Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
NOAH
Noah glared at his stubborn, cynical twin accusingly, knowing that he was behind whatever this was. “Goddamn it, Alex,” he hissed. “I told you to back off. What did you do?”
Alex met his gaze with a steely one of his own. “Not here. Let’s go into Dad’s office.”
Noah followed Alex silently, aware of his brothers in his wake. Hannah remained in the kitchen.
“Close the door,” Alex commanded.
As the sounds of kids laughing and playing became muted, Alex put his laptop on the desk and opened the lid. The others stepped back, forming a protective semicircle behind and around Noah.
Dad’s office. His brothers at his six. Whatever Alex had found, it was bad.
Noah braced himself and looked down at the information displayed on the screen. Pictures of a younger but familiar face, barely recognizable beneath the damage that had been done to it, looked back at him.
The breakfast he and Teagan had shared earlier threatened to make a dramatic reappearance.
He wanted to reach out and slam the laptop closed, but that couldn’t erase the images from his mind’s eye, where they would live rent-free for the rest of his life.
Those pictures made the injuries she’d sustained at Hopewell look like playground bumps and bruises.
No wonder she was so adept at handling pain.
Noah’s hands clenched into fists at his side. He felt a hand on his shoulder, then two. “Why?” he asked.
Eli was the one who answered, his expression grave.
“It wasn’t Alex’s fault. Kinsey recognized Teagan as someone she had gone to school with.
She was surprised that she’d come back, alluding to some bad shit that had gone down.
When she realized we had no idea what she was talking about, she backpedaled and beat feet. ”
“That was when Alex did some searching,” Adam added.
The words took a moment to register. Teagan was from the area?
Like a puzzle piece falling into place, the words Teagan had quietly whispered on the way here came back to him. “It’s been a long time.”
At the time, he’d thought maybe she’d visited the area at some point. He’d never considered that she’d grown up here. That made her decision to accompany him even more surprising.
And then, suddenly, he knew. Teagan’s return wasn’t random. She was returning to her roots. But why? Was she seeking closure? Or vengeance?
Noah looked at Alex, then at each one of his brothers. Concern was in their eyes, right along with sympathy and barely concealed rage. They were a protective bunch, raised by a man who had paddled his sons but never raised a hand to his daughters.
“However you want to handle this, we’re here for you,” Eli said quietly, his tone sincere.
The others murmured their agreement.
Noah appreciated their support. He was trying to wrap his head around what he’d just seen.
To see through the red haze that was clouding his own vision.
To bank the sudden, violent rage burning him from the inside out, preferably by inflicting extreme pain and loss of body parts on those who had hurt her.
He’d known she’d seen the darker side of life, but he hadn’t expected this. Teagan hadn’t told him much about her past, and maybe this was why. He couldn’t step back, feign ignorance, and leave her to face her demons alone.
Nor could his brothers. It just wasn’t in their DNA. Ziegler men protected their own and those they cared about.
“It had to be someone close. Someone who”—he closed his eyes and took a breath—“for whatever reason, felt compelled to do this.”
“That would be her stepfather,” Adam said, referencing one of the earlier articles. “Her mother died when she was five. The first reports of accidents appear shortly afterward, starting with a supposed topple from a barn loft.”
Five. Fucking hell. Her stepfather—if he was still alive—was a dead man.
Alex’s fingers ghosted over the keys. “The latest link is a video from about five years ago.”
“Play it,” Noah commanded, bracing himself, knowing it was going to be bad.
Alex clicked the play button and full-screened the image. A blonde reporter, dressed in a stylish coat and matching hat, spoke into the camera, her expression one of dramatic concern.
The color drained from Noah’s face as he recognized the setting. The reporter stood in front of Miller’s Diner in downtown Saughannock. Noah sank into the chair next to Alex, afraid that his legs would no longer support him.
“It has been five years since local teen Teagan McKenna disappeared mysteriously from Saughannock General Hospital,” the woman began.
“While authorities refuse to comment publicly, most of the people this reporter spoke with do not believe she could have survived. There are some, however, who continue to hold out hope.”
The woman turned to a young man, ruggedly handsome with strong, masculine features, in a camouflage coat. His eyes were dark and compelling; his shaggy dark hair hung down past his brows.
Noah hated him immediately.
“Josh Graner is one of those who continues to search for the missing girl. Josh, why do you believe she is still out there somewhere?”
Graner’s expressions were practiced and perfect, the look of concern in his eyes flawless, as if he had rehearsed them until he had them just right. He looked soulfully at the reporter, and her features softened visibly.
“I know Teagan is still alive because I feel it here.” He touched his chest, his hands covered in fingerless gloves.
“What a fucking poser,” Alex murmured.
A low growl of agreement rumbled in the back of Noah’s throat.
“You and Teagan were close then?” the reporter asked, obviously touched by his words.
“We grew up together, took care of one another,” he said. “I feel sick every time I think about what happened …”
“You’re referring to the brutal beating at the hands of her stepfather?”
Graner nodded, looking tormented. “I never should have taken that scholarship. I should have been here with Teagan, watching out for her. I knew her stepfather was no good.” He averted his eyes, as if he didn’t want to be caught crying on camera.
“Why do you think no one has seen or heard from Teagan in all this time, Josh?”
Graner’s hands curled into fists. “I swear to God, I wish I knew. The doctors say it’s entirely possible she doesn’t even know who she is. Her injuries were so severe. I don’t think she could have left the hospital on her own.”
“So, you believe foul play was involved?”
“There’s no doubt in my mind,” Graner answered firmly.
“Teagan would never have left unless she believed there was no other way. Maybe she had been drugged, or threatened, or …” He ran his hand through his hair.
“I don’t know. But I know she’s out there, waiting for me to find her and bring her home.
