Chapter 30
Swag
New York smells like rain, exhaust, and trouble.
I hate this fucking city.
Three days here, and I haven’t seen the sun once. Nothing but gray skies, wet pavement, and the kind of tension that sinks under your skin and stays there.
I scrub a hand down my face and pace the length of the dingy apartment we’ve been holed up in, every muscle pulled so tight I feel like I could snap. The floorboards creak under my boots, the paint’s peeling, and the whole place smells like mildew and stale beer. But it’s safe. For now.
Talon’s slouched on the couch, boots kicked up on a broken coffee table, scrolling through his phone. His face is impassive, but I know him well enough to see the tension in his jaw.
“Jafar just texted,” he says finally, not looking up. “Ellie and the kids are safe. He got ‘em out before Langston’s guys moved in.”
I let out a slow exhale, some of the pressure in my chest easing but not enough. Not while Ricky Langston’s still breathing.
When I first caught wind of what Langston was planning, I tried calling Malik Jafar to warn him.
When that went nowhere, I grabbed the first flight to Manhattan.
Now, Talon and I are knee-deep in the kind of mess you don’t walk away from clean, working with Jafar to cut Langston off at the knees before he wipes out an entire family to make a point.
The silence stretches until Talon glances up at me, sharp eyes narrowing. “You ever gonna call your wife?”
My jaw locks, and I grunt something that’s not an answer.
“You’re making a mistake, brother.”
“No,” I say flatly, grabbing the edge of the counter to keep myself grounded. “I’m keeping her safe.”
“By freezing her out?” His voice sharpens. “By letting her think you disappeared?”
I don’t answer. Because I’ve thought about it. Every goddamn hour of every goddamn day, I’ve thought about calling her. Every time I pull out my phone, my thumb hovers over her name, her picture staring back at me like it knows exactly what I’m doing. And every time I don’t press it.
I can’t.
Not until this is handled.
Because the second Ricky Langston figures out Jo-Leigh matters to me she becomes leverage. And I’ve already seen what he does to leverage.
I pace the room like I can outwalk the gnawing ache in my chest. Talon doesn’t say anything else, just watches me like he wants to say something but knows better.
The city hums outside the cracked windows, sirens wailing somewhere in the distance, and I can feel the clock ticking down on us.
Ricky’s making moves while I’m trying to stay ten steps ahead.
And the woman I love is sitting back home, thinking I left her behind.
Hours pass. I’m halfway through breaking down the intel Jafar sent when my burner starts buzzing on the counter. Not the work phone. Not Talon. Not Jafar.
Hulk.
My chest goes cold.
I snatch it up on the first ring. “Talk.”
“Swag.” Hulk’s voice is clipped, tight, and wrong in a way I feel in my bones. “We got a problem.”
My grip tightens around the phone. “Say it.”
“It’s your old lady,” he says, breath ragged, like he’s moving while talking. “She’s gone.”
The words hit like a gut punch, knocking the air straight out of me.
“What the fuck do you mean, gone?” My voice comes out low, sharp, the kind of tone that’s made grown men flinch.
“She’s not at the clubhouse,” Hulk grits out. “Her room’s empty. Her phone’s on the nightstand, still plugged in. No notes. We checked every room, every corner — nothing.”
I close my eyes for half a second, forcing air into my lungs, but my pulse is already pounding so hard I can feel it in my teeth.
“What about cameras?” I demand.
“Checked ‘em,” he says. “There’s a gap. Back door. We think she went out on foot, but no one saw her.”
A harsh curse rips out of me, and I drag a hand over my face. “Who the fuck was on watch?”
“All of us,” Hulk snaps back, frustrated. “We had two men posted front, one back. Nobody saw shit. We’ve already got the guys out looking.”
I pause, forcing my breathing slow enough to think, to focus. My jaw’s locked so tight it hurts, every muscle coiled like a live wire.
“You hear me, Hulk?” I rasp, deadly quiet now. “I want everyone on this. Nobody rests until she’s found.”
“She’s priority one,” he agrees. “We’re combing through the whole damn county.”
“Good,” I grind out, pacing hard across the tiny apartment, my boots pounding the warped boards. “Keep me updated every thirty minutes. And Hulk?—”
“Yeah?”
“You don’t tell her she’s in trouble,” I say, my voice rough, scraped raw. “Not until I’ve got her in front of me. Clear?”
“Clear,” Hulk confirms, then hesitates which sets me on edge immediately.
“What?”
