Page 140 of Rot In Knotty Pieces

“We’re on the way,” he snarls. “We’re coming, about twenty minutes behind you.”

“Good. Rose, are you okay, really?”

“I’m here,” Roseland growls. “I’m good. Just roughed up a bit. We all are.”

“That whole day was a plan, the arrest, everything. Why didn’t he take her when we were in cuffs?”

“Ego,” Roseland says simply. “It’s more dramatic and painful for all of us if he drugs us and makes us all look like fools.”

Sending us to jail was a very bold move. One that has pissed me off, but ironically, he either forgot about our pack’s connections, didn’t know, or didn’t care. That’s fascinating. Good thing I sent out an SOS call.

Just thinking about him drugging us so blatantly makes my skin itch. The audacity of walking in and taking her out right in front of us.

I’m going to destroy him tonight.

A whole day has passed. According to the camera I had installed, he took her hours ago.

“Do we have a name yet? One confirmed? What am I walking in on?” I snarl, forcing those thoughts away.

“His name is Anthony Preston. He’s sixty-one years old and is the owner of a construction business. He is nothing special. Never bonded, no kids. Nothing of note. By all accounts, an average, normal citizen.” Roseland pauses. “Except, he was on the street that day when Merle freaked out. He’s the one with a bond on his neck. Official registers don’t have a recording of one. We assumed a bonded alpha couldn’t hide that he was a killer.”

“What if she is a killer, too?” I say to him quietly. “What if she’s part of the Legion? Part of the Flock?”

The thought leaves us cold. What are we walking into? How many will we need to destroy?

“He owns a lot of rundown properties, nothing that stands out, just some yards, some old factories. Places with abandoned buildings or warehouses. All disused. That’s where he kept her. Trained her. No one could hear her screams or find her,” Roseland murmurs. “I remember her telling me.”

I grunt, trying to hide my rage.

“However, it looks like he’s got a lot more money than he should have.” Blaze makes a growling sound. “I think he’s an assassin. I think he sells kills and hits. And he forces the kids to do it.”

I bare my teeth, growling and letting out the rage I feel just hearing that.

“Is there a chance he will hurt her?”

There’s a hesitation on the phone.

“There’s a very good chance he might try to get rid of her,” Sage says. “I sent you to the address I memorized when I looked into him. It’s his oldest acquisition, but the one he’s doing work on and has been spending a lot of time at according to his location pings.”

Thank fuck for Sage’s anal need to know and memorize information.

I accelerate hard. “How far are you?”

“We’re close. Maybe a few minutes behind you and gaining,” King says.

“Good. Get in here fast.”

I end the call and turn towards where the bond is screaming. The outside is full of rusted machinery; there’s a puddle of muddy water that is about five car lengths long. A couple of shells of trucks and a massive dark building with open doors. It looks like it’s at least three stories high, and there are a precarious-looking set of stairs on the outside.

I get off the bike I stole, dump the helmet, and pull out a flick knife. If I have to kill everyone in there to get her safe, I will.

I crouch down and run across the space, pausing when my phone vibrates. I look down and see his name. With shaking hands, I press the accept button.

“Mark.”

“I’m almost there.”

I frown. “I didn’t say I needed-”