Chapter 13 Hawk
As soon as the gate shut behind us and we both parked, I hopped off my bike. Callie opened the door, flinging it open as I reached for the handle. All I cared about was comforting her. The terrified, worried expression on her face didn’t disappear even after I kissed her.
Caw...caw.
The crow. He sensed the danger, agitated by Callie’s fear.
His round body dropped from the sky, landing at my feet. Ruffling his feather, he began squawking, berating me for letting her leave.
Fucking crazy bird.
“Christ. Leave it be,” I grumbled, scooping under Callie’s legs and lifting her. “I’ve got you, my treasure. Let’s get inside.”
I still heard the crow complaining as I walked inside The Roost, annoyed but also amused as I set Callie down on a pool table, moving between her thighs as I cradled her face.
“Tell me what happened.”
The room silenced as the conversations in the bar ceased. Everyone listened to Callie as she began to speak.
“The mayor,” she began, breathing hard as her body shook.
“Hey,” I replied softly, brushing her lips with a kiss. “Breathe for me, okay?”
Callie sucked in air, taking a minute to collect herself. “He came into the break room while I was there.”
“Did he threaten you?” I growled.
She gave me an exasperated look as Crow yelled for me to shut the fuck up.
Damn.
“He said Sadie and I shared the same last name, and we were both pretty dolls.” She shook her head. “That was intentional. He wanted me to know he found out the truth.”
My hands balled into fists. I wouldn’t lose my shit. Not in front of Callie. “What else?”
“Elliot ordered me to be at his meeting tonight. He said he needed my services and not to be late.”
The fuck?
“What time?” Crow asked, joining us.
“Five p.m.”
Crow nodded, ticking his head at Raven. The V.P. followed him out of the bar and down the hall to Crow’s office.
“You won’t be going,” I snapped, struggling to remain calm. If I got too agitated, the crow would take over. Nobody wanted me to unleash him until it was time.
“Hawk,” Callie whispered, brushing her fingers along my jaw. “I love that you’re my dark champion and protector, but you need to chill.”
Several of my brothers laughed. Fuckers.
“I’m terrified of what this conversation meant for Sadie. If I don’t show up to that meeting, she could die. It’s not an option.”
My entire body stiffened. “No fucking way.”
“You don’t get to make that decision. Not alone. This is my life. My choice. My fucking sister.”
She blinked as my hands wrapped around her body, and I buried my face in her neck. “I can’t lose you when I just found you.”
“That’s why I won’t be showing up alone.”
Fuck. “Damn straight. I’m standing right by your side. Try to get rid of me. Not gonna happen.”
“I was hoping you would say that because I’m going to ask you to let me arrive alone. There’s no way Elliot will meet with me if you’re growling like a bear and ready to rip him apart.”
“She knows you too well already,” Cuckoo joked.
I flipped him off, dismissing him as I caught the werewolf mask he wore, the mouth cut open wider as he chewed on a string of red licorice. “Why the fuck are you wearing that?”
“I appreciate the irony.”
“You’re fucking nuts.”
“Everyone keeps sayin’ that, but I don’t see the problem.” Cuckoo shrugged. “I’m gonna make some popcorn for the shit show about to go down. Anyone want some?”
He was referring to me and the fucking tantrum I was about to throw because Callie wanted to meet the mayor without me.
My brothers opened their wallets, slapping down twenties on the pool table. I knew what the assholes were doing, taking bets on my failure. They didn’t doubt that Callie would get her way.
“Fuck all of you,” I grumbled, but I didn’t mean it.
“Don’t be so sensitive, Hawk.”
Claw could kiss my ass, and I told him that.
His chuckle irritated me. Wait until he found his mate. He would be the biggest asshole around.
Carrion pushed off the wall across from us, leaving the shadows where he liked to observe everything. “Check your phone, Callie.”
“Why?” she asked, picking it up only to jolt when it vibrated with an incoming text.
“Tell him yes,” Carrion added.
She stared at the screen, swiping across to read the message. “Okay.” I saw her type a response, concerned when she bit her lip. “You sure that was the right thing to do?”
Carrion’s eyes fluttered, rolling white a few seconds before he blinked. His vision returned to normal. “Yes.” He turned to me. “Accept it, or you place her in irreversible danger.”
My stomach churned. A headache formed behind my eyes as I imagined all the different ways this shit could go wrong.
Before I could reply to Carrion, he left The Roost. I heard his bike roar to life and knew wherever he went, it was vital.
Fuck. I hated when he acted cryptic like that.
“Elliot asked me to meet him at his favorite casino and to wear a black cocktail dress.” Callie inhaled a shuddering breath. “He said he’d have a dozen red roses waiting and a gift.”
