Page 75 of Too Broken to Love

The murdering fucker grabbed the headrest in front of him.

“Hey.” Malcolm spun in the passenger seat. “Hands off.”

Hudson glared at his best friend he’d told to stay at the hotel. He fired another at the General in the driver’s seat who hadn’t backed him up.

Malcolm shrugged and faced Nathaniel. “Hudson here is supremely pissed. I’d start talking if I were you.”

Nathaniel grunted. “I’ve told you everything I know. Now please send someone to make sure my son and his family are okay.”

The General had already arranged for a security team to protect them, but Hudson wasn’t giving up that information until they found Tessa. “Walk us through your meeting with the Passage enforcers again.”

“I already told you.”

“Tell. Us. Again.” Hudson yanked at the neck of his crimson-stained, sweat-soaked T-shirt. He’d ditched his jacket, along with the tuxedo shirt the smuggler’s blood spray had seeped through. His uniform was made for pageantry, not burning down D.C. to save the woman he loved.

Tough to do when you didn’t know what part of the city to storm.

The fuckers had hacked into the hotel’s network and compromised the security cameras. Hudson didn’t even know the color of the van for sure, let alone a license plate. He prayed they were headed in the right direction.

Prayed the General’s team and the authorities they’d alerted would find her.

Prayed taking Nathaniel with them, instead of handing him over to the cops, would yield more information.

According to the research intel agencies had compiled about Passage International, they preferred to smuggle their cargo by boat. If they planned that for Tessa, it would make sense to have a vessel waiting at the closest marina so they could get her out of the city and en route to their buyers as quickly as possible.

Fear boiled Hudson’s blood to an apocalyptic burn. Why the hell wasn’t she wearing her ring? He’d seen her slide the damn thing back on her finger where it belonged. It didn’t belong back in his pocket with Pop’s sinker. That’s not where the old man had wanted it.

That’s not where I want it.

The only reason she should ever take the ruby off again was to make room for an engagement ring.

But did she even want him, let alone love him back? He wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t. He’d violated her privacy. She had every right to tell him to go to hell, but he wasn’t going home without her in his arms. Too bad if she was mad at him. She’d have to deal with his attempts to make it up to her for the rest of her life.

The General jerked the SUV around a corner. Hudson didn’t stop his body from swaying toward Nathaniel. The dickhead had the good sense to cower against the door. “Talk, asshole.”

Malcolm shot his head through the seats again and glared at Nathaniel. “My boy is in love with the woman you put in danger. It’s in your best interest to spill your guts like your life depends on it, cause it does.”

Nathaniel rolled his eyes. “I already told you. I arrived at a room in the Washington Square Hotel for what I thought was a meeting with a wealthy investor. When I walked in, I was tied to a chair and interrogated like I was a criminal.”

Hudson growled as he yanked off his seat belt and slid next to Nathaniel. “You are a fucking criminal. If I were you, I’d dig deeper into your memory for more details because if we don’t find her in the next five minutes, I’ll be digging a hole so deep your body will never be found.”

“Okay, okay.” Spit flew from Nathaniel’s mouth. “I refused to tell them why I was looking for Frank because they seemed shady as hell, and I was right. The sadistic bastards kept hitting me for fun even after I said I’d tell them everything.”

Hudson choked on an inhale. An image of Tessa, tied to a chair, her beautiful face bloody and beaten, and her clothes⁠—

No. Fuck no.

He speared his fingers into his hair. Tessa was strong.

A survivor.

His pretty little thief who could pickpocket a knife and take down a man twice her size. She could hang on a bit longer.

She had to.

Curling his fingers into his palm, he brought the ruby to his lips. Pop had said the ring was a reminder not to wait for when the time is right, or safe, or ideal. Dammit, he shouldn’t have let Tessa run off to the restroom. He should have pulled her into his arms and told her he loved her. Should have held his breath waiting for her to say it back even though he knew she would because, fuck, Pop had known what he was doing.

Tessa wasn’t just the woman who held the power to heal his broken parts—she was his future.