CHAPTER NINE
“ F ucking door,” Kade muttered as he struggled to shoulder the box of final edition school papers. His mind was still reeling from the conversation he had with Madison the night before, and to say he was irritated with the world was putting it lightly. As he walked through the Administration building on campus, he noticed a girl at the front desk who was trying to flirt with him. She batted her eyelashes and smiled as he approached.
“I’m happy to take those off your hands,” the slender brunette purred and reached her hands out, pressing her breasts together so they perked up in the neckline of her shirt.
But Kade wasn’t in the mood.
All he could think about was Madison and how she had offered to run away with him. The thought filled him with so many emotions that he wasn’t ready to deal with yet. He hadn’t let anyone close to him like this before and yet he wanted nothing more than to take her up on her offer, to escape this life and start fresh with her by his side. But he also knew that it was too risky, too dangerous. Too stupid to bring someone good along for a joyride that could end in violence one day.
He forced a smile onto his face and shook his head politely. “Thanks, but I got it,” he said firmly, hoping that would put an end to the conversation.
The girl pouted but didn’t press the issue any further. Kade breathed a sigh of relief as he continued on his way, carrying the box of copies under one arm and clutching an extra copy in his other hand. He made sure to grab one to read later since it was their last paper, after all.
As he walked down the hallway towards the main office, the sound of his phone ringing had him pausing his stride.
Jagger .
Kade hesitated for a moment before answering, knowing that Jagger was likely calling to ask him about the party this weekend.
Kade stepped down one of the hallways that was empty and answered.
“Hey, you good?” Jagger’s voice crackled through the phone.
“Yeah, just dealing with some shit,” Kade said, leaning against the wall. “What’s up?”
“They’re officially coming this weekend. Dad and the Renegade Rebels will be coming to help take down the traffickers. They’ve already secured a place to put the bodies when everything is said and done.”
Kade clenched his jaw. “You know this is a bad idea. Why aren’t you just calling the cops? When Dad gets involved shit goes sideways. You know it’s true.”
“You know it’s not the kind of situation to involve the cops in, they’ll let at least one of those assholes free and dead men can’t kidnap, rape, or sell women. We will need the extra man-power,” Jagger pressed and Kade could hear him straining in the background before hearing the thud of a cooler door. “It’s the last time we do anything, you and me. We will put an end to these guys and get out.”
Kade glanced around, making sure no one was around to overhear his conversation. “And if it gets fucked up again?”
“We’re prepared this time,” Jagger snarled, tired of his brother’s constant backlash. “We are the only ones who will help them. We’ve done a lot of fucked up shit for Dad over the years–he owes us this. We’ve cleaned up plenty of his messes, he can clean up ours for once.”
Kade shoved away from the wall, hoisting the box up on his hip when he heard people coming his way. He watched the group of students laughing and chatting, their carefree lives so far removed from the chaos he was currently facing and it made his chest tighten. It wasn’t fair. He should be worried about graduation parties and last minute finals–not this shit.
“I plan on leaving once I graduate,” Kade said finally, his heart pounding in his chest as he spoke the words aloud for the first time to his big brother.
“What?” Jagger sounded confused. “You just came back with Dad a year ago.”
“I’m serious.” Kade sighed. He hadn’t expected to do this over the phone. “I can’t stay tied to this life anymore—I don’t trust myself to resist getting swept up in it. I can’t let myself get close to anyone because I’m afraid something will happen like it did to mom. I’m not like you. I’m too much like Warren and I will get stuck here and this will be all my life will amount to. And I’d enjoy it.”
Jagger fell silent for a moment. Kade could almost hear him processing it all.
“Listen,” Jagger finally replied, his voice softer now. It was like he was trying to calm him down from a nightmare when they used to be kids. “I get it. And if that’s what you need to do, I’ll support it. Hell, I’ll even give you the money to get started somewhere… but don’t shut me out over this thing this weekend.”
“I’m not shutting you out.”
“Good.”
“How’s Sadie?”
It was obvious that Kade was trying to change the subject.
That was just fine.
Jagger knew how to break the tension, too.
“She just got done riding my dick, so I’d say she’s doing pretty well.”
Kade rolled his eyes but couldn’t stop the laugh that tore out of his throat when he heard Sadie’s voice in the background of the call yelling at Jagger for oversharing.
Kade stood frozen in front of the door to Madison’s apartment. His fists clenched at his sides, his knuckles so tight from the force they felt like they could split.
The final exam had been tough, sure—but his mind hadn’t been on the exam. No, his focus had been on Madison.
Or lack of Madison.
Her absence from class had been jarring, something so out of character for her that it had him in a panic all morning. She was never late. She never missed a class, let alone a final. And this afternoon, when she hadn’t answered his texts or calls, the knot in his stomach had tightened.
And then he’d gotten to her apartment.
Alison had answered the door with that perfect little smile of hers, but there was a hesitation in her eyes that only deepened his concern. And when she told him that Madison wasn’t there, Kade’s gut twisted.