I could feel her body trembling. “Don’t be scared. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“That’s the same thing he did with all the missing girls, including Sadie. I’ll end up wherever Sadie is.” She sighed, her body relaxing. Her gaze shot to me. “If I want to find my sister, this is the only way.”
Not gonna fucking happen. “Fuck, Callie.”
“It’s okay. I can do this.”
“No. There has to be another way,” I argued.
Callie shook her head. “You can’t save everyone, Hawk.”
That didn’t matter to me anymore. Just the club and my brothers and their families and Callie and Sadie—
Fuck. I did want to save everyone.
“You’re so amazing. The best guy I’ve ever met.” Her lips met mine, and I savored the kiss, tasting her on my lips as she leaned back. “I don’t know what happened to you, but I know it was rough.”
I didn’t hesitate to tell her. Nothing about my life was a secret anymore. “My father was an abusive prick. He liked to use me as a punching bag. When he wasn’t hitting my mother, his aggression turned on me.”
“Oh, Hawk. I’m so sorry.”
“He killed her, sweetling. That motherfucker took my mother from me.”
“That’s why you hold on so tight to the club and now, to me.”
“Yes.” Damn. She could be a shrink. How did she figure all this out about me? Was I that transparent?
“I love that it’s made you such a caring, protective man, but you can’t control everything. Sometimes you have to surrender to the will of fate.”
“Fate fucked me over, babe.”
“No,” she smiled. “Fate brought us together. Five years ago, to be exact, planting roots that would grow into the connection we’ve made over the last few days.”
Wow. That was some intense shit right there.
“Okay,” I finally agreed. “Let’s do this.”
I ignored the exchange of bills around us as the result of the bet came in. Yeah. I fucking lost.
Three hours later, Callie emerged from Bree’s room, dressed in a tight, knee-length dress that shimmered like black pearls under the lights. She was so fucking beautiful it stole the breath from my chest. I floundered, choking, sucking air into my aching lungs.
“You like it?”
“I’ve never seen anyone look more gorgeous in my life.”
Callie beamed a smile that made my heart flutter in response.
I fucking loved her. That goddamn fast. Boom. It hit me like a strike of lightning. I never stood a chance.
“You own my heart,” I managed to say, nearly cringing from the sappy, romantic words spilling from my mouth that I would never have believed possible a month ago.
“And you own mine.” Her soft, glossy lips collided with my own as I groaned, wishing I could take her into my room and prove every word I said was true.
It would have to wait.
“I’m driving you in one of our company SUVs. The windows are tinted, and no one will be able to see who’s inside with you.”
She nodded. “Perfect.”
“You good? No worries?”
She shook her head, far braver than I felt. My skin itched as I fought the urge to let the crow free. Outside, I felt his restless energy and fury waging war, close to breaking down the barriers in place to keep the shift from happening.
My crow wasn’t like my brothers. Like Carrion, I had experiences that altered our bond. We had a connection as strong as anyone else but also far more complex. Add in the unique DNA from my familial roots, and my abilities with the crow manifested in ways that differed from my brothers in the club.
I didn’t need to worry about that tonight. Concentrating on my woman, the one I planned to make my ol’ lady, I led her from The Roost to the SUV. Sliding in beside her, I held her hand the entire drive.
We arrived at the casino with five minutes to spare.
After a kiss, I watched her leave the SUV and enter the building.
Every instinct inside me screamed to follow her, but I trusted Carrion.
He said nothing would happen. I believed him.
In the past, I doubted, but not after his resurrection.
When Falcon brought him back, his visions became intense, helping the club often.
Texting Callie, I waited for a response.
She didn’t know it, but I brought her phone to Eagle Eye when she slept last night and asked him to hack it, enabling me to track her if anything happened.
Maybe that was bullshit, but I didn’t feel guilty about it. Not with the Dirty Death, their attacks, or Undertaker and his vendetta. And then there was the fucking mayor and his hard-on for Callie and Sadie.
I pulled up the app on my phone, finding my woman’s location. From what I could tell as I exited the vehicle, she waited at the bar for Elliot. Cocksucker better not touch her.
Claw and Raven flanked me. We left our cuts inside with Jay since he drove, hoping no one recognized us. So far, so good.
I made my way through the rows of slot machines, ignoring all the bells and flashing lights, the whirring of spinning reels, and the loud chimes. It took a minute to spot the bar, but I found it, hanging back as I searched for Callie.
My phone began beeping, letting me know she was close and on the move. Maybe she had to use the ladies’ room or something.
Minutes ticked by as the beeping continued, but the app never showed her leaving the building. How the hell could she walk in circles, and I kept missing her?
Something wasn’t right.
The beeping stopped as the dot on my screen vanished.
Motherfucker!
Callie was gone.