Chapter 20
“Anything?” He didn’t turn around at the sound of boots falling on his dining room floor.
He asked the question, even knowing the answer.
If they found Ella, shouts would erupt from the where Carter had set up a command centre as chairs scraped on the floor and the guys rushed to the front door.
Last night, when he and Gabe landed, he wanted to go search with River’s team, but Logan, Xander, and Ares had told him no.
He knew he’d be useless in the search but couldn’t stay inside so grabbed a flashlight and searched the back gardens.
Dax and Erik joined him later, keeping their distance as Zee furiously combed every inch of the massive yard.
Anger bitter and acidic in his mouth, heating his veins.
If he’d just installed video surveillance here, like River had suggested, maybe they would have found something.
If he had cleared this tangle of overgrowth and broken ground on a cottage, a kinky bed-and-breakfast like Ella wanted.
If he had just stayed home and stopped chasing dreams.
Zee heard the murmured voices of his friends, knew others had swapped places and his stomach turned with guilt.
He was being a selfish bastard, dragging his friends away from the real search to babysit him as he stalked his empty garden looking for a clue that wasn’t there.
Finally, Logan came into step with him and walked the last row of ground with him and clapped him on the shoulder.
Zee nearly stumbled at the touch.
“Zee, you know we are doing everything we can.”
He wobbled on his feet, too choked up to say anything but he followed Logan into the house.
His mouth filled with copper as he bit the inside of his cheek.
Regret burned through him.
He wished he never took the damn job.
He desperately wished he’d got Ella on the plane to see their daughter’s performance and that he sent her to Nora’s.
But he was a selfish, demanding bastard and though he had good reasons for not giving into those requests, now with Ella out there somewhere and not at home where she belonged by his side, he wished he could have done anything to prevent it.
Telling her about the security breaches from the past weeks would have done it.
Ella would have operated on the highest of caution if he’d told her what was going on.
Every time he heard the door open through the night, he braced himself for news. In the middle of the night, River found him pacing in circles.
“Zee, I still have a team out there looking. We are going to work till daylight.
There’s nothing you can do right now. I’m not going to try and tell you to sleep but at least sit down.”
He flopped on the couch, drifted off only to be startled awake.
The instant the sun hit the window, his guilt churned his stomach, and he could barely breathe.
Harper quietly entered the room, leaving a cup of coffee by his side and a sandwich.
He didn’t touch either, his mind churning with the same mantras.
If only he had taken Ella on this trip.
If only he had told her about the incidents and urged her to use extreme caution.
If only she had stayed inside and hadn’t left the house.
“Zee, come talk to Carter,” Xander’s gruff voice made him turn.
The man’s usually neat hair was coming loose out of his braid and his clothes looked like they had been slept in.
“Xander, I don’t know what I’ll do if…” Zee shook his head. He couldn’t utter the words.
“Next step, Zee, that’s all we can do. Focus on the next step.”
He didn’t know what the next step was but followed Xander to the dining room.
Quinn Walsh and his brother-in-law Erik Knight were looking over Carter’s shoulder, Nick beside him and Dax across from them. River leaned against the doorway with his arms crossed against his chest.
Gabe sat at the head of the table and Logan’s big hulking frame took up the far wall.
Every face in the room glanced at him as he entered, all their expressions stony, but he felt sympathy from the room.
River pulled out a seat for him and his bloodshot eyes told Zee his friend hadn’t slept either.
The air was thick with expectation.
Quinn fought off a yawn.
Carter rubbed his jaw.
Zee’s stomach sank, knowing all these men had worked tirelessly through the night to try and find Ella.
“I can’t—“
He tried to get words out over the lump in his throat but it was like he’d swallowed a gumball.
“We’re here for you, Zee,” Xander said.
“I have run a background check on every member of Club Bandit,” Carter said, furiously tapping his laptop.
“The ones that aren’t in this room,” Nick Laurent said.
“Obviously,” Quinn said.
“Hey, you would complain if he didn’t do that check,” River said.
