
“The baby. We were going to tell you. Raine, so excited.”Crickett’s head rolled to the side. She kept mumbling but we couldn’t make out what she was trying totellus.
Abel and Bear came back into the room and Collin was with them. That’s when I knew my fears were turning into reality—my wife was fuckingmissing.
“Raine was with Crickett. She’s fucking missing!” I yelledatAbel.
He pursed his lips and nodded. “I know. We’re going to the bar. Collin is going to stay here.” Abel’s voice wasstern.
* * *
“How doyou fucking expect me to react when you tell me my wife has been kidnapped and we have no fucking clue who would do it?” I heaved the large desk in front of me over in the small office as my dad, Bear, and Abel stood next to me. I still hadn’t figured out how to explain to Abel that my panic was not just because Raine was gone, but that I was freaking out because no one fucking knew she was pregnant. It added a whole other level to the whole fucking thing and I was keeping my damn mouth shut. It also wasn’t helping that I could feel that all three of them knew details that I didn’t. Usually being the low man on the totem pole didn’t bother me too much, but right in that moment I hating the secrecy that was lingering intheroom.
“We will find her,” Abelgrowled.
Holt grabbed my arm, pulling me through into the room where the rest of my club was gathered. “I am going to fucking kill them. Whoever the fuck they are, they are dead men walking.” I was inarage.
“I have men working on this.” Bear was standing in the corner being as vague as humanlypossible.
“Who?” Iasked.
Abel put his hand in the air. “We have good men doing their jobs to get your wife home. That is all you needtoknow.”
With that he asked Holt and I to leave the office. I didn’t want to but my dad pulled me outthedoor.
“You need to put a little faith in Abel and Bear.” My dad growled at me low enough that only I couldhearhim.
“I don’t know how to do that right now when I know that they aren’t telling me everything.” Isnapped.
“Then fucking fake it, kid. Those two men are the only ones that will be able to get your girl home. Do not fucking piss them off or make thisworse.”
My dad’s advice was solid and true. I did need to stop acting like a raging lunatic. It wasn’t going to help the situationatall.
Bear and Abel stayed in the office for a few minutes talking. I paced, digging a pack of smokes out of my pocket. I didn’t give a fuck that I wasn’t supposed to smoke in the bar; it was happening. As I puffed away, I tried to ignore the chatter of the guys all trying to talk thesituationout.
“The fucking Sinners are going to pay. They have to be behind this,” Trent Laurence’s ignorant ass muttered next to me. Out of all of the Unacceptables, Trent was my least favorite. It all started when Raine and I first started dating and he hit on herconstantly.
“The Sinners aren’t stupid enough to fuck with us like this again,” I barked, remembering the night we made it a point to let them know never to mess with our family. Yes, they wanted revenge from it, but too much time had passed and this was too sophisticated of a move for just them to havepulledoff.
Bear and Abel finally joined us, and Abel walked into the middle of the crowd. “Everyone, get your families here now. We need to make sure we’re all accounted for. No one goes anywhere alone or without my permission until furthernotice.”
Everyone started to make calls and went to gather up their loved ones. Holt, Abel, Bear, and I all took seats at thetable.
“Please tell me we have some sort of lead,” I pleaded, putting out my cigarette on the underside ofmyboot.
“We think we might,” Bear replied. “I had a problem with a few shipments not too long ago, right when the Sinners started giving you guys issues a few months back. I have a feeling it’s allrelated.”
Abel continued to explain the situation as I tuned out. I didn’t care about the politics or the fact that Abel and Bear were dealing with club issues. All I could focus on was getting Raine homesafely.
