Chapter 12
LANDON
“This is fucking bullshit!” With a roar, I grab the nearest thing I can find—which happens to be a glass tumbler—and throw it at the wall. It shatters, dozens of shimmery pieces sliding to the floor.
Raymond arches an eyebrow, though he doesn’t move from his position against the wall, his arms folded over his chest. “Are you done throwing a tantrum?”
“Fuck you,” I rage, erratic breaths sputtering out of my parted lips. Pain radiates from my chest and stomach, courtesy of the fucking knife that stabbed me, but I ignore it. That doesn’t matter now.
No, the only thing that goddamn matters is the fact that Ellie is with The Divine One without me.
Fuck.
I search for something else to throw but don’t see anything. Instead, I settle on just throwing my fist at the wall, grinning maliciously when the plaster cracks, raining down and joining the glass on the carpeting.
“You need to calm yourself,” Ryker snaps. He stands in the far corner of the room, his face obscured in shadows, his hood pulled tight over his face.
“Calm myself?” Rage thunders through me as I take a threatening step toward him.
How dare he tell me to calm down? Doesn’t he understand that it’s his fault? He was supposed to watch her. Bring her home. Yet, he allowed her to go off—
With Dom, Beckett, and Zane, three men I know will protect her with every breath they possess.
Some of the fight drains out of me at the knowledge, at the innate understanding that she has three warriors fighting at her side.
It’s not just me and her against the world. It’s us. All of us.
Mania.
I can feel some of my anger ebb, like a wave crashing against the shoreline before being dragged back to sea, but it quickly comes back with a vengeance when Raymond speaks.
“You both know this was the right move.” His cold gaze slides to first me and then Ryker. “Ellie and the others are closer than ever to ending this once and for all.”
My temper spikes. “By having her in the lion’s den? By having her pretend to be a goddess they plan to take over the entire organization?!” By the end, I’m screaming, my cheeks flushed, my chest heaving. I take a step in his direction, but pain barrages me, and I halt, clutching my stomach.
“For fuck’s sake, Landon,” Ryker grouses, moving toward me. He grabs my shoulders and roughly shoves me into the armchair I abandoned earlier. “Ellie would kill me if she came home to your corpse.”
I half-heartedly give him the finger, even as relief loosens my muscles. Fuck, it feels nice to sit.
“Ryker, you followed Ellie and the others, correct?” Raymond pipes in, once again irritating the shit out of me. I don’t know why, but lately, every time he speaks, I have the irresistible urge to punch him in the face. Repeatedly. With a brick. Or a knife. Or a machete.
A dark grin curves up Ryker’s lips. “They thought they were being smart by taking back roads and removing the trackers.” He pauses for a second, then licks his lips. “But I was smarter.”
“Yes, yes.” Raymond waves a flippant hand in the air. “You’re a fantastic stalker.”
I scrub a hand down my face, the last dregs of my anger draining.
I was furious at Ryker initially for allowing Ellie to leave with Aria, but now…
Now, I’m so fucking grateful for him. I don’t think any of the others would have been able to tail their car for as long as he did without being seen.
Then, when the road became too straight and narrow, he turned off the headlights, parked the car behind a few trees, and walked the rest of the distance.
He saw the house he believed them to be staying at—a nondescript bungalow smack-dab in the middle of the forest—and was able to send us its location.
We know where Ellie is.
And for now, we have to believe she’s safe.
Dom, Beck, and Zane would never let anything happen to her. I believe that with every fiber of my being.
“We need to get a tracker on all of them,” I tell Ryker, lowering my face to my hands. Ragged spurts escape me. I have to tell myself repeatedly that she’s safe, she’s alive, she’s protected.
She’s safe.
She’s alive.
She’s protected.
Ryker nods solemnly. “I can do that.”
She’s safe.
She’s alive.
She’s protected.
“Without being seen,” Raymond cuts in, his tone scathing. “You’re supposed to be dead.”
One of Ryker’s eyes begins to twitch. “I said I can do it. Now fuck off, old man.”
Raymond narrows his eyes but wisely chooses to remain silent. Probably a smart idea, considering Ryker looks seconds away from detonating.
“All Ellie needs to do is find The Divine One’s little black book,” Raymond reiterates, pushing himself off the wall.
With my head still lowered, all I can see are his glossy black shoes, a striking contrast against the white tiles in the hotel’s lobby.
“Then we’ll be able to take this entire fucked-up organization down. ”
“And what if she’s caught?” I shoot back, finally lifting my head. “What if she’s hurt or killed?”
Raymond doesn’t answer verbally, but his lips do thin, compressing into a perfectly straight line.
“Do you even give a damn about your niece? Or is she nothing but cannon fodder to you? Collateral damage?” That familiar anger from before has returned, this time with a raging vengeance, a tsunami of fire that rushes through me in wave after blistering wave.
Raymond lunges forward, a curse on his lips, but Ryker reaches for him easily. Stops him. Holds him back.
I suck in a shuddering breath.
She’s safe.
She’s alive.
She’s protected.
“Knock it the fuck off,” he hisses.
Raymond struggles for a few seconds longer before finally stilling, though his narrowed-eyed glare doesn’t leave my face.
After a moment, he shoves at Ryker’s arms, forcing them off of him, and pivots on his heel.
A stream of curse words escapes him as he stomps out of the room, allowing the thick oak door to slam shut behind him.
Then it’s just me and Ryker, both of us breathing heavily.
“I don’t fucking trust that man,” I whisper, the pain in my gut almost unbearable. I’ve definitely overexerted myself today, and now my body is paying the price, sparks of agony reverberating through me. But I can’t sleep, can’t relax, can’t do anything while Ellie and my brothers are in danger.
“He wants to take down POP,” Ryker rasps, staring after Raymond with a furrow between his brows. “For now, we can use that.”
“And after?” I frown, even as Ryker’s own lips stretch and sharpen, morphing into a macabre grin.
“We take care of him, the way we take care of everyone that crosses us.” He shoves his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and rolls back on his heels. “I’m going to grab some trackers and then head to Ellie and the others. We need to be aware of their position at all times.”
“And if you’re caught?” I arch an eyebrow.
Ryker simply scoffs, that one noise exuding arrogance. “I’ve been stalking Ellie through her bedroom window for years. I won’t get caught.”