Page 69 of Sawyer
Deke was bringing up another program on the computer. “They are. I check them the first of every month to be sure.”
Sawyer held his breath until Deke opened the program, and eight tiny dots appeared on the screen. Seven were clustered together in town. One was headed… shit. “It looks like he’s taking her to the Graceview Retreat Center. I don’t know for sure yet, but it looks like he’s taking her to the Society.”
“The last time we had to get into their compound, we practically had to blow the fucking gate up. That thing is like a fortress. We need to get to her before Hector makes it that far,” Law said.
Sawyer didn’t hesitate. He had to save his Little girl. His brothers exchanged worried looks as he stalked toward the door. They should be worried. But not about him.
“Sawyer,” Reid said, his tone tense. “We had a deal when you came back to Darling. You remember that, right?”
Law and Gage moved to block the door. “Brother, take a breath.” Gage held up a hand.
Reid joined them. It was cute they thought they could stop him. They had no idea what he could do. He’d never wanted them to. But they were not going to keep him from getting to his babygirl before it was too late.
Reid lowered his voice. A tactical maneuver to lessen the tension. It wouldn’t work. “I’ve been where you are. We all have. But we work as a team. We always have. We’re with you, but we need a few minutes to formulate a plan. Something that will save her and you.”
“Get out of my way, Reid, if you don’t want to get hurt.”
“I can see it in your eyes,” Reid answered. “But you don’t have to go dark. That is your past. It doesn’t define you. It doesn’t control you. Not unless you let it.”
Sawyer did not have time for this shit. Lele needed him. “I’m not going to ask again, Reid. Get out of the way.”
Reid held his gaze. Sawyer saw the moment his friend realized the price of stopping him might be too high.
He loved his brothers. He didn’t want to hurt them. He would die for them. But there was only one person he’d kill for, and that was Lele. He would do anything for her, even if it meant going dark again. No one, not even his Sabre brothers, was going to stop him.
Reid dropped his gaze to the floor. Precious seconds passed. Sawyer prayed his friend would make the right call. Finally, Reid lifted his eyes. But when he spoke, it was to Law and Gage who’d been guarding the door.
With a snarl, Reid said, “Let him through.”
Sawyer could see the reluctance in their eyes, but they stepped aside.
With a nod of gratitude, Sawyer ran out of the room. As he made his way down the hall, Reid called after him. “Don’t forget, Sawyer. That deal we made was to protect you as much as it was anyone else.”
As reminders went, that one hit the mark. But protecting himself didn’t matter. Only Lele mattered.
He got in his truck and headed to his house. He had to get to Lele. But first, he had to get the bag.
CHAPTER 25
“You should have stayed away from them, Lele,” Hector snarled. “I told you just stay away from the fucking men! But do you listen? No, you're too fucking stupid, too much of a fucking slut, and now you ruined everything.”
Lele’s face was on fire, and the bindings he’d put around her wrists cut into her skin.
When he’d shoved her into his car, still reeling that he owned a Mercedes-Benz Coupe, she hadn’t known what to think. The was no way he could afford something like that. Was that why he was upset? Had he spent money on a fancy car, and now he was having financial trouble? Something was wrong. She had no idea what, but it must be bad.
She’d tried everything she knew to get him to talk, but he’d ignored her. When he’d pulled over, they were at the edge of town. She’d thought he was ready to talk, but he’d snatched open her door and yanked her out by her arm so hard she worried he’d dislocate it. He’d slapped her face so hard she tasted blood. Then he’d bound her wrists and shoved her back in the car.
Now she cowered against the window, trying to figure out what was happening. He took out his phone and made a call. “Hey, I got her.” He paused and glanced at her. “Yeah, don’t worry, when I get done, she’ll be gone, and they’ll still lay all the blame on her. My baby sister is going to get me out of trouble one last time.”
Cutting the call, he tossed his phone on the dashboard. The smile he leveled at her was savage. “You know all about how cameras can get you in trouble, don’t you? You know, when you signed that plea deal without looking at the evidence yourself... I gotta tell you, I never thought that would work. I went to all the trouble of stealing your car and dressing up in that fucking curly wig, and you never even questioned anything I told you. The General said anyone who would do that was too stupid to breathe. He was fucking right about that.”
Lele closed her eyes and turned her face to the window. She guessed the General was right, too. She’d believed in Hector. She’d thought he was the only true friend she had. Until Sawyer.
A fresh wave of pain crashed over her. Hector was planning to use her one more time and then kill her if she understood what he meant by “she’ll be gone.” To make matters worse, Sawyer had no way of even knowing where she was. She’d left her phone at Books-n-Brews.
Would he think she’d decided to go back to Elk Jaw? Would he think she was too stupid to breathe, too? Would he believe her job at Videotopia had been all about laundering money for drug dealers?
“I saw you looking over my wheels,” Hector bragged. “See, I know how to make something of myself. You don’t know how lucky you’ve been. If it weren’t for that Mama Sam bitch interfering, you would have been killed in prison. God knows how much money I wasted on trying to make that happen. But that’s all right. You’ll be out of my hair soon enough.”
