Page 52 of Casper
CASPER
The days had really started to crawl by. Jace had a way of popping up like he had a few nights ago at Luna’s dorm room and then disappearing. Jackass seemed to prefer the element of surprise.
At my insistence, Luna had been staying at the house with me and the others. I knew that fucker would come back for her. No way in hell was I leaving her alone for him to find. Since Jace had made his first appearance, Luna and I had grown closer. Although I didn’t love that he was tormenting her this way, I appreciated that something good was growing out of it.
There was nothing better than falling asleep in my bed with her in my arms. She made waking up something that I looked forward to. I hadn’t felt that way in a very long time.
Her and Codie seemed to enjoy living in the same house together as well. They went out of their way to drive Auryn crazy with their girly shit. He liked to put up a fuss when he found a fluffy pink pillow tossed on his bed or one of those giant Squishmallows left on the couch. I suspected that he secretly enjoyed all of it.
The guys and I were standing around in the campus parking lot. Rebel wanted to discuss an upcoming deal beforewe all went our separate ways. Luna and Codie had already left together to head back to the house. I told her to message as soon as she got there so I knew they were safe. I wouldn’t be far behind them.
Rebel sparked up a fat joint, taking a deep drag. He leaned against the back of his BMW, surveying the rest of us. “So what do we think about the offer we had from the Black Crows MC? They’re willing to pay our regular price plus twenty percent for medical supplies. They want everything from antibiotics to pharmaceutical grade painkillers.”
“I suppose that makes sense,” Auryn said, taking the joint when it came his way. “I imagine those guys have their fair share of injuries to take care of. Sounds good to me. Any steady client is a good client. Better than the one offs.”
I nodded my agreement. This wasn’t the first time a motorcycle club had come to us with a supply request. They were already neck deep in their own business. It was easier for them to outsource to us than to dig up this shit for themselves.
“They’re not from our city either, which makes it less likely for anyone to link our organizations together,” Dom pointed out. “It’s a win-win. As long as Sean has no issues on his end, I’d say we’re good to go ahead with it.”
Sean was the guy who hooked us up with medical supplies. We didn’t know if he worked for a hospital or had his own connection elsewhere. He came through for us, and that’s all that mattered. We didn’t ask and he didn’t tell. Too much information being spread around would only put the entire operation at risk.
“We should probably place an order in advance. We don’t want a long lag time when the MC comes looking for their shit.” Twirling a set of keys on a finger, Stray thoughtfully tilted his head to one side.
“That will involve putting our own money upfront,” I signed. “We wouldn’t want to screw ourselves.”
“I’m pretty sure the MC is good for it. They’ll come through.” Rebel paused to consider the situation before adding, “If they don’t, we’ll unload the supply elsewhere and cut ties with them.”
As the joint made its way around the rest of the circle, we discussed the MC’s reputation. They were known in their city for maintaining order. Staying in control of the organized crime so street gangs and out-of-towners didn’t move into their territory. They’d been around a long time. Longer than we had. They were a solid business partner choice.
We were about to split off and head home when my phone buzzed with a text from Luna asking me to meet her for supper. Assuming she’d gone home, I replied to ask her where she was and why she wasn’t with Codie.
I thought it would be nice for us to have supper alone tonight. I got her to drop me off. See you soon?
I didn’t love that she’d gone anywhere alone even though a public place was relatively safe. After replying to tell her I was on my way, I waved to the guys and headed down the parking lot to my own car.
The address Luna sent brought me to a house at the end of the street in a residential area. This was not a restaurant. Something didn’t feel right.
My first thought was that Jace had somehow gotten his hands on her and brought her here, hoping to lure me in. Maybe I shouldn’t have immediately rushed up the front walk. The sudden burst of rage and adrenaline fogged my head. I wasn’t thinking clearly.
Texting the guys for back up would have been the smartest plan. The thought of Luna in this house with that maniac spurred me onward. I couldn’t leave her in there with him.Clutching my semi-automatic handgun in one hand, I banged on the front door of the house.
The lights were off. No sign of anyone inside. Luna had to be in there.
When nobody answered, I tried the handle. Locked. That wasn’t going to stop me. Bringing my foot up, I gave the door a vicious kick. The door creaked and groaned but didn’t give. One more kick and the door flew open.
I rushed into the house, realizing my mistake too late. Jace stepped out of the darkness. Pressing a Taser against my neck, he dropped me to the floor. The pain was immense. My body stiffened, my muscles tight. I couldn’t move.
He gave me one more shot of the Taser before leaning down to stab a syringe into the side of my neck. In the few seconds before I passed out, I heard him say, “She has a way of making a man stupid, doesn’t she? Don’t worry, Casper, this will all be over soon.”
I wasn’t sure how long I was out for. When I came to, my first awareness was of the pain shooting through my shoulders. I blinked several times before realizing I was in a dusty, unfinished basement. My arms had been pulled up over my head. Handcuffs were locked around my wrists, the chain looped through the iron bars that covered the basement window.
Once I managed to get my feet under me, the pain in my shoulders eased somewhat. I searched the basement for any sign of Luna. She wasn’t here. Jace, however, sat in the middle of the room on a wooden chair, holding my gun in one hand. He held my phone in the other.
“This is the part where I should simply kill you.” He eyed me with intrigue. “That would be too easy though. I need to teach my girl a lesson. I’ll make sure she joins us soon enough. I bet you’re wondering how I messaged you from her phone. Gotta love device cloning.”
I had been wondering. Leave it to a slimy piece of shit like Jace to do something as shady as cloning Luna’s phone. Maybe I was no one to judge since I’d put a tracking app on it. That had been for her protection though. I wouldn’t feel bad about that.
“Why don’t you talk?” Jace asked, as if I would actually answer. Rising from the chair, he sauntered toward me. “I assume that youcantalk since you’re not deaf or anything. Let me guess. Childhood trauma. Classic.”