“Nobody’s complaining, man,” Logan said.
“As I was saying, I ran down every member from Club Bandit, including former members who didn’t renew their membership. Everyone came back clean. I then ran down all the board members of the charity and found nothing suspicious there.”
“There’s no way this was random,” Xander said.
Zee’s hands clenched into fists and the room suddenly felt cold.
He’d tried to convince himself that there was some logical explanation as to why Ella wasn’t here.
But nothing made sense.
His slave wouldn’t just run out on him, not without a word.
No matter how angry she’d been with him over the years, she never stomped out or slammed a door.
That wasn’t his Ella.
“He didn’t say it wasn’t,” River jumped in again.
Carter held up a hand. “Stop it. The security breaches started when you gained more popularity with your job, Zee. Just finished running down the staff you work with, and I don’t see any connections there. But the guys you attended the dinner with? Your rivals, I think I have something there.”
Zee’s tongue stuck to the back of his teeth and he remembered Ella telling him how uncomfortable Roger made her.
“I had them over for drinks after the university awards banquet. Ella never liked Roger Miller. Fuck, I should have listened to her.”
“Listening is always a good idea,” Erik mumbled.
“Not Roger Miller,” Carter said. “Nico Rodriguez.”
The room spun on Zee, blood roaring in his ears.
Nico, his best friend for years? The one who always cheered him on.
But his memories spat out the instances where Nico’s smile was strained.
How he stared at Zee’s trophy collection with jealousy that he couldn’t hide.
The little snarky remarks he made when he visited his office at the college.
“That medal should have been mine.”
Nico had laughed it off but the look of seething jealousy on his face was clear.
And Ella, his shy, quiet Ella who had the ability to put anyone at ease, saw it before he did.
Zee didn’t want to see it.
He was a stubborn old fool and now Ella was paying the price for it.
“Let’s go.” Carter stood so quickly the chair toppled. “I got an address for a vacation house five kilometers down the road. Purchased three months ago.”
Zee swallowed, remembering Nico telling him about the place he’d bought, but Zee didn’t think anything of it that night.
All the guys jumped into action, following Carter out the door.
Zee tasted bile in his mouth before pushing down his fear.
“I’m coming.”
“Wouldn’t dare tell you to stay,” River said. “But don’t get hurt.”
Outside, adrenaline shot through Zee, his head spinning from lack of sleep and stress, his legs trembled but he got in the car next to Erik, River driving, Xander in the passenger seat and they followed Carter, Logan and Dax.
Every roll of the car jostled his body, and when they veered onto the road he’d driven a thousand times, something inside him snapped tight. A hard, half scream half gasping breath tore from him—rage pressing against his throat like a weight crushing his chest.
How could Nico do this after everything they’ve been through together?
The property looked well-maintained, nothing out of the usual for this wealthy suburban neighbourhood.
A white van with the door dented parked in the driveway.
The men spilled out of the car and Zee followed.
Carter peered into the driver’s side window.
Logan and Dax jogged off, around the back of the house.
“I want to kill that motherfucker,” Zee said, his voice shaking.
“Yep,” Erik said.
“Got to make sure this checks out first,” River said.
“Hiding bodies is so cumbersome,” Xander said.
A sudden crash shattered the stillness, the sound of glass smashing, followed by a high-pitched yell.
The sound sent a jolt through Zee’s system, and he took off after River but Xander reached out his arm, holding him back.
“Let them go see what that was.”
“What the fuck were you thinking? You evil fucking bastard.” Ella’s voice rang out, loud and angry and vibrating with fury.
Zee shook off Xander’s hold, running toward the sound of the yelling but in the corner of his eye he saw Nico burst out like a flash.
His hair was wild, and Zee caught a flash of silver in his hand.
“Nico!” He shouted, his stomach plunging to his feet.
Before he could move, Nico charged down the stairs, River jumped to tackle him and as he caught him around the wait, Nico sunk the blade into his side.
“Carter!” Zee shouted, his throat raw.