“We think…” He exhales sharply, frustration bleeding through. “We think she might’ve left with someone. There’s no signs of force, no damage to her door, no struggle. She packed a bag, Swag. She planned this.”
For half a heartbeat, the world goes silent. Then it crashes back in, louder than before, roaring in my ears. I drag a hand down my face, knuckles pressing into my eyes hard enough to hurt.
“You think she ran?”
“I think…” Hulk hesitates again, and that’s all I need to hear.
“She didn’t run,” I snarl, pacing harder now, fury burning cold in my veins. “Someone convinced her. Someone got in her head.”
Talon glances up from the couch, watching me like a predator scenting blood. “What’s going on?”
I grit out, “Jo-Leigh’s gone.”
Talon curses under his breath, pushing up to his feet, his whole stance shifting. “Langston?”
“Don’t know yet,” I say, my voice sharp, clipped. “But I’m not taking chances.”
I tell Hulk, “You find out who she’s with, Hulk. Check phones. Check cameras again. Check everyone. We’re on our way home.”
“Yeah. Got it.”
I hang up and slam the phone onto the counter so hard the screen cracks.
Talon’s watching me, arms folded, jaw tight. “You think Langston’s people grabbed her?”
I shake my head once, sharp, but my chest’s so tight it hurts to breathe.
“I don’t know,” I rasp. “And until I do, nobody’s safe.”
I grab my cut, sliding it on in one rough motion, the leather heavy across my shoulders. My hand shakes when I jam my gun into the back of my waistband, adrenaline flooding so hot I taste metal.
If Ricky Langston has her…
If one of our own betrayed me…
If Jo-Leigh’s out there scared and alone I’ll burn this whole fucking city down to get her back.
The night air hits cold and damp when Talon and I pull up to the airstrip. The rain hasn’t stopped all day, leaving the tarmac slick and glinting under the harsh floodlights. A private jet waits on the far end, sleek and black, engines humming low like it knows I don’t have time to waste.
Malik Jafar stands beside it, immaculate as always in a dark suit that probably costs more than my bike. He’s got two men flanking him and Ellie’s there too, hovering close behind, her face pale but steady.
The second my boots hit the wet pavement, Jafar steps forward, his expression carved from stone.
“I heard your wife is missing,” he says simply, his accent threading through his low, even tone.
I grind my teeth, jaw so tight it aches. “You heard right.”
Jafar studies me for a beat, unreadable, and then nods toward the jet. “You’ll take my plane. It’s faster. Three hours, wheels down in Louisiana.”
“I’m not leaving you shorthanded,” I rasp, shaking my head. “Langston’s still moving pieces here.”
“I have men,” Jafar says, dismissing my concern with a flick of his hand. “Ellie and the children are safe. I’ll keep it that way. Ricky Langston will not touch what belongs to me.”
Talon’s a step behind me, his voice low and sharp. “Swag, he’s right. You’re no good to Jo-Leigh stuck out here chasing shadows.”
I drag a hand over my face, the rain cooling my skin, but it doesn’t ease the fire under my ribs. My whole body’s thrumming with it, the need to move, to find her, to make someone fucking pay.
Ellie steps forward now. “Swag, you have to get her before it’s too late.”
I look at the woman I once thought I’d never get over only to realize I never loved her the way I love Jo-Leigh.
“I’m scared, princess,” I admit.
“I know. But she’s out there and she’s probably more scared that you can dream.” She works her bottom lip between her teeth. “Swag, what if this was a trap?”
“What?”
“Langston threatening me. What if it was a trap to lure you away?”
Fuck. I meet Jafar’s gaze, who dips his head.
He gestures to one of his men, who steps forward immediately. “I’m sending three men with you. They’ll stay close until this is resolved.”
“I don’t need your men.”
“No,” Jafar corrects calmly, his gaze locking on mine. “Your wife needs my men. Take them, Swag. You do not know who to trust right now.”
The words land like a blow I wasn’t braced for.
He’s right. I nod once, sharp.
Jafar claps a hand on my shoulder, firm and grounding. “Go. Bring her home. And when this is done…” His gaze darkens, sharp and dangerous. “We deal with Langston together.”
I grip his forearm hard, a silent promise passing between us. “Count on it.”
Talon follows me onto the jet. Inside, it smells like leather and expensive bourbon, but I barely notice. I drop into a seat, my cut damp against my skin, staring out the window as the engines power up.
Somewhere out there, Jo-Leigh’s gone.
Somewhere out there, she thinks I left her.
Somewhere out there, she’s with someone she shouldn’t trust.
And God help anyone who stands between me and bringing her back.