Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
KIT
Kit crept down the steps and away across the back yard, praying that the CDR men gathered near the gate hadn’t seen his sudden flight. By the time he hit the edge of the trees, his blood pounded in his ears as he struggled to catch his breath.
Ditching Jace and bolting to the shack had been an impulse decision and one that Kit was regretting even before he surveyed the structure which was barely standing.
He hadn’t thought about anything beyond the desperate need to get away.
His head was full of noise. Kit couldn’t put a coherent thought together for the noise in his head.
His sole thought had been reaching the shack, his safe place when he was a kid. Kit had spent hours here after his parents were snatched away from him, trying to make sense of his life. Now he felt the same way.
Kit shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. The temperature had dropped to freezing and he was wearing a thin shirt. He hadn’t even had the sense to pick up a sweater or a jacket. He had just needed to get away from his brother, the men invading his world, even Red.
They were all trying to control him. To snatch him away from his life. No one let him make any decisions for himself. He was used to Tony controlling his life, but he could tell Tony what to do with his orders. Red was a different matter. He wanted Red to dominate him, but not his every move.
He knew they’d find him here. In the early days, Tony used to leave him to decompress for a while, then come after him with meat to BBQ in the firepit, and spend the night under the stars.
In those days they had blankets in one corner of the shack.
But that was years ago. Kit hadn’t been here for years.
There was nothing in the shack except leaves and, Kit grimaced, animal droppings.
Kit perched on the edge of a stone by the firepit, his teeth chattering. He couldn’t stay here. The temperature was dropping rapidly. Kit was always being accused of no self-preservation. That wasn’t true. Kit wasn’t stupid. He just didn’t work the same way everyone else did.
What were the chances of him sneaking back into the club house before they discovered he had gone.
If Jace had been as alert as he expected, no chance at all.
If they were all looking for him, he might be able to sneak in and pick up clothes and his wallet.
Kit patted his pockets. Dammit, he didn’t even have his wallet or phone. He had nothing.
He was so lost in his thoughts; he jumped as someone dropped a jacket around his shoulders and sat next to him. He hadn’t even heard the leaves crunching as three men approached him. Maybe he didn’t have a sense of self-preservation.
“Put the jacket on,” Red said.
Kit scowled. Did he have to start with an order? But Red just popped him into his jacket as if he were a small child, a boy, then tugged a beanie over his head. Kit shuddered in relief and snuggled into the warmth.
“Update Craig and tell Padraig we’ll meet him at the rear gate,” Red said to Jace.
“Will do.” Jace pulled out his phone and walked away from them.
Red waited a beat, then turned to Kit. “We need to talk about this, but not now. Hostiles are on their way here. We need to move now. You need to listen and obey. No arguments. Until we’re at the safe house. Do you understand?
Kit opened his mouth. Then shut it again. Because now was not the time for a smart-Alek remark.
Red gave one nod. “Good. Come on.” He took Kit’s hand and drew him to his feet. “Your hands are frozen.”
He didn’t let go of Kit’s hand as they loped toward the rear gate. Red kept a steady pace, one that Kit could keep up with. Then Kit stumbled, gasping as he tripped over a tree root. Red swept him up into his arms without pausing and hurried to the gate.
The SUV was there, engine running. Jace opened the rear door and Red hopped in with Kit. Then Jace slid into the passenger seat and the vehicle was away before they were settled.
Red batted away Kit’s hands and clicked in Kit’s seat belt as if he were a child, then placed a fleece throw over him. “You won’t need this for long, but I imagine you’re still cold.”
“Frozen,” Kit admitted, his teeth chattering. He turned to see Red giving him a long look. “What?”
“What were you thinking? It’s almost freezing.”
“I wasn’t thinking, I was running,” Kit admitted.
“You used to do that a lot.”
“I still do.”
Red sighed. “It’s been a long day and it’s going to be a longer journey. Relax, sleep if you can.”
“Where are we going?” Kit asked, curious where they were taking him.
“You’ll see when we get there.”
“Can I have my phone?”
“No.”
“What the hell, Red. Why not?” What the hell was he going to do with himself if he didn’t have his phone? “It’s mine.”
“And I don’t have it. We don’t know if someone has a tracker on your phone.”
That’s ridiculous. Kit opened his mouth to argue but Red shook his head. “Relax and sleep.”
Kit didn’t want to sleep. He wasn’t a goddamn child. But he was aware the next words out of his mouth would make him sound just like a kid. “What about music?”
