27. Henri
Chapter 27
Henri
“So...” Kyle quickly sits in the chair across from my desk like he’s been commanded to do so.
He and I didn’t have a meeting scheduled, but I set aside what I was working on because having Kyle manage Deacon has come with a bunch of impromptu meetings I can’t ignore.
It’s been over a month, and Kyle isn’t getting any better in his role. And that’s with Deacon behaving himself. The one time I let Kyle try to handle something on his own, Deacon nearly missed a flight.
Worse than that, Deacon’s been on sabbatical for nearly three weeks. All Kyle has to do is manage Deacon’s social media. It’s literally pictures that have been taken and curated over the last six months. He just needs to add captions and load them into the scheduler with some base engagement like commenting back... He’s just not great at this.
Kyle chews on the bottom of his lip, broadcasting his nerves. You can read him far too easily. It’s why he can’t be forward facing with the public by handling any of Cade’s meetings. The sharks that circle Cade would eat him alive .
Realistically, I know he couldn’t handle Finn and Lena either. Especially now that there’s a general knowledge and murmuring that they’re tied back to Ireland and subsequently may have connections to organized crime, which, weirdly, Cade isn’t concerned about.
With a deep breath, Kyle rushes his words out. “See, you told me to give Deacon two or three weeks off. But the last time I saw him, he was a little checked out. It’s been more than almost two and a half weeks, and I can’t pin him down. He stopped answering his phone a few days ago. I’m wondering if maybe we need to ask Cade for some help?”
At the mention of Deacon, my wolf perks up. It’s been a long week, and she’s been completely fried with the pack meetings for planning the coming Equinox.
I didn’t know Kyle was talking to and seeing Deacon?
Sure, I moved into the cabin over a week ago, but I still haven’t seen or smelled Deacon on the main floors while I’m at the house for work.
“He, uh.” Kyle fishes for words. “He . . .”
I shake my head, not sure I’m understanding what he’s even trying to begin to communicate. I circle my wrist, trying to encourage him to talk to me. But unsettledness roils in my stomach.
Kyle finally spits it out. “I haven’t seen him in five days. I’ve gone upstairs, but his door is locked. Neither the keycode I have nor the key works.”
My heart stops. I’m pretty sure it stops dead.
I grab my phone out of my desk drawer and run to Cade’s office. He’s in a meeting with Finn, but it’s not super important. I push the door open without knocking, which gets me two guns drawn on me.
“Have you seen Deacon in the last forty-eight hours?” I snap, trying to draw a deep breath. Neither of them moves. “Seventy-two hours?”
Cade’s furrowed brow and Finn’s shrug tell me everything I need to know.
“I need the master override to Deacon’s door,” I order, snapping my fingers, and what I’m saying finally sinks in.
Up and out of his chair, Cade pushes past me and takes the stairs two and three at a time. Running, I try to keep up but nearly fall. Finn follows me rather than overtaking me on the stairs. He doesn’t bother telling me it’s going to be okay.
Cade’s fist on Deacon’s door rattles the pictures hanging in the hallway, and he panics waiting for a response.
It doesn’t come.
Cade punches in a code on the keypad, and the door opens for him without effort.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Cade shouts.
“What the fuck?” Deacon snarls, and only then do I breathe.
Approaching Deacon’s door, I don’t know what to expect. It’s black-out dark in his room, and I hesitate to cross the threshold.
The blinds get yanked open, and Cade shakes his head, looking at Deacon’s mess.
“We talked about this.” Cade starts scolding. “You told me you were done with this shit.”
I look to where Cade’s pointing on the desk, and drug paraphernalia litter the surface. I haven’t even seen Deacon yet, but based on the syringe, I’m not sure I want to.
Finn tugs on my hand. “Come on, Henri. Let’s let the boys have their minute.”