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“No, we’re upside down and my seatbelt is stuck,” I relay as I jerk at the strap. The hissing noise of the engine resonates as my senses slowly but surely come back to me, overloading me with a vengeance. Just when I’m about to stretch my arm back to see if I can touch my baby girl’s head, another voice penetrates the space.
“We have to stop meeting like this Lizzie,” Zeke says mockingly as he crouches down next to my shattered window.
“Stay the fuck away from my family motherfucker!” E shouts.
“Well, fuck me! My day just keeps getting better and better. I warned you that you haven’t seen the last of me. Did you really think that I was going to let go of what you did to me, Torch? I was in the hospital for a fucking month because of you! Payback’s a bitch and I’m here to collect. You get to hear every bit of what happens and there’s nothing you can do about it. I’m going to hit you where it hurts the most.” He utters tauntingly, causing a chill to come over me, penetrating through to my bones. Reaching in to grab at me, he stops abruptly and stands, shouting,
“Hey, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Zeke asks as a person appears next to Harper’s window. I can’t make out who it is because of my position, but I know they aren’t here to rescue us. Yanking hard at the harness, I do my best to get myself unhooked as a set of hands reach in and cut the seat belt holding Harper’s car seat in place. I scream, no, over and over again, to no avail. Watching in utter disbelief as my nugget is taken away from me. Whoever this person is, they’re dead set on taking my daughter.
“Snatching the little girl wasn’t part of the deal!” He says angrily as he begins to walk toward the man. Is Zeke going to save my baby? How ironic that at this moment, I’m depending on Zeke to save Harper from this stranger? All hope is lost when another voice sounds, ordering Zeke back to my side of the car. Harper is taken away as I continue to scream and E shouts her name. The sound of a gunshot seizes my voice as I quickly turn and see Zeke stumbling backwards, falling to the ground with a loud thud. He writhes around in pain as the sound of a door shutting catches my attention. I struggle and fight against the restraint when it finally gives. My body falls in a heap as adrenaline courses through me, numbing the pain I know is coming later.
Warm blood pours down my arms as I grab the base of the window and pull myself through the opening. Struggling, but finally getting to my feet, I bolt toward the SUV just as the driver peels out, and races in the opposite direction. I watch in horror; screaming and crying as the vehicle shrinks in the distance and there’s absolutely nothing I can do about it. It feels as if my heart is being ripped from my chest as I struggle to breathe. All hope is lost of ever finding her as I pick up her teddy bear that must’ve fallen as they carried her to the SUV. The GPS tracker inside would’ve given us her exact location, but now we’ll never know where they’ve taken her. I let out a heavy sigh as the weight of what just happened resonates within.
Stumbling back to the car, I crouch down to check on Zeke. He’s breathing but unconscious as blood oozes from a wound in his stomach. This man has hurt me in unimaginable ways and as much as I wanted him dead, I can’t help but be a little grateful that he tried to stop Harper from being taken. I’m just about to answer a shouting E when in my peripheral I see a battered Saint lying in the road. Unmoving, bloody, and settled at an odd angle. This is all too much at once and the adrenaline that helped numb everything just minutes ago disappears as blinding pain shoots through my body. It’s as if fire has replaced my blood, running through my veins, consuming the very fiber of my being. My energy wanes and I can no longer hold myself up. The coolness of the ground soothes my heated skin. The darkness that was teetering on the edges comes for me and I welcome its comfort with open arms.
15
Ephraim
Silence. For once in my life, I want to hear the noise of everyday life. My nugget’s piercing laughter, Saint’s barking, even crying because of the normal bumps and bruises one would experience throughout childhood. Knowing that Harper has been taken and Lizzie is more than likely unconscious, cuts my soul deep. Nothing but eerie, deafening silence on the other end of the phone and there’s nothing I can do about it. Hopelessness, helplessness, foreign feelings, that overwhelm me as I stare in shock at my cell phone, waiting to hear my wife’s beautiful voice come through. This is what nightmares are made of. They’re designed to engulf you in fear and cloak your dreams of a peaceful existence. Years and years of avoiding this type of pain, giving in to the relentless pull of love, only to have it all snatched away in an instant.
Lizzie must’ve been scared out of her mind watching Harper get taken. Listening to it, unable to stop it, feels as if everything in me has died. Jumping into action, I get out of the SUV as Kendrich follows, telling me that Eagle and the rest of the guys pulled up to the scene of the crash. Just as I thought, Lizzie is unconscious and Saint is unresponsive. My companion for as long as I can remember is probably dead and once again, there’s nothing I can do about it. Krack is already off his bike, when I grab the handles, rev the engine, and take off back to Iron Forge. I know that I’m breaking every law as I speed down the highway, trying to get to my wife. My little nugget is with God knows who and I have to believe that whoever it is, won’t hurt her. The question is, why did they take only her?