“Give us a chance to get away from here, then we can do that,” Padraig said from the front, and Jace gave him a reassuring smile, which didn’t reassure him at all.
Kit stared bleakly out of the tinted windows. He didn’t even have control of his own phone. The urge to have a meltdown was almost overwhelming. Then Red took his hand and held it tightly.
“I’ve got you, boy. You’re safe with me.”
Boy.
Kit swallowed hard and held on just as tight. He really hoped Red meant it, because he had nothing else to cling on to and he felt ready to implode.
Kit didn’t know how far they’d traveled when he became aware of tension in the car.
The radio Jace had found was turned down so he couldn’t hear it.
He’d spent most of the time with his eyes closed, not sleeping, but not wanting to talk to Red.
He couldn’t deal with the fact his world had flipped. He just couldn’t.
Now something was off. He opened his eyes to find Padraig and Jace talking in clipped tones and tension radiated off Red.
“What’s wrong?” he murmured, trying to sit up before realizing he’d been resting his head on Red’s shoulder.
“We’re being followed,” Jace said.
“Maybe,” Padraig corrected.
“Maybe,” Jace agreed.
Kit went to look behind him, but Red pulled him down.
“Keep your head down, kid.”
Kid? What happened to boy?
Kit scowled at him, the effect lost as he was smushed against Red’s leather jacket. “We’ve got tinted windows,” he pointed out.
“They can still see shadows,” Red muttered into his ear.
Kit shivered. Maybe he wasn’t as safe as he thought he was, even in Red’s arms.
He swallowed hard as he stared up into Red’s eyes. “This is serious, isn’t it?”
“Hallelujah, he’s just worked it out,” Padraig said.
Red scowled at Padraig which made Kit go all mushy inside. He wasn’t used to anyone standing up for him.
“The mark has turned off the highway,” Padraig said. “I repeat, the mark has turned off the highway.”
“Does that mean we’re not being followed?” Kit asked.
Red focused his gaze on Kit. “We’ll find out soon enough. In the meantime, we need to talk. This is serious, Kit. You’re in deep trouble. I was gonna have this talk later, but I may as well have it now.”
Uh-oh. That sounded like a conversation Kit needed to have sitting up. He pulled away from Red, careful not to sit up too high, and to his instant regret, Red let him go.
“Shoot,” Kit said, then winced. An unfortunate choice of words.
Red didn’t seem to notice. “We lost valuable time hunting for you. If you pull another stunt like that, I’ll spank your sorry ass. I mean it. You put us all in danger running off like that.” Red hadn’t lowered his voice so Jace and Padraig had to be listening in.
“I didn’t think of that.” Kit hung his head. Now he felt like the worst kind of idiot.
“We got word that hostiles were on their way before we found you.”
Kit realized he hadn’t even thought about Tony. “Where’s my brother been taken?”
“That’s on a need-to-know basis. And I don’t know, before you ask. It’s above my paygrade. My only concern is getting you to the safe house, then I’ll stay with you.”
“And Jace and Padraig?”
“Not us, kid,” Padraig said. “We’ve got another assignment tomorrow.”
Red shook his head. “We’ve got teams in place and waiting for us to arrive. You’ll be safe.”
Kit sighed and slumped against the seat. “I’m not sure I’ll ever feel safe again.”
“You will.”
“How? Will these people ever stop coming after me? Can I ever go home again?”
Red’s hesitation was all the answer Kit needed. “You may have to start again elsewhere, but you will build your life again.”
“And my brother? What about him? He’s the only family I have. Will I ever see him again.”
Red laced their fingers together. Kit regarded their joined hands, feeling the comforting warmth, the slight rasp of callouses on Red’s fingers.
He wondered if Red ever played a guitar.
He’d once fucked a band, yeah, that was a night to remember, and the bass player had callouses like these.
Kit had to hold back a smile in case Red thought he wasn’t taking it seriously.
What were they talking about? Tony. Now he felt guilty for being distracted about his brother.
Red squeezed his hand. “It’s early days, Kit. And things have escalated real quick. I can’t give you answers to any of your questions. All I can do is ask you to trust me to take care of you and when I say duck, you duck.”
“In other words, obey without question,” Kit said, unable to hide his bitter tone.
“If it saves your life, yes.” Red’s voice was resolute.
Kit sucked in a deep breath. “Okay.”
He wanted to live. More to the point, he wanted to obey this man. The thought of disobeying Red made him ache inside.
Red’s eyes narrowed as if he wasn’t convinced Kit was being truthful, but Kit held his gaze and Red expelled a deep breath.