Page 26 of Gemini
“I think she’s already being hurt by them. If Dad is serious about his campaign, then they’ll know we are looking for her regardless. If they can be negotiated with somehow…”
“You mean pay a ransom?”
“Basically.”
He was quiet for a moment.
“Dad would pay, you know it,” I said when he didn’t respond.
“Fucking hell,” he muttered. “He probably would.”
“Let’s just…check it out. We don’t have to start anything. Just see. If they’re there, at least we’ll know.”
He was silent again and I knew he was trying to mull it over in his mind. “We’ll check. But we aren’t staying long.”
“Not long.”
“I mean it, Lena. One drink. And you’re buying.”
“This was a dumb idea,” Art said beside me.
We sat in my Jeep in the parking lot of Luke’s bar called The Locust. There was a blue light above the door where a single bouncer stood. A giant locust was painted across one side of the building in case someone needed a hint at the name. We sat for a while, watching a few people come in and out. Waiting to see if any of them looked familiar.
Fifteen minutes later, we saw them. A group of men in black leather, the Serpent patch clear as day on their backs. They came off their motorcycles and headed inside.
My hands tightened on the steering wheel. “You got your gun?”
“Why would I need my gun? I told you we aren’t staying, and we aren’t messing with them.”
“Just in case.”
He shook his head, muttering, “Yeah, I got it. But we can’t take it inside. Against the law.” He took it out of the holster at his belt and stashed it in the glove compartment. Art had been a security guard before he became a cook so at least I felt safe with him having my back. He wasn’t exactly intimidating with his leaner frame, but he was tall and he was stronger and more agile than he looked.
His eyes, dark like mine, studied me. I knew he wanted to just leave. But I also knew he was like me in some ways—stubborn as all hell. He wanted Trish back too. And if there was one thing about my family, we would go to some serious lengths to get what we wanted.
We headed over to the door together. The bouncer asked for our IDs. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket but ignored it as the bouncer let us through.
The place was low lit with a blue light around the bar. Tables and booths took over most of the space with a couple of pool tables and a pinball machine at the back. Some of the neon signs and pictures of city buildings on the walls gave the place a retro feel, but it was mostly your typical dive. Art and I went straight for the bar and sat down at a corner. As we waited for the bartender, I glanced over and saw the group of men sitting at a booth. They were talking loudly as a waitress brought over their drinks. A few had buzzed heads while one had his dark hair slicked back. Obviously, I couldn’t gauge if any of them were with Trish that night since their faces had been covered.
I got Art a drink, then we sat in silence as we listened to them talk. Mostly, it was one guy going off about a girl who gave him the best head in his life.
“Love when they cry. Best thing ever. Just absolutely obliterated, snot running down their face. Then when they try to talk, you slam your cock right down their throat.”
The others laughed and my stomach tightened, rage igniting in me. What if he was talking about my sister?
I was two seconds from getting up and screaming at them to tell me where the fuck my sister was. Then I felt my phone vibrate again.
I took it out and peeked at the screen.
What the hell are you doing?
It was from Dom.
My hand shook. Of course he was watching.
I searched around but saw no sign of them. He must have seen me go into the bar. No way he could see inside.
“You alright?” Art asked.
