42. Christian
christian
“What the fuck is going on?” Kale demanded as soon as he got out of his truck, meeting me beneath the awning outside the motel lobby. Thunder rumbled in the distance as the rain continued to pour. “Where’s Sage?”
I held up my finger to my lips, shushing him, as we waited for Jude, Chuck, and Reed to pile out of Reed’s Dodge Ram and join us. I didn’t want to alert anyone we were here if I could help it, just in case we lost our trail.
Once everyone was out of the rain, I said, “Sage wasn’t at the gallery.
Her phone and purse were left, and it looks like there was a struggle.
Arlo was left in the apartment and clawed his way out by the time I arrived.
” I swallowed, fighting against the panic.
“Mom said she might have been helping a woman who was staying here. Her name was written down in her appointment book. We’re looking for someone named Alani.
She may have been the last one who saw her and hopefully she can point us in the right direction. ”
“Who would be after my sister?” Kale asked, shifting his gaze between Reed and I. “It can’t be Junior. What would he want with Sage?”
This was not going to be easy. I inhaled a deep breath, then blew it out, glancing at Chuck before turning back to my friend. “She planned on talking to you about it today, all of you. Her ex, Clayton—”
“Creed?” Kale interrupted, his brows shooting up to his hat. “Clayton Creed?”
I nodded.
“I know of him. He’s the CEO of the Indian casino and a respected member of our reservation. I didn’t realize they’d dated. Why would he want to find her?”
“Apparently he’d been looking for her and wound up here,” I told him.
I paused, watching Kale as his wheels started turning. “She left, just like I did. No explanation as to why … I never really asked.” His eyes shot back to mine. “What does he want with her now?”
Even though Kale needed to know this, part of me felt like I was betraying Sage. This was her story to tell. She needed to be the one to do this. But also, her brother deserved to know, especially now that she was missing. Maybe he’d know a way to reach Clayton, to help us find her.
“He’s the buyer,” Chuck jumped in. “And it appears Junior’s been hiding out on the reservation. They may be working together since he apparently had some deal with his brother, Jesse.”
“But why Sage?” Kale asked again, his eyes starting to dart between us until they narrowed on me. “I swear to God, Christian, whatever you know, spit it out now.”
I sighed, nodding. “It’ll be worth the chew out later,” I mumbled to myself.
“Their relationship was abusive, Kale. She came to Willows to hide from him. I think he intends to take her back against her will. And if Alani knows anything about where she may be, like I hope she does, then we may be able to intervene before it’s too late. ”
“Fuck,” Kale cursed, the veins popping out at his neck and his face reddening. “I swear to fucking God he’s a deadman walking.” Hands balled in fists, he started to storm past me, when I grabbed him.
“Bro, breathe. We’re going to find her. But you can’t lose your shit and blow our cover. Not when she could still be in reach.” I gripped his arms even though he pushed against me, wanting to get past.
“We’ll find her,” Chuck promised.
“And if Junior has anything to do with this, we’ll just add it to the pound of flesh he owes us,” Jude added.
By the look of the young concierge, a small posse of cowboys walking into the lobby of the Bare Buckle Motel was fucking scary shit.
I leaned against the counter, Dale — by the name written on his nametag — stared wide-eyed through thick spectacles. His face was as white as a sheet. “Hey, Dale. I was wondering if you could help us out with something?”
My blood pulsed through my veins, my body tense, but I was fucking trying to keep it cool. I hoped my nonchalant lean appeared nonthreatening. My friends, on the other hand, I couldn’t speak for them as they loomed beside me.
“Su-sure,” Dale stammered. “What can I help you with?”
“I was wondering if there was someone by the name of Alani staying here right now?”
“Oh … I can’t tell you that,” Dale objected.
Reed took a step forward and I could feel his body vibrating. “How about fucking Junior Matheus?” he growled.
“Reed,” Chuck cautioned, placing a hand on his shoulder.
“We’re just trying to find a friend of ours,” Chuck began. “We know Alani is staying here and we just need to know what room she’s in. We’re just hoping she can help us.”
Dale grimaced. “I’m sorry, I can’t. We have to maintain the privacy of our guests.”
I balled my fists against the counter. “You’re going to make this difficult, Dale,” I gritted out through my clenched jaw.
“We could make this real easy, really fucking fast,” Kale commented behind me.
“Marine isn’t around, is she?” Jude asked, prompting me to look past Dale to the office.
Dale shook his head. “No, not tonight.”
I leaned over the counter, picking up the phone off the receiver, and handed it to him. “I suggest you give her a call.”
With trembling fingers Dale dialed Marine’s number, his eyes never leaving us as he waited for her to pick up. “Um, hi Marine. I have some gentlemen here asking for you.”
“Tell her Chuck Larsen needs to speak with her,” Chuck piped in.
“Chuck Larsen. Okay. Here.” He handed the phone over to Chuck.
“Hey Marine, it’s Chuck,” he said into the phone.
