Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
SIMON
Staring at the ceiling, sleep eluded me for another night as I brushed my fingertips over the sheets. Silk greeted me, the quality exactly what I expected in Oren’s home.
While the mattress was more than comfortable, the unfamiliar room and the lack of heat pressed against me, reminded me of who wasn’t beside me.
While I had the luxury of resting, there wasn’t anything I could do for him.
And knowing he was being tortured? Touched…
Touched against his will, and held somewhere without comfort?
Gliding my hand against my thigh, tears brewed at the simple gesture. It was something Liam and I did together, grounding us when our inner thoughts consumed our sanity. But now? The caress felt like a frightening ghost, an empty promise and reminder of all we’d lost… of all that was taken away.
Rubbing harder, my shuddered exhales turned into stifled sobs, echoing in the empty room. There wasn’t anyone… anyone who understood the magnitude of my agony, and no matter how hard I pressed against my skin, it wouldn’t diminish.
Cries turned into mouthfuls of starved inhales, each breath faster and shorter than the last. My panic attack swathed my vision in hues of black, my ears ringing from the bitterness I succumbed to.
Tugging at my hair, I yanked twice, trying to calm myself down, but it wasn’t enough. Bringing my hand to my mouth, I bit into the flesh between my thumb and pointer, keeping that steady pressure until the familiar tang of iron coated my tongue.
Physical agony flooded my senses, but a blissful emotional numbness coated me as I removed my teeth. That pain stifled my cries as I examined the mark on my skin, another wave of calm crashing into me.
Reaching to scratch over the already bruising skin, my phone’s ringtone boomed, pulling me further from my spiral. Blinking twice, I snatched it from the nightstand.
Unknown Caller ID.
About to set it back down, a tug at my chest stopped me. If it were even remotely possible…
Without another second passing, I pressed the button, and put it on speaker. I used my palm to push myself up, leaning against the headboard. My voice was slightly scratchy as I spoke, “Hello?”
“Simon…”
The device tumbled from my hand, landing on the comforter as I opted to leave it there. “Liam? Liam, are you okay?”
A shuddered breath followed, his voice groggy and equally broken. “I-I… I’m… I’m alright…”
My lip trembled, his tone devoid of his usual brightness. “I thought we promised not to do that anymore… the… the lies.”
“I’m not… lying…” he wheezed, a harsh cough roaring through the line. “I-I am alright because… because I’m talking to you…”
“You…” Sniffling, a choked cry bled through. “I-I’m going to find you.”
As if the words were a cue, my attention snapped to my bag resting beside the bed. Without delay, I reached over, unzipping the top pouch as I yanked my computer from its holder. Popping the screen back, I blew out a breath as I typed, familiar coding running across my screen.
“I-I know…” Liam replied, agony prevalent in his rasped timbre. Rustling followed, a soft whimper joining the rattle of what sounded like metal. “I know you will… Listen… I can’t… I can’t talk for long…”
Fingers brushing over the keys, I focused on the task. “Okay, but I need you to for as long as you can. Tell me something you look forward to when I see you.”
“Your touch…” A soft sob flowed through the receiver. “I… I miss you…”
Tears blurred my vision. “I miss… miss you too. What… What else?”
Fuck, whatever phone he was using prevented tracking, but this was like cake to me. If they wanted to hide, they should’ve done a better fucking job, as my next sequence infected their firewall. Strings of letters and numbers collected, rapidly firing as their defenses crumbled.
“Um… Cuddling…”
“You’re doing great. Keep talking to me.”
Thirty more seconds. Thirty more and I would pinpoint the general location. Inhaling sharply, I bid away the remaining emotions. It would cloud my judgment and slow down my reaction time. I didn’t have a moment to spare.
“I just want… to be in your arms again…” Exhaustion caused his voice to waver slightly, and the gravelly depth of it had me wondering if Stefan had wrapped his hands around Liam’s throat again. “I just want… I want my home back…”
“Y-You will. You’ll be right next to me, and I’ll never let you go. Just… Just keep talking, okay?”
Ten seconds.
That’s all that remained between finding him, shoving my gun into Stefan’s mouth, and blowing his fucking head off until only mush remained.
“I-I don’t know… what he has planned for me… But I need you to know that I love you, Simon…”
“Hey, don’t… don’t you give up on me.” Breath hitching, I entered the final string of letters. “You are a fighter, and I’m coming for you. I love you more than anything.”
“I love…” he paused, his breathing increasing as panic built. “I-I have… I have to go…”
Swallowing down my panic, I clenched the sheets. “I know you do. But don’t give up. Please. I’m coming.”
