Page 89 of The Fighter

“Shane?” Nik ushered him inside and shut the door behind him. “What’s going on?”

But Shane ignored him, his focus immediately on me as he took me in from head to toe before settling on my face. His eyes searched mine, and then his lips parted as he said in a soft voice, “Oh,I get it now.”

He wasn’t physically intimidating, but I didn’t like strange people in Con’s apartment. “Who are you?”

He shook himself, suddenly all business. “I work for Conrad as an escort. I know a lot of people and…” he shook himself and held his phone out to me. “This is for you.”

Nik went to grab the phone, but Shane stepped closer to me. “He’ll only talk to Husk, he said.”

Husk. I snatched the phone and brought it up to my ear. “What?”

A voice I hadn’t expected in a million years greeted me. “Husk?”Casey. He was out of breath, and I could hear street traffic in the background.

“Case,” I murmured, feeling my shoulders sag in relief. I had called him yesterday, but he hadn’t answered. I’d been worried, but it wasn’t unlike him to disappear for weeks at a time.

“Babe.” A horn honked. “Sorry I lost my phone and didn’t know how to get a hold of you.” He blew out a breath that fuzzed the reception. “I think I know where they have that man of yours.”

My brain spun to catch up. I was running on fumes and two hours of sleep. “What? How do you?—?”

“I’ll explain later. Look, I don’t know the exact building, but he’s somewhere in one of the abandoned apartment buildings in Harrison.”

There were two ten-story structures that the city had long-since condemned but hadn’t torn down yet. The homeless didn’t even squat there, because there was a rumor that a factory spill had left the area toxic. “Case, I don’t think?—”

“Trust me. I listen, Husk. I listen a lot.”

“Okay,” I said. “Thanks, Case.”

“Have Shane let me know when you find him.”When.The phone disconnected, and I stared at it for a minute before handing it back to Shane. Casey had risked his life to make that call. If Devlin or any of his men found out, they’d kill him.

“What’d he say?” Nik asked.

“Condemned Harrison apartments.”

Ben frowned. “We sent a crew there. The stairs have been torn out, so there’s nothing but the ground level, and that was empty.”

I was already pulling on my boots. “I need to go.”

“Who called you?” Ben demanded. “This could be a fucking set up.”

“I trust Casey,” I said simply.

“I trust Casey,” Ben mimicked, and I wanted to punch him. “WellIdon’t fucking know Casey, andIdon’t trust him.”

I straightened and leaned into Ben, my jaw tight. “I don’t give a fuck if you don’t trust him. And I don’t give a fuck if it’s a setup. In fact, I hope it is. Because then I’ll come face to face with Devlin, and I’ll fucking kill him.”

Ben’s breathing stuttered, and he speared his fingers through his hair as he looked away. “Fuck.”

I braced my hands on my hips. Nik hadn’t said a word since I ended the call, only watched me carefully. “I’m going there,” Isaid, needing to make it crystal clear. “So give me the car keys and get out of my way.”

Nik remained still as stone, but I could see his gears working behind his eyes. Finally, he gave me a curt nod. “Let’s go.”

I jerked at that. “You’re going too?”

“Can you shoot a gun?” No, no I could not. I’d done a lot for Devlin, but it had always been with my fists or an occasional blade. I rolled my lips between my teeth as Nik snorted. “That’s why I’m going.”

He whistled into the apartment, and Cameron appeared there, a few of his men fanned out behind him. “Follow us. Shoot to kill anyone you don’t recognize.” He turned to me and jingled the keys in his hand. “Let’s go.”

THIRTY-ONE