“Sage didn’t show up to her shift and we know she was at her gallery earlier meeting with a woman named Alani.
We have reason to believe she may have information that can help us find her and we believe she’s staying at your motel …
Yeah, we’re really worried … We’re hoping we could speak with her.
Could you have Dale here help us out? … Yeah.
We could start there, but if she doesn’t pick up, then what?
… No. We’re not ready to involve the police just yet. ”
We all exchanged glances. If we involved the police and Junior was indeed here, and there was a connection with Alani and the motel, we weren’t about to spook him and have him take off. Not until we had an idea where Sage was. Not while she might still be in our grasp.
“Okay. Thank you. She wants to talk to you.” He handed the phone back to Dale.
Dale audibly swallowed. “Marine? … okay … I’ll do that. Thank you. Yeah … bye.”
He hung up, immediately clicking around on his computer before finding what he needed and dialed the room number.
“Put it on speaker, Dale,” I told him.
Dale’s eyes flicked nervously to mine, before putting it on speaker. The phone rang and rang and rang.
“Best just to give us the room number now,” Chuck offered, taking one of the brochures from the counter and pushing it across to Dale with a pen.
Tentatively, Dale hung up the phone, picking up the pen and writing down “103.”
I patted the counter, giving him the friendliest grin I could muster despite my rising anxiety to hurry up and get out of here so we could find her. “You’re the best, Dale.”
Chuck didn’t even bother grabbing the brochure as we followed him out. “Let’s make this easy. We’ll hang back and Christian, you’ll go to the door. There’s no reason to scare her if she’s in there. Hopefully she’ll be ready to help us.”
I nodded, walking a beeline across the parking lot to room 103, while the rest of the guys stood a few yards back against the wall, waiting.
With a steadying breath, I knocked softly.
No one answered. The curtain shifted as someone peeked out, before I heard muffled cursing and shuffling.
Whoever it was, didn’t sound like a woman at all.
I looked back at the guys, jerking my head for someone to go around back, just in case whoever it was tried to sneak out the bathroom window.
Kale and Jude headed around back while Chuck and Reed came up beside me.
Reed rested his hand on the Glock at his waist, ready for whatever we were about to walk into.
There was a shout from behind the motel and then a grunt, followed by what sounded like crashes from inside, before Jude came running around from the side.
“It’s Junior,” he whisper-yelled. “Kale got in.”
I tried the knob but it was locked.
More thumps and grunts. A shuffle. The mechanical clicks of the lock and bolt turning. And then Kale was opening the door. His chest was heaving and blood stained his knuckles as he stood to the side to let us in.
Junior was sprawled across the floor, blood leaking from his nose, groaning. His eyes fluttered open, squinting as if to try to focus his vision.
“Fucker!” Reed stormed in, winding up his leg and nailing a hard kick to his side.
Junior cried out, buckling into a fetal position on the floor.
Chuck closed the door behind us, before he and Jude hauled Reed away from causing too much damage.
“We need him conscious,” Jude warned, locking his arms around Reed as he fought to get to him. He waited until he calmed enough before letting him go, Reed shaking off the hold.
Shock nearly kicked the wind out of my sails as I stood there, but it also helped me refocus. They moved out of my way, allowing me to kneel in front of him. Taking a fist of his hair, I lifted his head off the ground until we were eye to eye.
“Where’s Sage?”
Junior spat a glob of blood, letting it run down his chin. “I—I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know?” I demanded. “This is supposed to be Alani’s room. Where’s Alani?”
His brow furrowed as if he was trying to remember. “Alani? Alani? Oooh, Ms. Ashwater. She works for Mr. Creed.”
“Fuck!” I dropped my grasp letting Junior’s head fall back flat on the floor. He moaned in pain again. I turned to Kale who stood there like a bull blowing steam from his nose, ready to charge. “Do you know an Alani Ashwater?”
He shook his head. “No, I don’t know anyone by that name.”
I sucked in a breath through my nose, my eyes fluttering closed just for a moment to steady the returning rage and frustration. Junior was so ready to throw this Alani under the bus and call out Clayton. Maybe we could loosen his tongue more. “Was Alani with Sage?”
Junior’s head lulled to the side, a bloody grin on his face, as his eyes connected with Chuck’s. “He’s taking the land, Larsen. Him and I have a deal.”
Chuck crouched down beside me, his hands patiently folded before him as he looked down at Junior. Chuck’s gaze was deadly, his mustache twitched, but with a voice as calm as water he said, “What’s the deal, Junior?”
Junior’s eyes rolled to mine. “I have no animosity toward you, Riggs.”
I scoffed. “Well, then our feelings aren’t mutual.”
He huffed a bloody laugh, his eyes still on me. “She just sweetened the deal. He’s cutting me my portion in exchange for her.”
The movement was like taking a breath, involuntary. A quick inhale and a jerk reaction, and my knuckles connected with bone in the middle of Junior’s face. The audible crunch ricocheted up my arm and Junior’s eyes rolled back into his head.