Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
Freya
I spend every available moment outside of work over the next week searching for Alec and hoping to find any leads, but it seems nobody has any information. Well, that’s at least what I’m uncovering. There is information that someone is withholding, but no one is willing to share it. The longer it takes, the heavier the knot of worry becomes in the pit of my stomach. No matter how many leads I pursue, they always end up at dead ends.
I’ve never gone this long without seeing or speaking to my brother. It’s killing me, but I won’t give up. I can’t. I will find him—I have to.
I’ve been coming and going from Lucas’s and Gage’s places, and they have been helping me where they can. The more time I’m spending with them, the more I’m finding out about them and their roles within The Brotherhood. I’ve always known it’s run by the three founding families: the Hendrixes, Ledgers, and the Foxes.
The grail is getting passed down to them soon when Dominic finally retires. The rules are that everyone has to retire before handing it over. Lucas’s father, George, retired years ago; he’s got cancer and isn’t doing well. Lucas doesn’t talk about him much. Gage’s father, Julian, died years ago, and Amirah didn’t even shed a tear. She hated him and what he did to her and Gage. I met him once, and that was enough. The guy reeked of evil, and he never smiled or showed an ounce of emotion. The stories Amirah shared with me still haunt my dreams.
“You’ve been spending a lot of time over here lately, and with Gage,” Amirah says, dropping a set of blue jeans and a top onto her bed. I sit up, leaning back against her pillows, and cock my head to the side.
“Is this you asking if I’m fucking your brother again?”
“Yeah?”
“No. There is nothing going on between Gage and me. I still hate him, but they are all helping me find Alec. They may want him found for different reasons than me, but I’ll use all the help I can get,” I say, pinching the bridge of my nose as I try to fight off the headache pounding between my eyes. The lack of sleep is starting to take its toll on me. My thoughts are tangled and chaotic, making it impossible for me to focus.
“Okay. We will find him. Promise,” Amirah says, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to me.
“Don’t say that. No one can make that promise.” I sink into the soft pillow, gazing up at the pristine white ceiling above me.
“Have a little rest before Gage comes back.” Amirah throws a blanket over me, and my eyes become heavy.
I can’t afford to sleep—Alec is out there, and he needs me. I have to spend every minute looking for him. My thoughts eventually wander and become distant... then everything disappears.
My phone vibrates against my leg, and I jolt up, the room coming back into view. Amirah is next to me on the bed, her Kindle in her hands.
“You still snore like a suffocating dog.” She laughs, and I roll my eyes.
Lifting my phone out, I glance down at a message on the screen from an unknown number. My heart beats faster and faster. Is it Alec?
Tick tock, tick tock. Better run quick, sighting at Magick.
I sit up straight, gripping my phone as I read the words over and over again. I still have no idea who is sending these messages. Lucas’s guy is having trouble tracking down the owner. Whoever it is, they are good at keeping their identity hidden. But it doesn’t matter because this is a lead at least, and I’ll take whatever I can get.
“Is Magick Club still open?” I ask Amirah, jumping off the bed, and she frowns.
“Yeah, why?”
“We’re going out tonight,” I say, shoving my phone in my back pocket and moving toward her closet.
Amirah comes up behind me as I hastily search through her clothes, finally finding a black denim skirt.
“Not that I’m complaining, but why are we suddenly going out?” Amirah moves in behind me and her eyes immediately lock onto the skirt. She heads to one of the drawers and retrieves a red lace bralette. She gives it to me, and I begin to pull my shorts down.
“I just got a lead.”
Her brows furrow. “From that unknown number again?”
I nod, and Amirah presses her lips together. “Should we trust some freak who’s sending cryptic messages? ”
“That’s all I’ve got, so yes.” I slip into my outfit, and Amirah pulls out a black leather dress.
We spend the next thirty minutes getting ready before heading down the stairs. With each step, the sound of my knee-high boots echoes through the foyer as they click against the smooth marble. The front door creaks open and slams shut. I glance up and meet Gage’s gaze, and for a brief moment, time seems to stand still. My heart dances a silly rhythm inside my chest. He’s wearing black running shorts and nothing else, exposing his bare chest. Fuck. There’s no denying the way his body makes me feel, but it’s his mouth that usually ruins it all.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going looking like that?” he snaps. Case in point.
“Excuse me?” I walk down the last few steps, with Amirah right behind me, and straight up to him.
His eyes remain fixed on mine, and I can’t help but notice the gentle rise and fall of his muscular chest.
“You heard. Where are you two going?”
I open my mouth, but Amirah beats me to it. “Fuck off, Gage. We are going out. That’s all you need to know.”
“The fuck you are,” he growls, folding his arms over his chest, his jaw clenched.
Swiftly sidestepping him, I make my way toward the front door, eager to escape him. I’m done with this shit. We got a lead and we’ve already wasted enough time.
Moving at lightning speed, Gage swiftly blocks the front door, bringing himself inches away from my face. Beads of sweat glisten on his sculpted torso, making it hard for me to focus. Alec needs me.
“Move out of the way now , or else,” I grit out.
