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A new plan had been set.
I would be bait.
An offering.
But I’d be willing to make any sacrifice if it meant Nolan could continue to live this life.
A rumble of agreement rolled through the group.
River turned to me, eyes the color of a thunderstorm. “You sure you want to do this?”
My chest clutched in certainty. “Yes.”
He stole my breath when he suddenly gripped me by the back of the neck and pressed his forehead to mine. “We have this, Charleigh. I’m going to keep both of you safe, and we’re going to get him back. I promise you. Whatever it takes.”
I nodded against him. “I know. Whatever it takes.”
Then he stepped back and jerked his head to his crew. “Let’s roll out.”
Everyone walked to where they’d parked their bikes out front, and a riot of motorcycle engines roared to life. Each one of the men were dressed in black. Head to boot. A tumult of dark mayhem that moved through the approaching evening.
They sped out in a rumble of anarchy.
A different bouncer stood guard outside the house, his watch wary.
I was supposed to wait fifteen minutes before I left. They hadto be the most excruciating fifteen minutes of my life, though Raven, Eden, and Salem encircled me, Raven and Eden holding my hands where we sat on the top step of the front porch, Salem on the step below, rubbing my knee.
Those minutes finally passed, and I sucked in a steadying breath. “It’s time.”
They all nodded, and I gathered my courage, stood, and strode for Raven’s car.
I opened the door, and Raven was suddenly behind me, grabbing me by the wrist, mahogany eyes grave when she whispered, “Bring him back.”
I hugged her tight, my love for her greater than it’d ever been, knowing what she’d done to help care for my son over all these years.
Swallowing around the rocks in my throat, I pulled away, then slipped into her car. I punched the directions into Maps.
My hands were slick with sweat as I drove through town, and the anxiety only heightened as I hit the mostly barren two-lane road that led toward Keeton.
My heart drummed violently. I could barely hold onto the steering wheel as I traveled the half hour it took to get to the next town, praying over and over that my son was safe and unharmed.
That he was whole.
That he wouldn’t fear.
I gulped when I finally saw the sign that said Keeton City Limits. It was larger than Moonlit Ridge. More commercial and the terrain was flat. A lot of the buildings were worn down, the landscape drab and dingy, as if this place had had the life sucked out of it.
My lungs compressed, and I drew in haggard breaths as I took the four turns required to get to Mabel Street. Here, it was industrial, the roads lined with metal buildings and chain-link fences. Most of the businesses seemed to be vacant at this time of evening.
I made a left onto Mabel, and I crawled along the road. Terror reverberated through my body with each second that passed.
I needed to get there. To see that Nolan was safe and whole. It was the only thing that mattered.
A tremor rocked through me when I made the right into a deserted lot. A giant metal building was situated right up front, but I could see that the gate was open on the right that led to the back.
I squeezed the steering wheel as I wound around, peering up at the surrounding buildings and praying that River and his friends were able to get into place.
It was still light out, but it was that foggy hour that tossed color through the atmosphere. Pinks and blues and grays. In it, I could feel that the air was distorted. Saturated with a vileness that slicked my skin in dread.