“What do you mean she’s not here ?” Kade’s voice was a low snarl, the frustration slipping through his words as he stepped closer to Alison, his body stiff with tension.
Alison sighed, her lips pressed together and she faltered in her usually confident stance. “I talked to her yesterday after some of her finals. She said she would be going to the bar to talk to you. She had some news, and she thought it might change your mind about what you guys are going to do after graduation.”
Kade’s mind raced. Madison had news? Something important enough to make her think that maybe, just maybe, she could change his mind about everything they had discussed? The words she’d said to him—the offer to run away together, to escape the mess that was their lives—flashed in his mind, and it made his chest tighten with that pesky feeling of hope again.
But none of that mattered if she was missing.
Alison adjusted the crease in her blouse, glancing away from him. “But I figured she either spent the night with you, or she didn’t sleep well and took off early.”
Kade tried to calm his racing heart and think about where she could be.
She didn’t sleep well?
He frowned and suddenly his clothes were too tight, the wind was too loud, the ringing in his ears came on full force as his stomach dropped.
The Madison he knew would never run off like that, not without an explanation.
Not without a word.
“She’s not answering her phone,” he muttered, as he tried to figure out what the hell was happening.
Alison rolled her eyes as if he was acting irrationally. She reached into her impeccably pressed skirt—her clothes so neat it looked like she’d been ironed herself—and pulled out her phone. “She’s not answering for you. But she’ll answer for me.”
Alison unlocked her phone and clicked on the speed dial icon that had Madison’s smiling face on it. Kade watched her, his pulse pounding in his ears as he waited for the call to connect.
It went straight to voicemail.
“Okay, that’s weird,” Alison muttered, her brow furrowing. She tried again, her finger tapping the screen with purpose, as though a second attempt might yield different results.
It didn’t.
Kade couldn’t hold back his rage much longer and his eyes narrowed as he stepped back, running a hand through his messy hair.
This was wrong.
Something was wrong.
“Okay, now I’m worried.”
Kade took a deep breath, his patience starting to crack. “You said she went to The Serpent Pit, Al?” His voice was sharp, though he tried to temper it.
Before she could answer, Kade pulled his phone from his pocket. The urge to know where Madison was was overwhelming, and he had to call and check.
Kade dialed Jagger’s number without hesitation, holding the phone to his ear as he leaned against the doorframe. The background noise of drunken laughter filled the line, making his jaw tighten.
“What?” Jagger’s voice sounded irritated, a bit fuzzy from whatever noise surrounded him. “Isn’t this your last day of finals? Why the hell are you calling me?”
“Did my girl come by yesterday?” Kade asked, his voice barely above a growl. He didn’t care about Jagger’s mood; Madison’s absence was all that mattered right now.
Alison’s eyebrow arched at the term my girl , and Kade scoffed at her judgmental gaze. He didn’t need her to comment on how he referred to Madison. Not when she was fucking missing.
“The redhead?” Jagger’s voice carried the unmistakable sound of confusion, followed by a curse. Kade could almost hear the clinking of bottles in the background, the shuffle of bodies in a room too small for the activity it contained. “No, she wasn’t here. I had a few of the men from Green Light here to go over details for this weekend, so I closed it down after you left. Finally met the guy in charge, too.”
Suddenly, it felt the ground beneath him tilted.
“And she didn’t come in?” he asked, his voice flat, unable to keep the raw edge of fear from creeping in.
Jagger’s voice turned defensive. “No, Kade, I would have noticed a girl among the sea of fucks crowded around the bar.”
The sound of clinking bottles and laughter faded as Kade absorbed the words. That was the last place she went… And she didn’t come back.
“What did you do?” Alison whispered to him so it didn’t interfere with his phone call. Her gaze held him for a moment longer, her eyes calculating. “What’s going on?”
Kade shushed her and held up a hand to tell her to be quiet, but Alison was panicking now alongside him.
“Where do you think she is?” Alison demanded. “If this has to do with your shady gang shit, I swear I–”
“Stay here in case she comes back.”
“Kade!”
With a final glare at Alison, Kade turned, and started striding toward his bike. He had to find her, and he had to do it now. Because she was probably with–
“You’ll find her, right?” Alison was on the porch of the apartment shouting to him now. When he glanced at her there were tears streaming down her face.
“That’s what I’m doing!”
Alison called after him but he ignored her pleas to know where he was going. He didn’t even look back at her as he clutched the phone against his ear and straddled the blue Yamaha Jagger had gifted him with his fancy author money. At least it was better than the scrap metal his dad had him riding.
“Where is the gang staying?”
“You can’t possibly—” Jagger started to argue.
“Yes, I fucking can! Where, Jag?”
“East Hill Inn, the place by the—”
He was already on the move.
The clock was ticking, and if there was one thing Kade knew—it was that time was not on his side. Not if they had Madison in their hands since yesterday.
