Chapter Twenty-Three
It took everything I had not to push this guy against the wall in his own fucking house and tell him to never, ever talk to my mate like that. And believe me, I’d correct him in good time, but right now, we needed answers.
This man wasn’t the least bit surprised that Ellie was alive. He smelled human, the house reeked of it, but Jen had told me she was a bear.
Something was off.
“I’m sorry,” Synamon said sheepishly, like she was the problem. “Things have been weird, I know. But I’d love to see Jen.”
His expression flashed surprise, only for a moment. Another human would’ve barely noticed as he went back to disgust.
Whatever was going on, I knew two things for sure: this dude was in on it, and he hated Ellie.
“That would make two of us,” he said.
Synamon blinked. “What?”
I stepped forward and held out my hand. No surprise this Nick dude didn’t accept it. “My name is Brad. I work for Sawtooth Security. If your wife is missing, we’d love to help you find her.”
Barrett and Bellamy might disagree with that statement, but there was no way this was a coincidence.
A little boy skidded into view behind Nick. “Auntie!” he exclaimed excitedly.
“Hey, kiddo!” Synamon’s voice shook as she stepped forward, but Nick held up his hand.
“No. Absolutely not.” He glared at Synamon before turning to his son, and I recognized the toddler Jen had with her the day we went to Ellie’s apartment. “Go watch a movie.”
The kid pouted. “But I want--”
“Go,” Nick repeated. “Now.”
I glanced at Synamon, who looked as defeated as the little boy as he slunk away.
It didn’t last long. She steeled herself, and her emotion rolled like a wave. I expected her to lean into this guy. Her fury was palpable. That little boy—one who probably was missing his mom—didn't deserve to lose his aunt too.
But she didn’t say anything.
Not like Synamon to keep her mouth shut. Was she still pretending to be Ellie, or was just too pissed and shocked for words?
She needs you to step up, my bear rumbled. Strength looks different in this world.
“How long has Jen been missing?” I asked.
Nick huffed out a sigh. “Two days. Look--”
“I take it the police are involved,” I added, not giving him a chance to take control of the situation. Guys like this were used to being in control, having others back down just because they had power.
I wasn’t doing that.
He pursed his lips.
“You haven’t called the cops?” Synamon’s voice was shrill. “Why the hell not?”
“I figured the two of you were up to something again.” He sneered. “You know, when she pretends to be your manager?”
Synamon gaped. “You know about that?”
“I know everything about my wife, Ellie.”
Interesting that he emphasized her name, but if he really knew everything about her, he would’ve called her Synamon.
He didn’t know as much as he was letting on, but his body language was weird.
He folded his arms, closing himself off.
Either he was intimidated by Ellie—she came off as meek and mousy, but the woman had power—or he knew something he was trying to keep from us.
I had to call his bluff, and I wasn’t sure how I should do it. Sharing information with this dude could fuck up Bellamy’s investigation, but if Jen was really in danger, I didn’t have time to ask for permission.
This guy could be full of shit and sending us on some wild goose chase, but why? Was he working with Ellie’s ex, or was he just a dick?
Probably both, my bear groaned.
“Do you know of someone named Cal, who might work for the city?” I asked.
Nick shook his head. “No.”
“We have reason to believe they may have posed as Jen, trying to get information about Ellie. Maybe about a week ago.”
“Why would they do that?” He furrowed his brow.
The gesture was the most sincere he’d made since he’d answered the door. Maybe Jen really was missing...
“It’s complicated. I don’t really understand it either,” I confessed. “Let’s stick to what we do know. Can you tell us if Jen had done anything unusual before she disappeared—especially since Ellie went missing. And if you can tell us about the last day you saw her, that would be helpful.”
I’d asked a lot, but time was of the fucking essence.
Nick slumped, almost like he was admitting defeat, but the way he gripped the edge of the door made me think he was protecting something...or someone.
“She was a mess ever since you disappeared.” His gaze landed on Synamon, incredulous, “Where the hell were you anyway?”
Synamon let out a low growl in response. Fuck, it was hot.
“It doesn’t matter where I was. The important thing is--”
“Jen’s missing because of you,” Nick bellowed and then pointed a finger at Synamon. “If she doesn’t come home safe, you can be the one to explain to my children why their mommy is gone.”
Synamon closed her eyes for a long blink, then turned on her heel and headed back to the SUV.
Nick scoffed. “Just like I thought.”
He was hiding something—possibly his wife, possibly information. I should stay here and get as much out of him as possible.
But the daggers coming out of his eyes that had been directed toward Synamon were now all for me. I wasn’t the only one thinking about throwing a punch.
But my mate was the most important thing, and Nick had already told us much more than he intended.
“We’ll be in touch.” It came out as more of a threat than a promise, but I didn’t care. I turned to find Synamon leaning against the SUV. Her face was in her hands, and her shoulders slumped forward.
“Hey,” I said softly as I approached, not to startle her. When we’d been talking to Nick, I could feel that she was on the verge of a shift.
If you both shifted you could get things done fast, my bear rumbled.