I listened as Zeke said taking the little girl wasn’t part of the plan, so what was the plan and why was Zeke, who we thought was the real threat, clueless as to what was supposed to happen? Whoever it is better pray for mercy because only a divine intervention will save them from what I have planned. I want to feel their warm blood on my hands and watch them suffer as I torture them. They have no clue what they’ve done and who they’ve messed with, but they will.
Pulling up to the scene, my heart sinks at the sight of the carnage. What my wife must’ve felt breaks me and my body goes numb. The authorities are still here, processing the scene as the bright afternoon sun highlights the devastation, making it all too real for me. How did any of them survive? I wonder to myself. As I get closer, a police officer tries to stop me from going further, but Sherriff Whitmore, from our local police department waves me through. The solemn look on his face eviscerates my last string of hope. Walking up to him, I question him,
“Where’s my wife? Where’s Lizzie? I know it’s rude not to acknowledge him, but right now the only thing I want to know is where my wife is.
“She’s already been taken to the hospital. She was conscious when the ambulance got here and thankfully she wasn’t seriously injured. She’s pretty bruised up, but she’s okay. They’re taking her to the hospital as a precaution.” He informs me, making me feel slightly better.
“What about Ni- I mean Brooks? He was riding behind my wife’s car and was shot,” I inquire.
“One of my officers noticed some tire marks and busted metal along the highway about a mile and a half back. Got to him just in time. He was barely alive and I haven’t received a status on him yet. Listen, Ephraim, I know the Rebels will want to handle this themselves, but we have to put out an Amber Alert for your daughter if you want to find her quickly.”
“You do what you have to do, Whit, but there is no way I’m going to sit back while the authorities look for my daughter. If you expect that, then arrest me now because if I have to, I will burn down Iron Forge to find my little girl and no one will stop me,” I say, staring at him, daring him to challenge me.
“I wouldn’t expect any less from you, Ephraim, but I can’t turn my back on anything you and the Rebels do that isn’t legal. We have an understanding, but kidnapping is a federal offense and once the FBI sends their agents to investigate, it’s out of my hands.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck about the FBI, no one and I mean no one will stop me from finding my daughter. They better stay the fuck out of my way!”
Breathing a heavy sigh, he stares at me shaking his head because he knows there’s nothing he can do to stop me. With this being a secluded road, there weren’t any witnesses to get a license plate or a description of the men responsible. Time is of the essence and the longer we wait, the more time it gives those assholes to get away. Just then, Krack, Digg, and Kendrich pull up in the SUV and as they exit they let me know that Janie is at the vet hospital with Saint and his injuries are severe. They’re working on him, trying to assess all of his injuries and will give us an update when they can. My mind is reeling and I have a sudden need to get to my wife. Krack, always my voice of reason, orders me to the SUV and tells me that Caleb took Janie to the vet to be with Saint. She’s probably a mess right now and will need someone there to lean on. Unfortunately, it can’t be me. Digg and Kendrich will wait here for Frank to pick them up. As much as I love Saint, Lizzie is my priority right now. What she witnessed today has more than likely taken its toll on her.
My gut tells me that there was nothing I could’ve done to prevent this. This plan was executed in a way that was fail proof. Hell, I could’ve been the one shot and possibly killed. Walking over to the SUV, I get into the passenger seat wrestling with my mind to calm down, knowing that I need to be strong for Lizzie. Knowing that I have to be the one to carry the load and see us through this no matter the outcome.
16
Ephraim
Once we’re on the road, I stare off into space wishing I could turn back the hands of time. Back to the place where my family was safe, to where I hear Harper laughing uncontrollably because Saint has figured out how to tickle her, to the nights where my wife passionately called out my name while I made love to her. Something in my gut told me that I should’ve stayed home or at least escorted them to the clubhouse. Would that have made a difference? It seems that the attack was calculated and they were prepared to take out Nitro and take Harper. God, if you’re listening, please don’t let this morning have been the last time I saw my daughter, I pray to myself as my thoughts scatter into a million directions. Nothing is cohesive as I feel a sense of emptiness. Never in my life have I felt such emotional pain that I physically ache.
I only catch some of what Krack is relaying to me as the hospital comes into view. Something about the rest of the brothers are gathered at the clubhouse with other chapters on the way. Exiting the SUV, we make our way to the emergency room entrance. When the automatic doors open, we’re met by two figures I didn’t expect to see. Ezra aka Hawk, the VP of the Devils and Wyatt, aka Bane, an enforcer are exiting the building but my only focus is getting to Lizzie so I ignore them, hurrying through the doors. My momentum is paused when Hawk reaches out and grabs my arm. I’m just about to give this fucker the attention he wants when his words shock me.
“I know we have bad blood between us, but for what it’s worth, we’re sorry to hear about what happened to your daughter, Torch. My father and the rest of the Devils are heading to your clubhouse to help search for her.”
I don’t know what to say. Words escape me as I look at Hawk, searching for sincerity in his eyes. What I find is empathy and I let my guard down a little.
“Thank you. That means a lot,” I awkwardly say. There was never a time in Rebel and Devil history that our exchanges were cordial. This is definitely a first and did he say the Devils are going to help search for Harper?