The gravel crunched under Kade’s boots as he made his way to the edge of the lot, where the dim lights of the Inn flickered faintly in the distance. The bike he left parked by the fence was one of many in the small lot. His eyes were on the ground eyeing the broken glass and cigarette butts, and his steps seemed to echo louder than the last, each one pulling him closer to the men who waited by the entrance. He could already smell the thick, acrid scent of their cigarettes, mixing with the stale air of the parking lot.
When he reached them, they didn’t acknowledge him at first, their gazes fixed on the door of the Inn. They were a rough-looking group, tattoos peeking out from their sleeves, leather jackets worn and faded, each one carrying the kind of indifference that only a man used to violent acts could have. Kade nodded in their direction, but that was about all the greeting he got.
“Hey, fellas,” Kade called out, trying to sound casual despite the tense knot forming in his chest.
They didn’t say a word, but one of them, a man with a long, tangled mess of black hair that blended in with his beard, glanced up at him.
“You mind if I bum one? Seems like a good night for a smoke,” Kade said, his tone easy, almost too easy.
The man just nodded and lit his own cigarette. “Owner doesn’t allow it inside,” he muttered, exhaling smoke in a lazy curl that drifted upward like an unspoken warning.
Kade took a cigarette and stuck it between his lips. “Yeah, figured as much.”
He took the offered lighter, feeling the warmth of the flame flicker against his skin before he pulled the cigarette free and drew a long drag, the smoke filling his lungs and coating his throat in a familiar, bitter burn. He hadn’t smoked since his teen years, but he was used to the smoke from the bar. He leaned back against the brick wall of the Inn, crossing one ankle over the other and exhaling slowly. His fingers flexed around the cigarette, his nerves beginning to settle now that he had the moment’s illusion of control.
“You men with the Green Light gang?” Kade asked, keeping his voice low and casual. He tried not to let his eyes wander too much, trying to size up the group without seeming too obvious. But even as he spoke, he knew this was it—the point of no return.
The man with the long hair blew out another cloud of smoke, studying Kade as though he was trying to figure out if he could even have this conversation with him. “Jackets give it away, did they?”
“No, I was working your party the other night at The Serpent Pit. My brother owns it.”
The man’s lips curled up slightly, and he shared a look with the other two men before turning his eyes on Kade again. “Thought you seemed familiar.”
Kade took another drag from his cigarette, feeling the burn of it as it settled between his fingers. He shifted his weight, straightening up slightly. “I used to be with the Renegade Rebels,” he said, the words coming out smooth. “Been hearing about Green Light for a while now. They can’t stand you, that’s for sure.”
One of the other men grunted in agreement. He wasn’t much older than Kade, probably close to Jagger’s age but between his gaunt face and marked up skin, it was clear that he was on a lot of drugs that were aging him quickly. “Most can’t handle what we do.”
“I think they’re just jealous of what you get to do,” Kade chose his words very carefully. He hoped that the innuendo he slipped into this conversation would get his foot in the door.
“You sound jealous yourself,” the younger man commented with a sneer. “Interested in joining us or something?”
Kade dropped the casual, disinterested facade and straightened, pulling off his plain black leather jacket as he was smart enough to leave his Rebel jacket at home and draped it over his arm. He ran a hand through his hair, taking another deep drag from the cigarette. “I am,” he said, his voice a little more serious now. He let the words hang in the air for a moment, letting them settle before continuing. “I can give you information on the surrounding gang networks. Their locations, their connections. I’ve always been discreet with my old gang and I liked what I saw. So, I’m coming to you as a man and I want in.” Kade paused to give a dark grin. “And I hear you get to keep the girls company until the next party.”
The men exchanged glances, and Kade could feel the tension building between the group, thick with the weight of their scrutiny. One of them chuckled under his breath, a low, hollow sound that had Kade tensing the muscles in his neck. Just play it cool a little longer. That’s all he had to do.
“Yeah, we do,” the long-haired man said, lifting a hand to grip his beard and run his tongue along his yellow decaying teeth. “But they’re at a different location, not here. Mont doesn’t let us interact with them outside of party nights. Gotta give ‘em adequate time to recover and heal for the next ones or sales.”
“Makes sense,” Kade replied, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his gut as he pictured Madison’s face and how scared she must be. “Is Mont your main guy or something?”
“Yeah, he’s our leader. We can talk to him if you want. If you’re serious.”
“Sounds like a plan,” he said, his voice flat, though the fact he wouldn’t gain access to Madison as easily as he’d hoped felt like he was suffocating. He couldn’t be too eager, or it would come crashing down and he’d have no chance.
The men nodded in acknowledgment, not offering much more than that.
“So,” Kade breathed as he threw his cigarette down and put it out with the heel of his boot. “How do I get in touch with Mont?”
The one man who hadn’t spoken yet of the trio shrugged his shoulders.
“He’ll find a way to get in touch with you.”