Page 96 of Twisted Bonds
"You've got it all wrong! It's not Beau; Mario is the one you need to…" I stop my sentence as soon as I face the cop now holding his gun on us, and I groan, "Erik…"
Fifty-Two
Beau
"Hello, beautiful! Something sure smells good. Watcha making me?" I ask Helen as I come up behind her in the kitchen.
Dad and I have been holed up in his office all morning trying to get the board members on board with the new fashion line. I'm not one for fashion per se, but I am one for watching the numbers, so my father wanted me in on this meeting. We've been at it for hours, and it's just after lunchtime, so I decided to come see what there is to eat.
"Oh, you're such a little charmer, Beau!" Helen grins and hands me one of her famous homemade snickerdoodle cookies. "Don't ruin your appetite. I have yours and your father's plates in the warmer."
"Has Ryan eaten yet?" I ask.
"Oh, she left about two hours ago to head for town. She said she had a few errands to run." Helen doesn't notice that I've stopped eating the cookie. In fact, I drop it on the counter and rush out of the kitchen.
Grabbing my keys and wallet from my room, I stop in the doorway to my dad's office to let him know that I'm going to town to find Ryan. She shouldn't be wandering around by herself.What the fuck is she thinking?I can tell my father wants to come, but he's got a lot of work to catch up on.
"I can take care of this. She's most likely fine, but I'd feel safer if someone was with her."
"Are you sure your mother isn't with her?" he asks.
"I honestly don't know, but it's not like Mom would be much help," I chuckle.
"True. Okay, just text me and let me know that everything is fine."
"Yep, will do," I tell him and then leave the house.
Jumping into my truck, I curse under my breath. After those grueling few hours we just went through, the last thing I want to do is worry my father. Besides, I'm sure Ryan is okay; I'm just being paranoid.
Pulling my phone out, I try calling Ryan's phone. It rings a few times and then goes to her voicemail.Okay, now I'm worried.An uneasy feeling comes over me, and I speed up. I then bring up the app that has the tracker we put on her phone. Of course, she wasn't too happy about it, but this is the exact reason why we did it.
It shows her on the northeast side of town, which worries me. Aside from a bar and a few small shops, that little section is pretty much a ghost town.Why would she be there?
As I turn down the main street to where I see the green light blinking, I narrow my eyes when I notice Ryan talking to another woman. Although the woman doesn't look so happy. It's then that I see a weasel of a man come up behind Ryan as she starts to walk away and grab her arm.
"Oh, fuck no!" I growl and stop my truck, reaching under my seat for the handgun I keep there at all times now.
I don't bother closing my door as I get out and start walking toward the trio. Ryan is cursing him out, and the other woman disappears behind the van when I hear the fucker tell her to open the door. Can Ryan ever catch a fucking break?
I see red as soon as I hear him talk about someone fucking Ryan, and I walk right up to him and point the gun at his greasy, fucking head. "I suggest you let my girl go if you know what's fucking good for you!"
The asshole lets go of Ryan immediately, and she falls, but I don't dare take my eyes off him. Ryan scoots over to me before standing up. I don't even hear the sirens when they pull up, but when I hear my name and I'm ordered to drop the gun, the relief I felt melts away when I hear Ryan's voice say Erik's name.
Fucking perfect!
"I'm not going to repeat it, Beau. Drop the gun and get on your knees with your hands behind your head!" I hear Erik's order, but I don't move.
"I will put my gun down as soon as you cuff this motherfucker."
"Erik, he just tried abducting me! He works for the D'Angelos; he's one of the people who trained the victims. He's also raped God knows how many people!"
"Do you have any proof?" Harrison asks, and I almost take my eyes off this other fucker to stare in disbelief at the guy I once thought was a friend.
"I was fucking there, or have you forgotten?" Ryan asks sarcastically. "Look at my arm!" She holds it out to show Harrison. "It's already starting to bruise from where he grabbed me."
"Listen, Erik." I try getting through to him. "I know you're pissed about your wife, but she's seriously not at the Manor. We are not hiding her from you. I will even allow you to take me in, too, as long as you cuff this piece of shit!"
"What's going on, Harrison?" Suddenly, another voice joins in.