“Or else what?” He raises an eyebrow, and I squeeze my hands into fists.
“Just move, Gage, we need to go,” Amirah pleads from somewhere behind me.
“I’m coming with you.”
“The hell you are,” I say, my head pounding, and I squeeze my eyes shut, then open.
Gage steps aside as the door pushes open. Lucas and Hazen come in, and Lucas gives me a slow, suggestive whistle.
Amirah uses the guys’ distraction against them by grabbing my hand and pulling me out the open front door.
Gage yells something behind us, but we ignore him. A car’s already waiting for us, and we slide in.
“Step on it, Phillip,” Amirah says from the backseat.
I look back through the window, and Gage is standing at the front door with his phone to his ear, his eyes never leaving mine. He’ll find out where we are going, but at least we have a head start. I don’t need any distractions tonight, and those three guys are nothing but.
We make it to the nightclub on the elite side of town within minutes. There’s a line down the block, and I curse under my breath. Phillip opens my door, and I step out, meeting Amirah on the curb.
“We’ll never get in,” I say, and Amirah laughs. Fuck, maybe I should have let Gage tag along to get us in before I ditched him.
“You still underestimate my family name.” She takes my hand and walks us up to the front of the club. The security guard takes one look at her, then lets us through.
Vibrations from the music reverberate off the corridor walls, engulfing me. We continue walking until the corridor ends, opening up into chaos. In the middle of the room, there is a bustling bar, surrounded by a lively crowd of people. There’s a stage with a DJ set up in the middle, and people dance and sit at tables scattered around.
Amirah grabs my hand, pulling me toward the bar, and she wedges herself between two guys. I pull up a photo of Alec on my phone and show it around to a few people nearby. Each person either shakes their head or doesn’t even give me the time of day. Fucking assholes. Imagine if one of their loved ones went missing? Surely they would be out doing the same thing.
Looking out into the crowded dance floor, I catch a glimpse of a familiar face. Mia is sitting back against the wall, her face in her phone.
I turn back to Amirah. “Mia is here,” I say, and Amirah’s nose screws up.
“Let’s go.” Amirah grabs my arm, pulling me through a sea of people toward Mia.
Mia looks up, then smiles and pulls me in for a hug, but her body is stiff against mine. I’ve never liked the girl, but my brother did, so that means something.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
“Have you heard from him?” She completely ignores my question.
“No, have you?”
She shakes her head, looking past me. “I’ve never gone this long without talking with him. I’m worried,” she says, her eyes filling with tears.
Amirah scoffs and I elbow her.
“Me too. What were you doing in Dominic’s office the other day?” I ask the question that’s been at the back of my mind.
Mia shifts uncomfortably, and I step forward, closing in on her. She looks everywhere but at me .
“He was helping me with some research papers for an article I’m writing,” she says, and Amirah scoffs behind me.
“It seemed to be a little more than that. You looked awfully comfortable on his couch,” I say, raising an eyebrow.
“It’s not what it looked like—I love Alec,” Mia pleads, reaching out to grab my hand, but I pull it away, taking a couple of steps back. I don’t believe her, but I need to keep looking. I won’t get anywhere standing here talking with her. We say goodbye, and I promise her I’ll message as soon as I hear anything. Amirah and I head back to the bar, and I tap on a large guy’s shoulder. He turns around, towering over me. He smiles, and it works to make him appear slightly less intimidating.
I motion for him to lean down, then whisper in his ear so he can hear me over the music, “Have you seen this guy?” I show him the photo and he takes my phone from my hand.
He taps out something on it before handing it back to me. The messages app is open, displaying a message to an unknown number.
Meet me near the bathroom.
I look up, frowning, but he’s disappeared into the crowd. It’s stupid meeting a stranger in a quieter place, but it’s the first lead I have. The only lead, actually, so I have to do this.
Amirah turns around, handing me a glass with something pink inside.
“I’ll be back. Just got a lead,” I say, and Amirah shakes her head.
“I’ll come with you.”
“No, it’s fine. Just find us somewhere to sit and I’ll be back soon,” I say, moving into the crowd before she can argue any further. Bringing the straw to my lips, I take a drink, and before I get to the bathroom sign, I finish it.
Handing it off to a passing waiter, I make my way through the crowded corridor, the dim lighting casting shadows around me. Leaning back against the wall, the guy from before looks up and flashes another warm smile. It’s quieter down here and I can actually hear myself think.
“What do you know?” I ask, standing directly in front of him.
He lets out a low chuckle. “Straight to the point. You don’t muck around, do you?”
I don’t have time for pointless chit-chat. “Just tell me,” I snap.
He glances down the hallway, searching for something or someone. “I could get killed for this, but you should know I saw your brother the night of the ball,” he says, his gaze darting around.
“And?”
His eyes grow wide as he firmly clutches my shoulder. “Fuck. I can’t. They will kill me. Sorry,” he mutters before opening the emergency exit and fleeing.
I look back, and Gage, Lucas, and Hazen are storming toward me. What the hell? I don’t think, I just follow after the guy, and the sound of their hurried footsteps fades into the distance. He’s got answers and I need them.