Chapter Twenty-Two
COBY
A few hours before…
With no idea who took her, I went to the only person who could get her back.
Wayne, the doorman at Glainne, tried to stop me at the door, but I managed to convince him with a knife to his throat.
Hunter’s idea of a Christmas present had finally come in handy.
The receptionist had taken one look at me and reached for the phone.
Somehow, I knew he wasn’t calling the police, so I kicked the back of Wayne’s leg to make him kneel and waited.
I’m sure the scene I’d caused in the lobby was a sight to behold when Ocean finally stepped off the private elevator to see me with his doorman on his knees and me crying uncontrollably like a lunatic. That knife at Wayne’s throat shook in my grip, cutting him a little in the process.
Ocean observed it all with the casualness of someone watching a bird drop a deuce. “This is a surprise. How can I help you, Coby?”
“What did you do?” I demanded. All the betrayal I felt curdling in my gut was reflected in my voice.
“Coby, drop the knife.”
“Someone took Hunter,” I told him desperately.
Ocean repeated his command as if I hadn’t spoken. The attentive man I’d grown used to was nowhere to be found. “Drop…” He stepped forward, and I inhaled sharply. “The knife. I won’t ask you again.”
Forcing my fingers to relax, the knife fell from my hand and clattered on the marble floor. A moment later, I was engulfed in Ocean’s strong arms as he wrapped them around me and attempted to console me.
For a moment, I forgot why I came.
“Ocean,” I sobbed his name as I came to my senses and pulled away. I tugged on his shirt, attempting to pull him to the door. “Please, you h-have to h-help h-her.”
“Coby, calm down, mo aingeal.”
“No! Don’t tell me to calm down!” Unable to force him out the door, I turned and started shoving at his chest. “This is your fault! You did this!”
“And I’ll fix it, but first, I have to take care of you.
Come here.” Before I could say no, Ocean lifted me into his arms and then carried me into the elevator.
Already, I could feel my muscles relaxing and exhaustion creeping in.
“Hush,” he soothed when I fought off sleep to beg him some more.
“I’ll get her back. No harm will come to Hunter. Not even a scratch. You have my word.”
Believing him because I had no other choice if I wanted to see Hunter again, I closed my eyes and allowed my mind to settle as the elevator descended into the underground garage.