Chapter 13
The safehouse had always felt like a fortress. The men had chosen it for its seclusion, its safety, its promise of being impenetrable, but even fortresses had weaknesses, and tonight, one had been exploited.
The fire crackled low in the common room, a thin glow of embers casting shadows across the stone walls. The women had been quiet that evening, tension hanging over them like a storm waiting to break.
Sofia could feel it. A shift. A change, something was coming.
She caught Alaska watching her, arms crossed, her normally fierce gaze softened by something she rarely showed…concern.
“You feel it, don’t you?” Sofia murmured.
Alaska sighed. “It’s too damn quiet. That’s how I know something’s wrong.”
Dakota shifted uncomfortably, rubbing her swollen belly. “The men should have called by now.”
Siena scowled, gripping the edge of the table. “They’re probably keeping us in the dark on purpose.”
And then, as if summoned by their unease, the front door slammed open. Dash, his expression was grim, his movements tense. Behind him, the two prospects who had been guarding the property stood stiffly, shoulders squared but eyes wary.
“What?” Alaska demanded. “Tell us.”
Dash ran a hand over his shaved head. “They’ve moved. They are going to war.”
Silence.
Then—chaos.
“What the fuck?” Siena’s voice was sharp. “And they didn’t tell us?”
“They left us here like we’re goddamn furniture?” Dakota snapped.
Dawn’s hands curled into fists. “They think this is protecting us?” The air in the room crackled with tension.
Siena let out a sharp, humourless laugh, shaking her head. “Oh, they’re out of their goddamn minds.” She turned on her heel, pacing like a caged predator, her boots heavy against the wooden floor. “They ride off to war, leave us here like good little housewives, and expect us to just fucking wait?”
Dakota’s fingers tightened over her belly, her eyes blazing. “They think we’re safer here?” Her voice was deceptively soft, but there was fire underneath. “Out here, hidden away with only a handful of men to protect us? When we don’t even know what’s coming?”
“Exactly!” Siena snapped, pointing at Dakota. “We have no idea what the fuck is going on. For all we know, they’re dead already.”
“Don’t,” Dawn warned, her voice low and sharp.
Siena exhaled through her nose, biting her bottom lip like she was trying to physically hold herself back.
Sofia, silent up until now, felt like she was suffocating. She understood why they were angry. Hell, she felt it too, but mixed with the anger, the betrayal, the helplessness… was something deeper.
Fear, because the truth was, they didn’t know. They didn’t know if their men were alive. Didn’t know if right now, in this very moment, the people they loved were bleeding out on some godforsaken stretch of road. And that kind of not knowing, it was worse than anything.
“We can’t just sit here.” Dakota’s voice was softer now, but no less determined. “We can’t just wait for them to come back in body bags.”
Mystique’s eyes flashed. “You think I want that?”
“I think we need to do something!” Siena shouted.
Silence. A dangerous, breathless silence.
Then Alaska exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through her hair. “What do you suggest? Hopping on the nearest bike and riding straight into the middle of a fucking war?”
Siena squared her shoulders. “Maybe.”
“You’ll be dead before you get ten miles.”
Siena’s lips curled, but there was no real fight in her expression, because the truth was, Alaska was right. They couldn’t just leave, couldn’t just go barrelling into a fight they weren’t ready for. But that didn’t make this any easier. It didn’t make them feel any less useless.
Sofia’s stomach clenched. She crossed her arms over her chest, willing the rising panic away.
This was hell. Not knowing. Waiting.
Being powerless when the men they loved were out there bleeding, fighting, maybe even dying.
Mystique’s lips trembled before she set her jaw. “I hate this.”
Onix exhaled slowly. “We all do.”
Siena shook her head, muttering a string of curses under her breath before finally slamming her fist against the table. “They think they’re protecting us, but all they’re doing is making us watch while they put themselves in the fucking ground.”
Sofia closed her eyes for a second, forcing herself to breathe. She knew how they felt. Knew the rage, the helplessness, the fear, and she also knew one thing with absolute certainty.
If something happened to Goliath…She would never forgive them for leaving her behind, because this war was all because of her.
***
It had happened in silence. No shattered glass. No gunfire. No warning.
Sofia had gone to bed late, exhaustion weighing heavy on her limbs, the pull of sleep dragging her under faster than usual. And then—nothing.
When she awoke, her world was no longer safe. A rough hand clamped over her mouth, yanking her from the bed. Her scream was swallowed by the thick palm pressing against her lips.
Boots scraped against the floor. Shadows moved in the darkness. Sofia’s instincts kicked in. She fought. She twisted, kicking wildly, her elbow connecting with something solid—a grunt of pain.
“Bitch—”
A fist slammed into her ribs, knocking the air from her lungs. Pain exploded in her side, and before she could recover, another hit landed, sharp and cruel.