” At this point, Graner turned to the camera.
“Teagan, if you can hear me, I love you, baby, and I won’t rest until I have you back home safe again. ”
A phone number flashed up on the screen, along with the picture Alex had found in the Saughannock yearbook. The reporter urged anyone with information to call.
“Please,” Graner pleaded. “Someone out there knows something. Help me bring my girl home. I won’t stop until she’s back where she belongs. I’ll never stop.”
The words sounded more like a threat than a promise.
The video ended. No one said a word. The muffled sound of excited children playing with their new toys was surreal in the silence.
“Lying son of a bitch,” Noah spat out, disgusted by the performance he’d just seen.
The fucker had had everyone fooled, but Noah had seen the glimmer of madness, of cruelty, etched in those handsome features.
Now he knew why Teagan had been running for all these years. Why she kept to the shadows.
“It wasn’t just her stepfather abusing her,” Noah said, feeling the truth of it in his soul.
“Christ, Noah. Are you sure?” Brandon asked.
“I knew she was running, but not from what. He’s been hunting her all this time.”
Alex’s brows lowered. “Talk to me.”
Noah hesitated, then decided to share what he knew, rationalizing that it wasn’t a betrayal if they could end her nightmare once and for all. Hell, she was planning on leaving the next day. That didn’t give him much time to work with.
“The sheriff came to Hopewell, looking for her. She bolted the moment she saw him.”
“You think he knew?”
“He told Mona he was investigating a string of local robberies.”
“So, how did she end up with you?”
Noah gave them a CliffsNotes version of what had happened. Their faces grew even stormier.
“You think this poser’s behind it?”
“I had my doubts, but after seeing the piece of shit and listening to that bullshit, I’m sure of it. Jesus, I can’t believe this all happened in Saughannock. When I asked her to come home with me for the holidays, I had no idea I was bringing her back into the lion’s den.”
“How could you have known?” Daniel asked.
Fair point. Didn’t make him feel any better, though.
“How do you want to handle this?” That was from Eli, who was looking as determined as the rest of them.
Noah felt a surge of appreciation for their unconditional willingness to help. He exchanged a glance with Alex.
Words passed unspoken between them, then Alex offered a slight nod. “With extreme prejudice.”
The tightness in Noah’s chest loosened slightly. Alex specialized in covert ops, reconnaissance, and human intelligence gathering. He was skilled in disguise, extraction, psychological ops, and manipulation. Noah had never been more grateful for it.
“Where’s Teagan now?” Alex asked.
“In the stables. Bear’s with her.”
“What are you going to tell her?”
Noah blew out a breath. This was where things got tricky. “Nothing.”
“Is that wise?” Eli asked.
“If she didn’t tell me any of this, it’s because she didn’t want me to know,” Noah said, realization dawning as Teagan’s cryptic words at Hopewell came back to him.
“She agreed to come with me because she was already planning on heading this way. I think she’s planning on putting an end to this thing once and for all.
” Noah shook his head. “And she’s not going to stop until she does. ”
“Well, she’s not going to do it alone,” Daniel said firmly, prompting murmurs of agreement from the others.
Noah’s chest squeezed. His brothers had his back. More importantly, they had Teagan’s.
“She can’t know that we know,” Noah warned.
“No,” Alex agreed. “She’ll move up the timeline and bolt, probably in the middle of the night, under the cover of darkness.” When the others cast a questioning look his way, he shrugged. “That’s what I’d do.”
“What is the timeline?” Daniel asked.
“As it stands right now, she’s agreed to stay until tomorrow.”
“Then what?”
Noah grimaced. “Then I drive her somewhere of her choosing and let her go.”
“Ten to one, that someplace is Saughannock,” Alex guessed.
Noah nodded as the truth settled heavily in his chest. “Yeah, no doubt. She’s going to try and stop Josh on her own.”
“Fuck that,” Eli said vehemently, and Noah felt another swell of appreciation for his brothers. “We’re not going to let that happen, right?”
Noah looked at him, his eyes so dark that they were more mahogany than amber. “I gave her my word.”
“And you’re not going to break it,” Alex said firmly. “You can’t start a relationship like that.”
“It’s not like that,” Noah began, but everyone ignored him.
He pushed those thoughts aside for now. The important thing was to keep Teagan safe, and to do that, he was going to put his faith and trust in Alex.
Alex’s lips curled, but no one would ever mistake it for a smile.
“Okay, today’s Christmas, so for now, we sit tight.
Tomorrow, when Teagan asks you to take her into Saughannock, do it.
You might have made a promise, but we didn’t.
In the meantime, I’m going to do some more digging. We’ll go from there.”
“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Brandon asked. At their blank looks, he explained, “Kinsey recognized her.”
“Did Kinsey tell anyone else besides you guys this morning?” Noah asked.
Brandon shook his head. “Not that I know of. We saw her parents at Midnight Mass, but I don’t recall Teagan’s name coming up. Of course, her dad cornered me to talk college football afterward while Kinsey was with her mom and sisters. I suppose she might have said something then.”
“Nothing we can do about that now,” Alex said. Then a thought occurred to him. “Wait, Kinsey recognized Teagan, but Teagan didn’t recognize Kinsey, did she?”
Noah answered that one. “No. She would have said something—or at the very least, she’d have had some kind of a reaction if she had.”
“Any way we can keep the two of them apart for the next twenty-four hours?” Alex asked.
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Noah said. “Teagan’s reclusive by nature. She’ll be relieved if I suggest hanging out in the cabin.”
Alex nodded and clapped his hands together. “Then it sounds like we have a plan. Go take care of your woman and leave it to us.”
She’s not my woman. The protest was on the tip of his tongue, but Noah couldn’t make it pass over his lips.