Page 8 of The Perfect Kiss
Turning my head to face him, I nodded my head in agreement. Patton always knew what I was thinking, even before I said it. Stopping in the middle of the stairs, I looked down on Patton as he headed back to the computer room. “Hey, Patton.”
“Yeah.”
“Let Axe and Marcus know about our plans. It would be better to have them along, especially since we don’t know what we’re up against.”
Giving me a thumbs up, I ascended the remaining steps and headed to the bedroom. My heart was racing. Knowing that soon I would hold Reyna in my arms and McCall would be locked up gave me the hope I needed. We could finally move on with our lives. More than anything, I wanted Reyna to have the life she deserved—a life filled with memories of love and happiness.
∞
I changed out of my suit and into jeans and a button-down shirt and headed down the stairs. Patton and Stone were finishing up loading the SUV with items needed in case we ran into any problems. The plan was to get Reyna and make sure she was safe before calling in the authorities. With an anonymous call I would make, McCall would be the prime suspect in the death of his brother. The police would have no reason not to arrest him for murder, especially after finding the same gun that killed Rui in his BMW.
Even though the SUV was cramped with me, Patton, Mitch, Tyler, and Stone, I never felt more optimistic that we would finally stop the Salkos once and for all. As Patton started the engine, the sound of the tracker on McCall’s car beeped on the SUV’s navigation screen. Just like Axe said, Elliott and his friend were heading north, away from Atlanta. As long as the green dot on the screen kept moving, we were good. The minute it stopped, either they stopped, or we were fucked.
As Patton watched the road, my eyes were glued to the screen. Every time they turned left or right, Patton did, too. I wasn’t sure where they were going and prayed that this wasn’t a wasted trip. I had a gut feeling that Elliott would lead us right to where Reyna was. He left Atlanta so fast that it was the only logical place he had to be.
Patton’s phone rang over the hands-free speakers. My heart skipped a beat, having been engrossed on the tiny green dot. “Yeah, I see you. Where is Marcus?” Patton said as he diverted his gaze on the review mirror.
“Marcus is close behind. Any idea where Elliott is going?” Axe’s voice came over the speaker, allowing all of us to hear the conversation.
“I don’t know, but seeing as how the area is becoming less populated, my guess is to a secluded area,” I chimed in, seeing only trees on both sides of the road. My eyes fell back the screen when I noticed the dot moving down a road to the left. “Patton, he just turned left.”
“Axe, call Marcus and let him know what’s going on. We’ll meet up once Elliott comes to a stop.” Patton switched his focus from the screen to the road.
“You got it, bro,” Axe said before ending the call.
As we turned onto the dirt road Elliott had taken, more and more tree branches concealed the beautiful night sky. The darkness made it impossible to see any wildlife hidden between the trees and bushes, which forced Patton to ease off the gas. Based on Elliott’s location, we were about five miles behind him. A lot could happen in five minutes, but I had to stay calm and remind myself that I had the best team of men with me.
Within minutes of staring at the screen, the green dot stopped moving. Patton continued to drive onward while I focused on the blinking light. As long as the light kept blinking, it was a good sign, but the minute it stopped, more than likely, Elliott had found the tracker.
We were half a mile away from where Elliott had made a final turn before stopping. All of us agreed that this was a safe distance to avoid being seen. So, we pulled off the road and hid the vehicles safely between the trees one by one. As dark as it was, there was no way anyone would spot the SUVs from the road.
Before turning off the engine to the SUV, Patton cut the lights and looked over his shoulder. “We’ll have to use Axe’s portable tracker from here.”
“Whatever happens,” I began, making sure to make eye contact with all of them. “Whoever gets to Reyna first, it is imperative that you take her away from danger. If this goes sideways, I need to know that she is safe.”
All of the men nodded in agreement, and Patton cut the engine. As we exited the vehicle to grab the equipment we needed, Axe and Marcus joined us. With everyone’s military background, we packed the back of the SUV with enough ammo to fight back an army along with night vision goggles to see them. We were beyond prepared, and the only thing left was to get Reyna to safety.
The only light offered to us was from the hand-held tracker Axe was holding. Even with the night goggles, the densely covered terrain provided little comfort for what we would face once we reached our destination. Our best bet was to stick together and break off once we got there. So far, we knew there were at least three men: McCall, Elliott, and the man who rode with him. These were pretty good odds. Hopefully, my calculation was right, and no other men were guarding Reyna.
~6~
Reyna
I had barely dozed off when I heard the lock on the door turn. At that moment, my only thought was that this was the end. Crosby said himself that Davian would never see me again. I had this eerie feeling that his plan for me was to finish what his brother tried to do months ago. It was a sure way that Davian and I would never be together.
Making myself as small as I could in the corner of the bed, I waited for the door to open. I hadn’t realized that I had been holding my breath until Gwen said, “We need to get out of here. What you said about my father is true.”
“How did you get down here without Crosby seeing you?” I asked as I scooted off the bed.
“He fell asleep on the couch. When he started snoring, I snuck down here. We really need to go, Reyna, if we want to get out of here. We can use the back door.”
I had a hard time believing that she would come to her senses so quickly unless something Crosby said changed her mind. I had no other choice but to trust her. Gwen was risking her life by rescuing me. As we headed out of the room, a thought came to mind. “Gwen,” I whispered. “Where will we go? There isn’t another town for miles.”
“Leave that to me. I have an idea.”
Gwen took hold of my hand and led me out of the room. Before hanging the key back on the hook, she locked the door to the room. Locking the door was genius on her part. It would buy us a little more time before Crosby realized we were gone.
Clinging to each other, which I thought would never happen, we made our way up the stairs. Gwen reached the top step first and gently pushed the door open. Before we went any further, we listened for any sound indicating that Crosby was no longer asleep. The cabin was completely quiet—not one sound. We quietly stepped through the door to the basement and waited for a moment on the main floor. Gwen carefully closed the door, trying her best not to make a sound.