The hands on her were unyielding, dragging her toward the open window. They had come prepared, moving like ghosts in the night, slipping past the men on watch.
Her nails clawed at skin, at fabric, anything to anchor herself. It wasn’t the Shadow Riders. She knew that before she even saw the face of the man yanking her from the bed, because they didn’t know who she was before she ran.
But Jason Rodes’ men? They did. And now, they had her.
***
“Are you sure you scented others nearby?” Dash asks as he rushes towards the house.
“I’m sure!” Diesel states.
Dash explodes into the house; he rushes through all the rooms frightening most of the women until he got to Sofia’s room.
The room was empty. Dash stood at the edge of the bed, fists clenched, his chest rising and falling too fast. The scent of fear and struggle lingered in the air. His heart pounded, she was gone, his men had failed.
And Goliath…Fuck, he couldn’t tell his brother that his woman was taken.
Dash turned, his voice a snarl. “Find her. NOW.”
Alaska’s heart pounded against her ribs. “What—”
Dash’s gaze snapped to hers, something flashing in his eyes. Something he didn’t want to say. Alaska’s stomach dropped.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Alaska’s stomach twisted. Something wasn’t right.
Dash stood in the doorway, his chest rising and falling too fast, his jaw clenched so tightly it looked like it might crack. The air around him was charged, his usual calm veneer fractured. She took a slow step forward, her pulse hammering. The way he was looking at her… something was wrong.
Very wrong.
“What aren’t you telling me?” Her voice was steady, but she could feel the prick of fear creeping in.
Dash’s gaze flicked away for half a second. Just half a second, but it was enough. Enough to know that whatever it was—he didn’t want to say it.
Alaska moved closer; her shoulders squared. “Dash. Talk. Please.” Dakota’s grip tightened over her belly; Siena’s fingers curled into fists. Dash exhaled slowly, his nostrils flaring. He was hesitating as his eyes clashed with Alaska’s. He would give anything to make sure that his mate didn’t worry, that she wasn’t scared, but the fuckers had taken Sophia and he had no way of protecting Alaska from the pain of him losing her friend.
Dash never hesitated. Alaska’s stomach sank like a stone. “Dash, what aren’t you telling me? Did something happen to one of the men” The words rushed out of her before she could stop them.
She braced herself but Dash’s head snapped up, his eyes flashing with something else entirely. Not grief. Not loss. Fear. And Dash never fucking looked afraid.
“No. It’s not any of the men.” His voice was gravel, but there was an edge to it. Something sharp. Something raw. A silence thick enough to drown in settled over the room.
“What is it?” she demanded, her voice lower now. Darker.
Dash’s hands curled into fists at his sides, his jaw locked tight. He was battling something inside himself.
And then, finally—
“She’s gone.” The words hit the room like an explosion.
A pause.
A breath.
Then chaos.
Siena jerked forward first, “What the fuck do you mean she’s gone?”
Dakota gasped, clutching her belly as if to keep herself steady. Alaska’s eyes darkened, her fists trembling with barely restrained fury. “Dash, you better start explaining. Right fucking now.”
Dash looked like he wanted to punch something. Maybe himself. His voice came out hoarse, raw. “Sofia’s missing.” The world tilted.
The breath rushed from Alaska’s lungs like a vacuum had sucked it straight from her chest. She could hear them yelling, cursing, demanding answers.
“Did she leave?” Onix asked.
“No, it looks like there was a struggle.” Dash reveals.
The sound of the prospects tearing through the house, shouting her name, searching every room, but she was gone. By the time they reached the perimeter of the property, they found the first sign of the struggle.
Blood. A single, dark stain on the frozen ground. The moment Dash saw it, something inside him snapped.
“FIND HER!”
The men scattered. The women stormed from the house, their fear turning into rage.
Alaska’s face was hard, unreadable. But Dash could see it—the way her hands trembled, the way her body shook with barely restrained fury.
Onix’s knuckles were white, her mouth set in a firm, deadly line.
And Dakota? She stood still, one hand on her belly, her jaw locked tight, because they all knew. If Sofia wasn’t found soon… There wouldn’t be enough blood in the world to make up for what would come next.
***
Her wrists ached from the zip ties. The cold bit into her skin, her ribs still throbbing from the blows. Her breath came in short, shallow gasps, but she refused to break.
The van rattled over the rough terrain, its engine loud in the otherwise silent night. She was blindfolded, but she didn’t need her eyes to know exactly where she was being taken. Jason had sent his men for her, and whatever came next?
It wasn’t going to be good. Sofia swallowed against the rising panic, her heart pounding in her chest. She wasn’t some helpless woman, she wasn’t weak, but she was trapped.
And as the van rumbled on, carrying her deeper into the unknown, only one thought burned through her mind. Goliath.
Would he know? Would he come for her? Would he burn the world down to find her?
She had no doubt in her mind. Yes. Yes, he would.