2. Tyke
2
TYKE
Harvey broke his leg when he was six. Made a godawful sound as he tumbled off the side of a trampoline that should have seen the scrap heap years before and went unnaturally still… for all of two seconds before the screams began. I remember it being the first time I'd felt helpless as a parent—as though nothing I could do would fix his hurt in that instant and that I'd failed him.
I get the same panicked feeling now, yet this time, there's no clear course of action for how to remedy the pain. And I sure as fuck can't promise my baby girl everything will be okay.
Not when I don't know where the fuck she is.
"You think this has got anything to do with that shit that went down with Volkov?" Digger asks, elbows on his knees and hands clasped before him.
I let the officers give him the run-down on what we'd done to locate Maddie so far and then dragged his ass into the office to nut this out in private.
Clubs have rules, and structures exist for a reason: an order of operation. Hierarchies. But some things are just better sorted as a family.
I don't need everyone to know the extent of my fears and anxieties. Not just yet, anyway.
"I don't know. But the fact I can entertain the idea makes me sick. Can you imagine what he'd do to her?" My breathing comes a little quicker, visions fucking painting my mind's eye red. "What the fuck can I do?"
"You're already doin' all you can until you have concrete evidence." He draws a deep breath, broad shoulders rising. "The only other likely suspect is Terry."
"I know." Arms wide along the back of the sofa, I stare at the ceiling. "But what the fuck would he want with Maddie? It's Rae he's after."
"Maybe he has her in place of Rae?" Digger offers, sharing my greatest concern. "Maybe he thought a good old-fashioned trade-off would be the key to gettin' what he wants?"
"I mean, it makes sense, Dig. But Rigs had a fuckin' point earlier." I drop my head between my hands and grip the hair at my nape. "Terry wouldn't be able to help but gloat if he had her."
"Marco say much?"
"He's on his way to give us help if we need it." Asking the mafia for a fucking favor is akin to selling my soul to the devil, but if that's what it takes… Fuck . I can't shake the feeling that this shit is my fault. What if I'd just paid closer attention? Heard her concerns better.
Stayed the fuck away from Rae.
"Our girl okay out there?" I miss the contact of Rae's delicate hand on my leg—the reassurance of her presence—more than I should.
I miss my fucking spine.
"She's sittin' in on the chaos, listening and learnin'." Digger runs a hand over his face. "I don't want her takin' this shit on her shoulders, brother."
"Neither." I jerk my head up, frowning. "She needs one of us with her tonight, Dig. You know better than anyone how deep the dark hours are."
"She won't be alone." His jaw ticks, promise unspoken in the lines of muscle. "What the fuck do we do next?"
"I don't fuckin' know." I slam my body against the sofa and stare at the ceiling again, bracing both hands on my head. "I don't fuckin' know, brother, and it fuckin' guts me." I swallow the fear that threatens to steal every breath I dare take from here until we find Maddie. "What kind of father am I, President, If I can't fix this?"
"You're not superhuman," he offers gently, no doubt fearful that this will find me back in the bottom of a bottle.
Fuck knows it could.
"We'll keep a tail on Atticus," he says. "And if I have to fuckin' kick down Terry's door myself to eliminate that route, then I will."
A gentle knock swivels our heads toward the source of the noise. "Yeah?" I grunt.
The door cracks and Rae's apologetic face appears in the gap. "Sorry to interrupt, but is it okay if I talk to you?"
"Come in, baby girl." I draw a deep breath, the air already lighter now that she is in my line of sight.
Fuck knows what I'd do if I lost her too. Fuck . Who's to say she ain't next anyway?
"You okay?" Digger asks, making space for her to sit beside him.
She eyes the gap, then me, finally opting to sit on a different sofa to avoid issues. "I, um, sent Connor a message when you said you couldn't locate Terry."
I jackknife in the seat, turning to face her as I do. "What the fuck you do that for?" If he rats to his daddy, shares the predicament we're in before I'm ready… We could lose any possible advantage.
Rae wilts under the weight of my stare. "I did it because I want to be useful, Tyke."
Digger holds his hand toward me, asking her, "What did you say?"
"Just that we can't find Maddie," she offers. "He said he thinks he might know where she is." Her gaze falls to the floor, hand flopping the phone around as she explains, "I asked where, but he hasn't replied yet, so I thought I'd come to tell you what I know anyway."
I lock gaze with my brother. Do we believe him? Kid’s never been a liar before, but then again, we’ve never had Rae messing with his head, either.
Jaw rolling, I study Rae, sitting to my right. "You believe the fucker's tellin' the truth?"
"Yeah," she says quietly. "I do." Her gaze shifts to the phone still clutched in her hand. "What should I say next?"
"Nothing," Digger exclaims as though it's clear cut. "The floor's his. If he wants to tell us, he will; otherwise, there ain't anything more you can say."
Her mouth twitches, lips a firm line as she exhales long and slow.
She thinks she said something she shouldn't. That she gave away a game she didn't know she should be playing. To be fair, she's right. I didn't want Terry alerted until we knew it was him. Didn't want that fucker having this shit over me when I was trying to hold my ground with Rae. But then again, maybe that's the error. I let my pride get in the way. I equated vulnerability to weakness and fucking tied a little bow around it labeled 'death of the ego.'
"There's no secrets," I offer. "Not yet. You've done good."
Better than I can.
She nods silently, and then Rae's thumbs fly across the screen. Digger and I sit, captivated by the woman, studying her every move, our breath bated for her next words.
"What did you say?" I grumble.
"Told him I'd meet him face-to-face if he promises to give me everything he knows."
Digger leans back in his seat with a dissatisfied growl; hands fisted atop his knees.
I get it—I don't want that unhinged fuck anywhere near her, either.
The seconds pass like hours before the fucking device chimes.
"He accepted," she recites. "Wants to meet me, but not here."
I draw a deep breath and shove visions of my hands around his throat, fist in his face, to the dark corners of my mind. I'll entertain those fantasies later but for now… "Get him to say where and when."
Again, with her twitching thumbs and the weighted silence.
"He wants to see you at Old Wives' Hollow," she says with a slight tone of confusion. "Where's that?"
"The fucking backwoods," Digger laments before the words erupt from him in a flurry of frustration. "Is he fucking stupid? Does he think we are? He wants us to deliver her to bum-fuck nowhere for a one-on-one. May as well leave her naked and bound while we're at it."
"Dig," I snap. "Enough." I draw a deep breath and run my palms across my knees. "If it gets me a step closer to Maddie, then I'll risk it." I meet Rae's wary stare. "Will you?"
"I suggested it, didn't I?" She steels her jaw, a slight furrow to her brow the only sign she harbors concern over the idea.
"Two men," Digger bites. "You take two men with you. Any sign there's more than just him, you get the fuck out of there."
"You take us," I tell her. "He'll expect it." Like fuck I'll let the question of her safety rest in the hands of one of my brothers.
Who better to protect the woman than the men devoted enough that they agree to the crazy idea of sharing her?
"When did he say?"
Rae glances down at the screen. "In one hour."
"Get your jacket, then, baby girl. We're headin' out."