She took her hands away from her face. Her eyes were wide and glistening with emotion, just waiting for the dam to break. “We have to find her.”
“We will--”
“No, we don’t have time to wait and see. She’s in danger, Brad. She needs to be home with her babies right this fucking minute.” She waved her arms in frustration. “She’d never leave them like that. Never. You said you were a tracker.”
“Things are different in the forest.”
“Are they, though? Because you’ve been perfectly comfortable performing your duties while we’ve been alone in the cabin. Is that because you wanted to keep me away from her?”
“Are you saying I’m in on this?” I shook my head. “What the fuck?”
“I don’t know what I’m saying.” She tipped her head up and sighed. “All I know is that everything got weird the moment you stepped into my life.”
“Same.” I didn’t mean for it to come out as a growl, but fuck, I hadn’t been prepared for that accusation. “What do you want to do about it?”
Before she had a chance to answer, Barrett and Bellamy pulled in behind us. The silence between us was thick as they got out of the truck and walked over.
“Everything okay?” Barrett asked with a raised brow.
“No,” we said in unison, which got Synamon’s lips to quiver upward into an almost smile. She caught my gaze, only for a second, and then turned like I wasn’t even fucking there.
“Jen’s missing,” she said.
“I’m not so sure,” I said, and three heads turned to me.
“What are you talking about?” Synamon gaped at me with disgust. “Did we even have the same conversation with Nick?”
“We did. But you’re emotionally invested because she’s your best friend, and the worst-case scenario that we’ve been trying to protect you from, has happened.
Allegedly.” I slid my gaze back to the door.
Nick had closed it, but I could feel his presence.
He was probably watching us. Or debriefing about the conversation, just like we were.
“I want nothing more than Jen to be safe. But I can look at it from a different perspective. See things that you might have missed.”
“Like what?” Barrett asked.
I had to choose my words carefully. Synamon’s emotions were understandably raw and I wouldn't let whoever was behind this succeed at tearing us apart.
Yeah, life had been weird since Synamon Honey had become a part of it. But I wouldn’t change a fucking thing.
“The little boy. Jen brought him with her when we went to check your apartment after you went missing. He got really upset that he couldn’t see you. And he was attached to his mom. I feel like if she wasn’t there, he would’ve had a different reaction.”
Synamon drew a shaky breath. “Maybe, but we can’t give up on Jen because we didn’t catch her kid mid-tantrum.”
“We’re not,” I growled. “We’re making sure we focus on the right things. You said you wanted me to solve this like I would if I was in the forest. So here you go. I also didn’t like the way Nick reacted. He’s...too calm, too collected. And his body language said he was hiding something.”
Bellamy nodded. “We’ll look into him.” He turned to Synamon. “Was he friends with your ex?”
“They’d hang out when Jen and I did, but I’m not sure what happened after we broke up. I made it a rule not to talk about Kevin in front of me.” She chuckled grimly. “Does anyone want to hear what I think about this situation? Jen’s only been my best friend for the last thirty years.”
“Of course we do.” I wanted to touch her. I wanted to take her into my arms and tell her it was a bad dream. But the last thing my mate needed was to be coddled. She needed to come into her full fucking power.
She knotted her hands. “Jen called you because she saw something that bothered her. But what if I was never the target?”
“That wouldn’t explain why someone came into your apartment,” Barrett said. “Or the Centerfold Slasher’s proximity to you. Or what happened to Velvet. You’re the common denominator.”
A soft growl rumbled from her. “It feels off.”
“Definitely,” I said. “Something tells me you know a thing or two about instincts. What do you think we should do?”
Barrett’s eyes widened. I agreed with him—Jen was never the target. Whoever was behind this wanted Synamon Honey.
“Okay, so they’re after me. Then make them come get me.
We go forward with the plan. A huge tribute to Velvet.
Make it a fundraiser. Make it big. Over-the-top, so no one can ignore it.
Maybe I do some Synamon videos without my makeup.
KISS did it right?” She chuckled nervously.
“And Animalize is one of my favorite albums. Didn’t compromise the artistry at all. ”
Bellamy furrowed his brow. “Not sure I’m following.”
“If I reveal to the whole world Ellie is Synamon and Synamon is Ellie, they lose any leverage they have. Everyone knows I’m alive.
And we can focus on finding Jen and whoever did this to Velvet.
Maybe that will be the subject of the video when I go unmasked.
Then, I march into that courtroom with all the power and put an end to all of this. ”
She pulled her shoulders back and smiled, satisfied with her plan.
Barrett and Bellamy shared a look and then nodded.
“It’s risky, but calculated risk,” Barrett said. “We’d like to work with you when you do it to make sure we’re watching all outlets, angles, have the right eyes in the right places.”
I suppressed my growl. I hated this plan. It left Synamon exposed—not that I planned to let her out of my sight. And I had a bad feeling in my gut we were making this too easy.
We weren’t dealing with amateurs.
“Get it together fast, because Jen can’t wait,” Synamon put her hand on the door handle of the truck. “I’m going live as soon as we get back to the cabin. Time to tell the world Synamon Honey’s origin story.”