Chapter 10
Ten
FELIX
Running through everything I know about Blue is supposed to make me feel better. Anything could be happening to her.
She is wildly strong, mentally and emotionally. Physically, she has been trained to defend herself. Her beauty could charm anyone, and her bright blue hair would make it hard for anyone to hide her.
There are drawbacks to some of those things, though, and that's what I'm struggling with. Blue has been trained to fight back instead of running away.
Her strong mind could logic her way toward bad ideas. Would she decide to fight back because she can? Or would she run because that's the safest option? I don't fucking know because Blue is unpredictable these days.
As for her beauty and blue hair...those make her a target. One easily spotted. If she were to attempt an escape, her blue hair would be hard to hide.
Then there are the other factors that scare the shit out of me. Blue is the most amazing, caring, loyal woman I have ever met. Yes loyal. That may be a tough subject, and while I'm working to reclaim that trait too, there's no part of me that would deny Blue's loyalty to her loved ones.
I fear what her loyalty might cause her to do.
If the person who kidnapped her is the guy who's been harassing Violet, there's no way Blue would risk escaping just to lead the assailant here. There's also the possibility that she would risk her life to end theirs just so the threat to her kid is gone.
Fuck. FUCK!
Violet's worried about Blue giving up and just accepting a fate that would shatter our souls. What if she already has? What if Blue had no choice?
Fucking hell. What if...
"Knock it off," Roman grumbles, kicking my shin beneath the table.
I kick him right back, but I fucking miss. "What's your problem?"
He points his fork at me. "You're overthinking."
"How can you not be?" I fire back. It's been two nights since Blue went missing. Of course, I'm overthinking everything. Roman's calm persona is getting on my nerves, and the more Jared calms down, the angrier I get.
Roman opens his mouth. Instead of responding, he shoves a bite of watermelon inside. So goddamn annoying.
"What's with the stare down?" Declan mutters, all but tiptoeing toward the kitchen table. His shirt is rumpled, and his hair is greasy. We haven't gone home since Halloween, and I'm starting to think we might have to at least go grab a few things.
Unable to hold back, I grab the back of Declan's thigh once he's close enough and pull him onto my lap. The chair groans, and Roman actually fucking snorts.
"Fuck off," Declan grumbles at his brother and leans down to kiss me sweetly.
All of my pent-up aggression comes roaring to the surface, forcing my tongue into my man's mouth and dominating him from the bottom. Sharp pain flares from my shin up to my knee. I kick back at Roman in retaliation all the while biting Declan's plump bottom lip.
Declan huffs and pulls back a little. "Can you not play footsie with my big brother while tongue fucking my mouth?"
For the first time in what feels like forever, I laugh. Hugging my man closer, I relish the feeling of happiness for just a moment. Before guilt can eat the curve of my lips, Jared stomps into the kitchen.
"Wow," Jared breathes and rushes over to the window.
My laughter dies and my expression turns into a scowl. Violet's still sleeping and the bastard is going to wake her up.
Roman frowns and asks the question we're all wondering. "What are you doing?"
With his head tilted back, Jared squints up at the sky. "Checking to see if pigs are flying. Who got the big grump to laugh?"
"Dick," I grumble, flipping him off around Declan's hot body.
Declan smirks, slapping my hand away and raising his own like a schoolboy. "I did, of course."
"Bravo," Jared praises and slumps into a chair at the kitchen table.
Seeing him in a better headspace than yesterday makes my stomach twist uncomfortably. I haven't been showing up very well, and seeing how much Jared just helped lighten the mood, I realize how my rage and negativity are dragging everyone down.
It's so hard, though.
We haven't heard anything from the police, but we're due for another check-in at the station. They're keeping an eye on us, I was told, same with all of Blue's friends. Not necessarily because we're suspects, but because between all of us we should know something.
I fucking wish I knew something.
"Has anyone talked to Levi and Kevin today?" I ask the guys, sucking all the light from their expressions.
"Yeah," Roman answers. "They've enlisted all their buddies and coworkers to keep an eye out for Blue. The girls, Bethany, Dakota, and Janine have put out missing person signs."
Jared nods and adds his own information. "My sister and parents called their friends who live outside of Chicago as well to watch for Blue. There's a high probability she's not in the city anymore, so we need to spread the word as far as possible."
"Is that smart?" Declan wonders, standing from my lap to pace. "What if putting a spotlight on Blue just makes this asshole speed up his plans?"
Bile bubbles in my throat, but I swallow it down. "This is the only thing we really can do, D. It's a risk, but so is not doing anything."
"Felix is right." Roman stares down at the table and picks at the crumbs he spilled. "What else can we do? There has to be more."
"A SEARCH PARTY!" Violet screams, sprinting through the hallway with her phone raised above her head.
My heart immediately starts pounding in response to her frantic breaths and wild eyes. I'm on my feet before I fully register what I'm doing.
Violet doesn't stop until she's slamming her phone into my chest. I swear she's barely getting any oxygen to her lungs with how fast she's breathing.
"He messaged! It's a clue! Read it! We have to start a search party!" Violet pushes me again, urging me to read whatever is on her phone.
I'm fucking terrified to see what's on there, but I have to face this. For Blue. For Violet. For all of us.
The message from an unknown account reads: "Their precious Petal will die with the rest of them."