Page 62 of Knight
“Know a hundred different ways to kill a man and have people that can hide a body for you.” I cut him off, finishing the line for him. I may have heard it from him a time or two in my day.
“Well, fuck.” His statement was said with a hearty laugh.
With a shrug, I got up and made my way around the table. He stood and pulled me in for a rare hug. I could probably count on one hand the number of times this man had hugged me. Patted me on the head? Yeah, got those a lot when I was younger. Proud, heavy hand on the shoulder? Those too, so much that I could practically still feel the weight of his hand there even now. But hugs? Those were usually reserved for Gwen and Mindy.
“I thought you were going to tell me that it wasn’t working out,” he said when he released me with a hard hit on my back. “By the way you were sweating, I would have said you were here to tell me that I had to find another place for her to live.”
I could feel his relief in his statement. I had it too.
“I won’t lie, Brass. I was there for a hot minute. It was so hard being so close to her and feeling like I had to hide how I felt.”
“I don’t need to tell you this, but I will anyway,” His hand plopped down on my shoulders, locking me in place as he looked at me dead on. “You’re a good man. Everything I would ever want for my little girl.”
I blinked away the moisture that was building up in my eyes. I always wanted to make this man proud of me and I felt like I finally had.
“Okay,” he said stepping back and pulling the door all the way open. “Let’s go get Gwen. I’m sure you told her what you planned on doing here and I bet she’s a freaked out mess right about now.”
“You have no idea.”
We made our way downstairs, where I all but ran into Tripp.
Seeing him there made me think that Gwen might be around and a smile tugged at my lips. But when I looked and saw the fear in his eyes, I fucking froze.
“Where is she?” I asked before my brain could work anything out.
“I…” He shook his head, panic clear in the statement that he didn’t even finish. “I got a text from her saying that her and that girl…the one that looks like her…they were heading here and I should meet them.”
I grabbed his cut before I could even think better of it.
“Where the fuck is she?” I snarled.
“Knight,” Brass’ cool but edgy voice said beside me as he attempted to pull me back and away from Tripp. “Tell us what you know.”
Tripp sputtered then managed to get out everything he’d seen. Gwen worked her shift then stayed after to study. Then he got a text and waited until he saw they were headed out to ride off. He saw Gwen get in Tara’s car in his rearview. Then he got to the club and waited, only they never showed up.
That had been thirty minutes ago.
He waited because he thought that maybe they stopped to get something to eat. But now he was panicking because his calls and texts were going unanswered.
So were Mouse’s.
And B-ry’s.
And Iron’s.
As I hit the call button, I realized that something was very wrong. I looked at Brass, who had his phone to his ear only for a second. Gwen’s phone was going straight to voicemail. It was turned off.
“Fuck!” I roared. I looked around to see a circle of concerned brothers surrounding us.
“Tripp, go find Cable. Tell him to try and track Gwen’s phone, though it may be turned off. We need to know where it was last,” Mouse said with the coolness that I just couldn’t find right then.
I knew I needed to keep a level head but fuck, I felt like I’d just gotten her back. I couldn’t lose her again.
“B-ry why don’t you go with Brass to check the apartment. Maybe her phone died and she went there to grab a charger,” Iron said, though we all could feel he was grasping at straws. “Mouse and Knight, go to her work and see if there is something we’re missing.”
“What if she comes here. I need to be here.” The desperation in my voice was clear.
“I’ll call you if she shows up. Now get it together and go.”
