27. Ryder
27
RYDER
I had to agree with Shiloh. It looked like Santa’s village had exploded in the house. There was a tree and while most of the ornaments were gold and red, there were too many mismatched ones for anything to look truly put together. There was a stack of presents under the tree, as well.
Maggie reminded me the kids would get presents from all the aunts and uncles, so I could keep Ethan’s in the cottage. She also hadn’t brought down her presents for her kids.
I was about to ask if there was anything I could do to help when the door swung open. Theo walked in with a woman in combat fatigues and her dark hair in a bun.
Tiff let out a squeal I wasn’t sure was entirely human. “Cat.” Her hands circled around her sister. “God, you’re alive and you’re in front of me.”
“My turn.” Maggie pulled off her gloves and pulled Cat into her arms. “How long are you home for?”
“I need to report to base on the twenty seventh. Then I have another six months.”
I looked over at Shiloh who had tears streaming down her eyes. “It’s good to see you, sis.”
As the three women continued to gush over Cat, Theo and I walked through to the kitchen. I handed him a beer and narrowed my eyes. “Are you going to be nice to Maggie this evening?”
“She’s the one who—” Before he could finish his sentence, the back door swung open and two men walked in. “Ryder, let me introduce you to the Waite Brothers. Holden and Owen.”
He pointed first to the one with broad shoulders, hair a little longer and a day-old beard. The other had the same dark hair and eyes but he was leaner and a little taller.
Owen held out his hand. “You’re the baby daddy, I hear.”
It no longer surprised me how news travelled among the group of friends. After all, I was part of them, too. Enough that I had a comeback for him. “And you’re the one having a friends-with-benefits thing with the love of your life.”
“Yes.” That was from Holden, held his hand up and I high-fived him. “You’re going to fit right in.”
We made our way back to the living area. Tiffany was adjusting things on the table, which I had to admit, looked amazing. Once again, she squealed when she saw Holden and Owen.
The front door opened letting in a cold breeze as another two women stepped in along with Jason.
Grace I was expecting. We weren’t as close as I was with Jason or even Skylar, but we were friendly with one another. It was the other woman I was not expecting. “Layla?”
She smiled at me as she waved. “Grace invited me. I was meant to spend the holiday with Oscar’s family and my mom had booked a cruise because she can’t stand him. I hope I am not intruding.”
Shiloh shook head. “Not at all. Do you cook?”
“Not at all.”
“Then you help Grace make the kitchen look pretty while the rest of us do the work.”
“Hey.” Grace tried to look offended but it didn’t work.
Owen kissed her cheek and smiled. “I’ll pull weight for both of us.”
He started rolling up his sleeves and moved to the kitchen. Holden stood next to me. “My brother can bake. I wish he would stop doing what he’s currently doing and follow his passion.”
I frowned. “I thought he was in the army.”
The chuckle didn’t offer a hint of humor. “That is what he would have us believe, yes.”
That was more cryptic than I wanted to deal with on Christmas Eve. And I didn’t have long to dwell on it before Jason walked in with Theo and the man I recognized as Theo’s Head of Security, Hunter.
Jason slapped Theo on the back. “Thanks for the lift.”
“I’m just glad both you and Grace could make it to the airport. I had no idea Layla was also with you.”
“She and Grace were at that underwear fashion show. Grace was modelling, Layla was the live entertainment.”
Once we were all seated at the dinner table, extended to include the three kids, I couldn’t help but smile. These were my people, my tribe.
Yeah, many of them were real life heroes, but they all loved each other. These were people who would do anything for one another. Anything for me. Thanks to Shiloh, I had men and women who cared about me. Not just about my career. My conversation with Theo and Owen highlighted that.
“So you directed that video of the reunion single?” Owen frowned at me. “And that one of you and Layla. Those were both brilliant.”
They were actually variations on the same idea. I’d used the kids’ footage to make it look like Layla and I were a married couple singing in our home. And in turn, it looked like our kids were recording us. The whole thing was converted to black and white to add to the home movie feel.
The reunion single had a similar theme. Where we were band members and instead of playing the field, we were with good women. We’d evolved from wanting girls who showed a lot of skin to women who were comfortable in how their bodies had matured. The vibe was nautical and bright.
I was proud of the work I had done on both videos. But more, my friends recognized the work. They weren’t around me because I was Ryder Hawkins, the singer with the golden voice. I was just Ryder.