“I won’t… I’ll keep… keep fighting for as long as I can,” he whimpered, a soft cry joining. “I miss you and love you… so much… I don’t want to go… but he’s… he’s coming…”
He’s coming.
Stifling another cry, my knuckles blanched. “I love you so much. I don’t want you to go either, but you have to stay safe. You keep fighting.”
“I-I will… I love you, Simon…”
Before I could offer him further comfort, the call ended.
While my heart threatened to break, my computer dinged, alerting me that it had worked.
One word appeared on the computer screen, and a smile graced my features. Shoving the covers from me, I bolted to the door. Prosthetic groaning with the sudden movement, I yanked it open and bounded down the hallway.
Pounding my fist against the door, I teetered on my heels. God, what was fucking taking them so—
Oren rubbed his eye with his knuckle, a yawn billowing from him. “Simon, what the fuck are you doing? Thorne is still asleep, and it’s like six in the—”
“I found him. I fucking found him!”
“Hmmm?”
Rolling my eyes, I shoved my way past him. “Cover your asses and get up. We need to go to Novosibirsk now.”
Thorne’s near-lifeless form shifted on the bed, and a lengthened groan left him as he turned on his side. Glancing up at me with barely opened eyes, his brows furrowed. “What the fuck are you doing, Simon?”
“Beats the fuck out of me. We could’ve been fucking, Simon! Jesus Christ.” Oren leaned against the wall, scowl plastered on his face, but it was the sight of his curls sticking up on one side of his head that had me stifling laughter.
“I found Liam. He called me, and I tracked his location. I couldn’t… couldn’t pinpoint it exactly, but he’s in Novosibirsk, Russia!”
“God, your Russian is terrible.” Flopping onto his back, Thorne palmed his eyes. “You realize we need plane tickets. Right? We can’t just leave.”
“Don’t you have connections? Friends you can call to get us there?” Blurting out my words, I wrung my hands together. “I… I found him. Please.”
His back arched as he stretched, the silken sheets molding to his form—naked, he was naked, and I quickly glanced away. “I’ll call Levander.”
Grinning, I dipped my chin in a nod. “I’ll pack immediately.”
Oren’s eyes narrowed, a bit of life returning to his irises as they fell to my injured hand. Softening slightly, he rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll… make us some breakfast and get you some ice.”
“Oren, I’m—”
“Ice.”
Swallowing the rest of my reply, I flicked my attention back to Thorne. Clearing my throat, I tried to focus on the task and not my best friend seething beside me at seeing his fiancé without the cover of clothes. “How… How long do you think? I-I think Stefan has him c-chained.”
Thorne sat up, running a hand through his hair. “Considering the connections Levander has? Not long.” Unbothered, he flipped the sheets back, pushing his nude form off the bed as he snatched his phone from his nightstand. “I’m going to go have a cigarette while I chat with him.”
My eyes wandered, whether intentionally or unintentionally, I wasn’t sure. But as soon as I caught sight of the jewelry adorning him, my lips parted. “Jesus! No wonder you won at Strip Uno. If you had shown that, we all would’ve fucking fainted.”
“Out,” Oren snapped, stepping to block my view. Jutting two fingers into my chest, his nostrils flared. “Get out and get some goddamn ice before I shove it down your throat.”
Coughing to hide my laughter, I raised my hands as Thorne’s chuckles echoed in the background. “Yes, sir. Sure will.”
“Oh dear fucking lord, you’re not helping,” the small bundle of fire that was my best friend spat over his shoulder.
“He’s appreciating my assets; you should accept the compliment it entails, dove.”
“The only person who gets to appreciate your assets is me. And if you want to push me, keep talking until I remind you exactly what I can do.”
“Someone’s jealous,” Thorne crooned, the sound of their glass door gliding open mixing with his words. “I’ll be out here.”
“Simon.”
Laughing, I nodded. “Okay, I’m going.”
As I turned to leave, fingers curled around my wrist. Oren raised the injured hand to inspect it. Smile dropping, he brushed his thumb over the wound. “You promised Liam you wouldn’t… You wouldn’t do this anymore.”
Swallowing, I yanked it from his grip. “It’s impossible not to when my world doesn’t have any sunshine.”
Not letting him reply, I slipped out of their room and down the stairs. While my hope was renewed, my soul wouldn’t be lightened until my sunshine was home.
He was everything, and without him, I wouldn’t withstand even the simplest of tasks.
But this was it. The first step toward putting a bullet through Stefan’s fucking head, and God, I couldn’t wait to bathe in his blood.