Chapter 1 #2
Another first for today.
Moreno stands silent in the corner of the room, the darkness lurking over him.
“Looks like they’re in a small town southwest of here. There’s a receipt for some diapers and snacks from a rest stop.”
“I’ll go check it out,” I say and head out of my father’s office.
“Luca,” Moreno calls after me.
I glance over my shoulder.
“You might want to change first.”
Ashton comes with me while Nova stays back with Kensley.
I’ve yet to untie Kensley from the basement. I don’t know whether Moreno or another one of the soldiers will question her.
It’s no longer my problem.
If she hadn’t helped Harper run away from our wedding, then she wouldn’t be subjected to our family’s wrath.
Serves her right.
My heart is frosty and chilled from the betrayal.
I hear the crinkle of paper, and I glance at Ashton as I’m driving in the direction of the rest stop where Harper was last seen.
It’s unlikely she’s still there, but Dante assured me that he’d call as soon as she makes another purchase.
It’s only a matter of time, and at least we’ll be close.
“What the hell is that?” I growl, but I already know the answer. He fished the breakup letter out of the garbage.
“Just something you might want to talk to Harper about.”
I snort and grip the steering wheel tighter as I shift uncomfortably in the driver’s seat. My foot is hard on the gas, trying to make up for lost time.
Harper has a couple hours’ headstart.
It has to be why Kensley showed up. It wasn’t just to give us Harper’s letter, but also to buy time for her friend to get away.
“Why didn’t Harper just go to her parents’?” I ask, glancing at Ashton.
“That’d be the first place we’d look for her. She is putting their lives in danger by bailing on the wedding,” he reminds me.
I don’t think she liked her parents very much, or maybe it’s just that they weren’t getting along recently.
Harper rarely talked about her mom and dad. I certainly didn’t push the conversation. It’s not like I’m close to my family, albeit for different reasons.
My phone rings, and I answer it via Bluetooth through the car speakers.
Dante gets right to the point. “We’ve got a location on her phone, but it looks like she left it on the bus. It keeps pinging from here to campus and back.”
Explains why she didn’t answer my texts.
Did she leave it on purpose to throw us off, or had she accidentally dropped it between the seats?
“Any new purchases?” I ask.
“Nothing yet. Kensley mentioned a bus ticket that she gave her cash for, but Harper insisted on not telling her where she was going,” Moreno says.
They seem to be on speakerphone, sharing information.
“Did Kensley say anything else?” Ashton asks.
I glare at him.
“No, Nova brought her back upstairs against my authority,” Moreno rumbles, and I can imagine he’s pissed as shit at his daughter.
She’s brave—I’ll give her credit for that—and a bit insubordinate.
Ashton shifts in his seat, looking a bit restless. We’ve been driving for a couple of hours already, but I don’t intend to stop until we get to our destination.
“It’s fine.” Dante clears his throat, and I sense there’s some brooding tension.
Dante hated when he couldn’t control me. I can’t imagine he’s keen on the fact Nova is going around and disobeying orders, doing whatever the hell she likes.
She’s going to land herself in a shit ton of trouble if she’s not careful.
“Kensley couldn’t tell us anything we don’t already know,” Dante adds. “We sent her home, put surveillance on her phone. We’ll know if she reaches out to Harper or vice versa.”
I glare at Ashton.
Had my father done the same to me or Harper?
Another hour in the car and we pull up to the rest stop. I step out, stretch my legs and head straight in for the cashier, hoping he can give us some information.
“Good afternoon,” the clerk says, chewing a wad of bubble gum. He barely looks old enough to run the register.
He pops a bubble and glances me over. “Can I help you?”
“We’re looking for—” I begin, and Ashton steps up to the counter, interrupting me.
“My sister ran off with her son. He’s about two,” Ashton says and gestures to about Zeke’s height. “We’re looking for her before her deadbeat boyfriend shows up and threatens her again.”
The clerk’s eyes widen. “Oh, dear. Yeah, I remember her. Cute girl. The kid was a terror, trying to grab everything off the shelves and screaming when she wouldn’t let him walk on his own. She was on the bus that stopped in here.”
“Do you know where that bus goes?” I ask.
He glances me over. “Are you really her brothers? You two don’t look alike.”
“Different mother,” I say, forcing a smile. “We’re just trying to protect her and the little boy.”
“Bus goes to Las Vegas,” the clerk says.
We head back out to the car, fill up the gas tank and then hit the road.
“Are you going to call Dante?” Ashton asks, watching me intently as we head back onto the main road. I put Las Vegas into the map app on my phone GPS, so we don’t get lost. Hopefully, it’s the same route that the bus takes.
“Wasn’t planning on it,” I say.
If I call Dante, he probably has acquaintances in Vegas. They’ll be waiting for Harper long before we get there.
I’m angry with her, but I don’t want anything happening to her or Zeke.
“Good,” Ashton says and leans back, making himself comfortable.
I glare at him as I’m driving.
“What?” he asks, glancing at me. “You keep staring at me like I’m to blame for all this happening.”
“You’re not innocent.”
“Whatever. Her running away isn’t my fault.” Ashton folds his arms across his chest.
“You kept throwing yourself at her, I’m sure that didn’t help the situation.”
Ashton unfolds the crinkled letter, reading it silently.
“It doesn’t say anything about me in here.”
I reach for the letter, but he plays keep away with it. If I weren’t driving, I’d have it out of his hands in seconds.
“Fuck off, Ashton,” I growl and elbow him in the side as I attempt to keep my hands on the steering wheel, mostly.
“For a guy not in love, you’re a bit tense. And I know you were getting laid. So, it can’t be that. Everyone in the house could hear the two of you clawing at each other like wild animals.”
“You’re an asshole, and I never said I didn’t love her. Harper is the one making that assumption.” Clearly, she doesn’t know how I really feel, because reading that letter tore me up inside.
Ashton chuckles.
“You better be prepared to tell her those three words or this trip is a huge waste of time.”