Across the table, another life changing conversation was happening. Holden was chatting to Shiloh about his future. “After that last POW stint, I am considering getting out. I have another few months, but, come summer, I’ll be out.”
“I’m considering working for Salinger Security.” Shiloh announced like it was no big deal. But we had spoken about it, and leaving the force was a big deal for her.
The whole table went silent as they understood the gravity of the statement. But it was Holden who gave her a smile. “They’d be fucking lucky to have you.”
“You, too.” She leaned on the table and faced him. “What do you say we start the next generation together. I’m sure the Salingers would welcome the young blood.”
Who would’ve thought we’d get to that point. That Shiloh would be looking at something less rigid than the police force and I would be looking at a career that was more reliable than touring for seventy percent of the year.
By the time we started clearing the dessert dishes, everyone showed signs of lethargy. Cat and I, who had been travelling, were definitely beat. So were Hunter and Jason. Theo sat back in his chair, Maggie’s daughter had curled up in his lap, fast asleep. The boys were on the couches, trying to stay awake for Santa. But that was not going to last long either.
Everyone pitched in, except for the three women and Owen who had done most of the cooking. The dishwasher was on the second run when Holden asked that I take the trash outside.
We’d managed to collect quite a bit over the course of the day.
Between the wrapping paper, food bits that could not be eaten and empty disposable containers, it turned out that twelve adults and three kids could accumulate quite a bit of trash.
Three full trash bags to be exact. I needed to be careful. If I didn’t carry the bag properly, the bottom would break and I would be cleaning up the trash from the floor.
I decided that carrying the bags one-by-one would be the best solution. I placed it in the wheelie bin and as I made my way back inside, I heard a noise. A scratching sound from the other side of the garage. Both Maggie and Tiffany’s car were parked in the garage that was usually used for storage. With so many of our friends at home, it made sense to keep the driveways clear for the other cars. I looked over my shoulder but saw nothing. It was possible I had imagined something. I’d had more than a few beers and I was buzzing. But not drunk. I shrugged off the noise and stomped back inside.
Holden opened the door for me. “I’ll take this one.” He pointed to the last bag. “Why don’t you tie up that one and bring it out.”
“Cool.” For a moment I wondered how these guys became so close. Were they taught to look out for each other? Was it something they were born with? Maybe it was a combination of both. I certainly wasn’t taught this behavior but I loved it. And more importantly, it seemed to come naturally to me.
By the time I had tied the last bag, Holden had stepped back inside. “Fuck. It's cold outside.” That was an understatement. “Just be careful, I spotted a raccoon out there. Hopefully I scared him off.”
“Aaah. That’s what I must’ve heard.”
Once more I held the trash bag in a way that prevented it from exploding on my way to the wheelie bin.
I hefted the bag into the bin just as I felt a sting in my neck. I swatted away whatever insect had tried to bite me, but all I felt was fingers around my wrist.
“Easy.” The female voice was soothing. “Just relax. We’ll be having some…”
I didn’t hear much else as my world went black.
And when the world around me reappeared, I knew I was in hell.
A breeze on my legs told me I was down to my boxers, I was strapped to a… bed? I tried to look around and I could make out something yellow. I was on a gurney. “What the fuck?”
“Tut tut tut.” The female voice was the oddest combination of soothing and maniacal. “Stay still, Ryder. You’ve been a naughty boy. But before we can get to your punishment, I first need to let the authorities know who our next naughty boy will be.”
The searing pain on my back had me biting down. A blade? Was this sicko carving into my back? I was torn between screaming to make sure someone heard me, and shutting up and not giving this bitch any sort of satisfaction. I knew who she was. Well, not precisely, but I knew she was the killer that Shi was chasing with Lilly and that Agent dude who worked on my nerves.
I figured if she had been getting away with this for as long as she had, then we were somewhere where no one could hear my screaming.
As the pain continued in my back, I gritted my teeth. I jerked my body as much as I could from side to side. If she needed precision, I wanted to make her life as difficult as possible.
Then, once again, I passed out.
When I came around, the bitch was dragging me across the floor. I had no strength to fight back. I just about had enough to turn my head and make out my surroundings. The room I was in was pretty deserted. We stopped and she rested me against the wall and I passed out once more. When I woke up, she was shoving my body around. I couldn’t be sure but it felt like she was trying to fit me into a box. It was only once the lid was closed that I realized I was shivering.
The bitch stored me in a freezer.