86. Mandy
MANDY
The SUV tears down the road toward the airstrip where Harper said Ashford houses his plane. Luke’s driving, and I’m questioning whoever gave him a license. Jake sits next to him, communicating with Harper and Lily who’re following in the second vehicle.
I’m wedged between Mason and Hendricks in the back. When we got in, Mason winced at my face and said, “Lily’s going to lose her shit,” but he’s been quiet since.
Hendricks is giving Mason a run for his money, though. He hasn’t said a word since we left the mill. He clamped his talented hand on my thigh and has been brooding ever since.
In the past few days, I’ve learned several things about Hendricks. One of them is that silence is usually when people should start worrying.
I glance at him. His jaw is locked. His hands are fisted. There’s blood on one knuckle that I’m reasonably certain isn’t his.
“ETA twenty minutes,” Jake says. “Harper called in a favor and they’re holding his plane.”
One problem down. About seventeen to go.
Speaking of… “Does anyone have a phone I can borrow?”
Hendricks looks at me. “What now?”
I clear my throat. “I have a situation.”
He just takes out his phone and hands it to me.
His trust makes my chest tight. I want to throw my arms around him and kiss him, but I don’t have time. Besides, it’ll hurt.
I enter Gabriel’s number and put the phone to my ear.
It rings.
And rings.
And goes to voicemail.
My stomach tightens. I call again, but still nothing. “Fuck.”
Hendricks turns toward me. “What?”
“Gabriel isn’t answering.”
Jake looks back from the front seat. “Why are you calling Reyes?”
“Because I asked him to find Clara.”
Silence.
Then Hendricks says, “You did what?”
“I asked Gabriel to pick up Clara Whitlock and protect her.”
Luke glances at me in the rearview mirror. “That sounds healthy.”
“Luke,” Jake says.
I try Gabriel again but there’s still no answer. The knot in my stomach gets tighter. “I think I played into Turner’s hands.”
“Explain,” Hendricks say.
I face him. “If one powerful family threatened you, how would you eliminate them without getting involved?”
“Use their rival,” Hendricks says instantly.
“The enemy of my enemy,” Luke says, veering to pass a slower car.
“Turner wanted a war,” Mason says in his quiet voice.
I nod. “Between Reyes and Whitlock. Ashford was part of it. Turner was supposed to make Clara disappear. Something happens to a Whitlock daughter, evidence points toward Reyes, and both families start shooting.”
“And while everybody’s busy murdering each other, Turner and Ashford get whatever they want out of the wreckage,” Jake summarizes.
“Except Turner disappeared,” Hendricks says.
I squeeze his hand. “Exactly. And Ashford panicked, thinking he double-crossed him.”
That part I understand now. Turner is loose. Ashford doesn’t know where he is. And Turner knows exactly what Ashford was involved in.
Jake turns to look back at us. “So Ashford runs to somewhere nobody can reach him.”
“But he doesn’t know the war is starting because I asked Gabriel to keep a young woman safe.” I try Gabriel again.
Straight to voicemail again.
Fuck.
Hendricks shifts toward me, carefully running his hand over my hair. “We deal with Ashford, and then we’ll take make sure Reyes is okay.”
“You don’t like Gabriel,” I point out, frowning.
“I didn’t say I didn’t like him,” he replies. “I just don’t like him near you.”
Luke snorts. “Don’t worry, dude. Harper assures me touch-her-and-die is hot. It’ll probably work in your favor.”
Ahead of us, lights appear in the darkness—runway lights.
Hendricks and Mason begin to check and ready their weapons. Jake leans over the center console and hands me a new comm and a gun.
I take both. The comm goes in my ear. I give the weapon a quick check. “Ashford is mine.”
I feel the men look at me, but there’s only one person I care about. I look at Hendricks.
He nods. “He is.”
Good.
I’ve been waiting a long fucking time for this.