23. 23
Cowboy was ready to hit the rolling door at full speed, burst through it and take Ava back. It took both Miles and Caden blocking him and his bike from getting to the warehouse to get him to stop. Then all three, including Deke, who had arrived moments after he had, to talk some sense into him.
He didn’t care if it was the smart move. He wanted her back. Now.
He wanted to be sure they hadn’t hurt her.
Once they’d convinced him to stop and think things through, he parked his bike and stood in a pool of shadows beside Miles’ pickup about a quarter mile down the street from the warehouse where they’d taken Ava.
They exchanged ideas, Cowboy never taking his eyes off the door where they’d taken her.
“They’re not dumb enough to hurt her,” Deke said. “Not without making their demands first. They’ll give you a chance to give them what they want before they get too rough.”
“It’s the difference between their definition of too rough and mine that I’m worried about. Ava is sweet. She’s innocent. She’s not the kind of girl they spend time with.” He shook his head and glared at the warehouse, vowing they would pay for every mark they left on her.
They were still discussing the options when his phone rang. He wanted to pick it up and demand they give Ava back now, but that wouldn’t do any good.
Cowboy clenched his teeth and took a deep breath before picking up the call, putting it on speaker so the other men could hear what was being said.
“This is Cowboy,” It took everything in him to keep his voice calm and tone even.
“Are you missing something?” Rooster’s voice came across the line.
“Yes, and she better be unharmed when you give her back. What do you want?”
“Drop the charges against Tank. Give him, and us, back our positions.”
Deke rolled his eyes. Miles scowled and Caden just looked confused.
Cowboy fought not to laugh. His demands were never going to happen. The charges against Tank were county charges, there was nothing Cowboy or any of the Kings could do about them. The police had found enough evidence in Tank’s house to put him away for years. It was likely that Rooster and Jonesy would do some time too. His mind flashed on the face of the biker they’d captured and beaten which had ended in these charges and his stomach flipped. Would they try to do the same to Ava?
If they did, he would have a lot more to do with charges than he did now. And maybe a little personal revenge too.
“That’s going to take some time. I have to reach out to a lot of people and get some gears moving. All the offices are closed for the weekend.”
“You have twenty-four hours.”
“How do I know you haven’t already killed her and are just stringing me along?” Cowboy clenched his teeth again at the idea.
“Come on, sweetheart, talk to your boyfriend. Tell him you’re okay,” Rooster’s voice was replaced by another.
“Cowboy?” Ava’s voice shook, but it was strong, not like she was hurt.
“Yeah, Angel, it’s me. Are you hurt?”
“I’m not hurt. What’s going on?”
“Nothing that you’ve done and I’m going to—” Before he had a chance to continue, Rooster came back on the line.
“You know she’s good, now get Tank free, and our positions back, or your girlfriend isn’t going to be so pretty.” The call disconnected.
Cowboy’s gaze flicked from man to man before going back to the warehouse.
“They’ve lost their minds,” Miles said after a moment.
“We can’t get the charges dropped,” Deke said. “And they were voted out of the club. This won’t get them back in.”
“I know.” Cowboy took a deep breath. “We have to figure out how to get in there and get her out. Sooner rather than later. They’re expecting things to take time, they’re not expecting us to go in and get her back. The longer things take, the more risks they’ll take, and the more likely they are to get bored and hurt Ava. I’m not willing to risk that.”
They stood, the other men watching him for several moments before anyone spoke.
“We need something to draw them out,” Miles was the first one to speak. “Something to make them leave her alone in there. Then one of us could slip in and grab her.”
“I have to be the one to go in,” Cowboy said. “She doesn’t know any of you. It would be just like these cocksuckers taking her.” He took a deep breath and forced himself to let it out slowly, hoping it would help his brain function in something less than panic mode.
He was better under pressure than this. He hadn’t even panicked like this when Tank had been arrested and he had to hold the Kings together. He was better than this. He just had to pull himself together and get past the fact that it was Ava they had.
“All right. Give me some thoughts on ways to get them out of the building?” He looked from face to face of the men surrounding him.
They threw out several ideas, but nothing Cowboy thought would work.
“We could get the police involved,” Caden said. “We have an eyewitness that they took her against her will and that they are in that building with her. It might be enough to get them to go in. Once they’re in they’ll ask her if she’s there willingly. Would she say yes?”
“I can’t imagine that she would, but who knows what they’ve told her. What if they tell her if she says no, they’ll kill her?” Cowboy shook his head. “I can’t risk it.”
“What do we know about that building?” Deke spoke up.
“Not a lot. I’ve never been here before,” Caden said.
“I have, but I’m not sure I can tell you much more. It’s a warehouse. Last time I was here there were a few crates inside. I never had a chance to see what was in them. Tank and Rooster kept some things inside. A fishing boat, a couple cars. I imagine most of that has been sold off to pay legal expenses, but who knows,” Miles said.
“What else can you tell us?” Deke turned to Miles. “Doors, weapons, anything?”
“I never saw any weapons inside, but who knows what’s in those crates? But they could have brought weapons in with them. As for doors. There’s a standard door next to the overhead and another standard on the opposite wall. Both lead outside.”
“When were you here?” Cowboy asked with a frown, trying to remember why they might have brought him out here.
“Last year, just after I came back. I didn’t know Tank or the others well, they seemed to be testing me. I’m not sure if they didn’t like what they found or they did. Either way, I’m glad they didn’t pull me into their stupid stunt with that other club.”
“Have you seen the other side of the building?” Deke asked. “Anything blocking that door? How sure are you it leads outside.”
“The door was open last time I was here, all of them were. I can’t say there’s nothing blocking it now, as it’s been so long, but there wasn’t then.”
“Good to know,” Cowboy said looking around the small group of men. “I can go in that door if we can find a way to get them outside or at least to the other end of the warehouse. I wish we knew where in the building they were keeping Ava.”
“I think you’re the best way to get them out of there. Is there anything one of us could take in to let her know she’s safe with us, that you sent us?” Deke watched him. “They won’t think you’re up to something if you show up demanding to see them. And it’s soon enough they may not think you’ve called in back up already. Besides, I’m better with lockpicks than you are.”
Cowboy shot his best friend a look and slowly nodded once. He never would have admitted Deke was better than him, except this was Ava’s safety, and possibly her life. He hated to admit it, but he had no idea how far these two fuckers would go to get what they wanted.
They spent another twenty minutes putting together a plan, then Cowboy, Deke and the others got into place. Deke at the back of the warehouse with his lockpicks, Miles and Caden on either side of the front door, and Cowboy ready to pull his bike up out front and confront Rooster and Jonesy.
He could only hope things went as planned.