“Fuck, no!” Carter’s face crumbled at seeing his lover hurt, and the big man ran towards River.
“Get him!” Xander shouted but Logan and Dax were already gone, chasing after Nico.
“Let’s go get her, Zee!” Erik grabbed his arm, pulling him around.
As if he’d heard the starting pistol, he was already running, his feet pounding on the pavement, Erik on his heels, shoving at the thick white front door, until Erik reached over and tried the handle, pushing it open.
Inside the dark house, the smell of paint and sawdust hung heavy in the air.
The house smelled of stale coffee and dust, but the sound of Ella’s voice carried down the hallway.
With his heart in his throat, Zee followed the sound of her voice, his pulse racing.
Ella stood in the middle of the hall, her clothes torn, her hair a wild tangle around her flushed face.
Her chest heaved as she gripped a jagged rock like it was the only thing keeping her upright.
She froze at the sight of them, her eyes huge and bright with rage and terror.
For one awful heartbeat, Zee thought she might not recognize him.
“What the hell took you so long?” she snapped, voice raw, cracking on the last word.
Zee stopped short, chest heaving, relief crashing over him so hard his knees threatened to buckle.
His heart slammed against his ribs, his vision swimming as if the world itself tilted under his weight.
“Ella—“
She glared at him, ready to fight, then her face crumpled.
The rock slipped from her fingers, clattering against the floor.
He wrapped her in his arms, and she felt so frail in his embrace.
“My dear heart, I’m so sorry,” he whispered against her ears.
She smelled of sweat and dust but the familiar warmth of having her in his arms eased all of his fears.
He’d never let her out of sight again.
“Zee!” Her voice trembled and she pushed away from him before clutching a handful of his shirt and collapsing against him, letting out a shuddering sob.
“I got you, Ella. I’m never letting you go, ever again. You’re safe now.”
“I knew you would come! I tried to escape.”
“You got him good, Ella. Let’s get out of here.”
And he scooped her up in his arms and carried her, exactly like the treasured property she was, out of the house, his heart rate finally slowed because she was in his arms.
“Take me home.” Her voice wavered.
“Hospital first,” Zee said.
“Listen to him, Ella, the man’s been out of his mind worrying about you. Just do what he says,” Xander said.
Ella snorted a laugh. “Not going to argue. I have no idea what Nico gave me. What a nightmare.”
“You’re my girl, you’re my good girl.” He gently set her down on her feet, wrapping an arm around her waist.
Red and blue lights flashed, the ambulance and the police had arrived.
“I know he gave me drugs. He grabbed me from the garden, Zee but I didn’t know who he was until I returned to consciousness.” Her voice trailed off.
“Fuck,” Xander said behind them. “The neighbours called the police.”
“Couldn’t be avoided,” Zee said.
“What happened to River?” Ella’s voice cracked.
River was on a stretcher being loaded into the ambulance with Carter holding his hand.
“How is he?” Zee called.
“I’ll keep you updated,” Carter said.
Paramedics closed the ambulance door and the ambulance was off.
“Did he get hurt because of me?”
“No Ella, he got hurt because of Nico. You’re also hurt. We need to get you medical attention.”
“Dax and I got Nico just as the cops showed up, so that took a while to explain. He’s in custody now,” Logan said, through clenched teeth.
“Good job, Logan,” Xander said. “Let’s get home to our girl. Zee keep me informed and Ella, if there’s anything you need, let me know.”
“Thanks, Xander,” Zee fist bumped the guys.
“Sir, we need a statement.” Two police officers approached.
“Not now. Hospital first.”
“No, Zee I want to tell them what happened,” Ella said pushing off of him and the strength in her voice eased his anxiety. His Ella was strong.
“Okay, girl.” He stroked her hair and dropped a kiss on her forehead.
“Where do I begin?” Ella asked.
“Tell us what you remember,” one of the police officers said. “And we’ll go from there.”
“I was in my garden…”
As she told the story and her voice strengthened, Zee felt immense relief.
He knew they were going to be okay.