Chapter 30 #2
“That’s fair.” We follow her to the front-end desk, right on her heels.
“Can you give me some space?” The guard glares back at us. We all take a few healthy steps away from her as she goes to the desk and confirms our identities and IDs with our room numbers. “Right, this way, gentlemen.”
“I’m sorry, do you have a wheelchair?” Oli looks at me. “He needs it.” She looks at me, and I feel nauseous with the pain.
“One moment.” She walks back to the front desk and speaks with a woman before she nods, going around the desk and disappearing.
A moment later she returns with a folded wheelchair.
She opens it, wheeling it toward me, and I sit, feeling minor relief.
Oli extends the footrests so I can put my feet up. “Aright, let’s go.”
We follow her into a room filled with monitors. “Room three zero four, correct?”
“No, two forty-three.” She smirks. “You were testing me, weren’t you?”
She nods, finding a monitor and rewinding the tape on our floor to the time I asked. Everything else melts away as I watch the footage. For a moment nothing is happening. I can see her get a bit impatient.
After a few more minutes, though, I see him. “There!” Clear as fucking day, storming into our room. This must have been when he left the wedding. For a few minutes nothing else happens in the hall.
That’s when I see them both.
Steven’s grimy fucking hands on my man’s neck. It’s what Felix does, though, that breaks my heart. I see it. The hand sign for help behind his back. That fucker took him, and I wasn’t there to stop him. When the hell did he get into that room? “That’s him. Fuck!”
“You’re positive?” And although he asks, Oli saw what I saw. I nod. He fucking followed us here. How did he get into our room? I have so many questions, but all I can focus on is getting him back. I don’t know where to start.
“I need to go back up there. Maybe he left me a note. I don’t know where he used to live.
” Maybe something. He wasn’t there long.
I don’t know. Felix never told me where he lived.
He could be anywhere. Then I remember. “His journal. I need to read his journal.” It didn’t look like he had anything with him.
Which means it’s still in there, I hope.
“What are we looking for?” I wheel myself to the bed, looking under it first just because it’s the place he kept it at home. It’s not there.
“Baby-blue journal.”
Andre looks through his bag, pulling things out until he picks up an object. “Ew!” He drops it. “Gross.”
“It’s clean!” I roll my eyes as he kicks the massager away from him. “Probably the tamest thing that’s been in your hands since you got with Oli.”
“He’s got a point, babe.” Oli grins. “Love you,” he says as Andre flips him off.
“Where the fuck is it?” He had it the other day, writing in it while we were outside.
I search everywhere. What if Steven has it or threw it away?
I’m not even sure how he got in here, but if I had my guess I’d say he climbed over from the balcony on the right side.
Not sure how he got into that room, but I wouldn’t have put it past him.
Andre is searching through drawers when he yells, “This?”
“That’s it!” I grab the journal from him, flipping through the pages expecting clues, but what I find breaks my heart.
There are trackers and lists. He’s still keeping track of my progress.
It looks like he copied over the exact same progress chart from his old one.
There are little things like ideas and notes, a sexy bucket list, some cute little doodles he’s done .
. . but what gets me is the little written thoughts on a page called “Brain Dump.”
Grey told me he loves me, and I think I love him. I’m so scared. The last time I told someone I loved them, they changed. What if he does too—
Atlas came over today. I know he hates me. I want him to like me. I know he’s close with Grey—
I didn’t know it should be like that. That it could be like that. Every single time I look at him I feel like bursting. I’m so happy and scared someone will take it away—
I think I’m going to tell Grey I love him. I know I do. I know he won’t hurt me—
I stare at the words without blinking until my eyes burn and my vision blurs.
My fingers shake as I flip through it. More little comments.
There’s a page on dealing with PTSD. There’s a travel wish list, and on one page he’s written things to do in New York around Liberty State.
He hasn’t gotten very far in it. The rest is just blank pages.
Until in the back I see something written.
If taken, return to
235 Larryhead Drive
Port Sanders Oregon 23437
“I don’t understand. You got him this journal, right?” Andre looks over my shoulders.
“He’s talking about himself. Not the journal.
If he’s taken, maybe this is where he used to live.
” It’s a shot. Somewhere to start. I’ll search the entire state of Oregon if I have to.
I shut the journal, taking it in my trembling fingers.
It breaks my heart. Felix knew this was a possibility.
The fact that I wasn’t here to protect him .
. . I’m going to snap Steven’s neck when I catch him.
“What are you going to do?”
I look up at my friends. “I’m going to get my man back.”
“Oli, call Alyssa and tell her what’s going on. The hotel is paid for everyone through Saturday.”
“What are you doing?” I ask him.
Although I’m still pissed at him, his eyes soften, making some of my own anger deflate. “We’re going to get him back, Grey. He’s one of us now.” Andre rubs Oli’s bicep.
“No, you guys just got married. Go. It’s okay. I’m getting him back.”
“You got that right, because we’re coming with you.” Oli smiles. “He’s not getting away with this.”
I look at my friends and emotion punches me. There are things we need to talk about, but that’s the thing about Oli, he’s one of the most loyal friends you can have. We just have to work through our secrets. Right now I have my friends at my back, and we will get him back.
I told Felix nobody would hurt him while he was with me.
And I fucking meant it.