Page 63 of On The Run

Aspen gave his brother some side eye. “Yeah, I guess like a cult. Anyway, they got raided by the DEA a few years back, and they found enough cocaine and heroin to drug up every person in a five-state radius.”

Kai whistled, impressed. “The place was shut down, and it’s been abandoned ever since.”

“Until now?” I asked, hope starting to plant its roots deep inside my soul.

Aspen looked at me, his eyes glassy with excitement and a huge smile on his face. It was clear he loved doing this. “Until now.”

“Is it them?” Bronx asked. And I was grateful he took that step because the words were lodged in my throat.

“I don’t know,” Aspen said, deflating me instantly. “I’ve only seen one person, and only a glimpse coming from an underground bunker. I can’t make a positive ID on whether it’s Giovani or Aiden.”

But it could be. There was a fucking chance. We had a lead, something to hold onto.

“Are there any cars or trucks around, sunshine?”

Aspen shook his head. “None that I can see. I think one of those buildings was used as a garage and I’m guessing he parked the car in there.”

“Well, what does this mean? Is it enough to go on?” Sage asked, eyeing Kai.

The rest of us all turned to look at the man, since he was really the only one who could make this call. If he said no, I may do something rash, but I really, really hope he didn’t.

“Yeah. It’s the only fucking lead we’ve gotten, so we’ll take it. I’ll work on getting a team out here. There’s a lot of fucking land, and we have no idea what weapons Santino might have. I’m not taking any chances.”

Kai had his sole focus on me, his gaze heavy. I got his silent message.Stay patient. Don’t do anything stupid.

“I understand,” I told him. Because I did. We couldn’t risk anyone getting killed, even if waiting any longer would take more patience than I had.

Kai’s stare lingered. He was probably making sure I wasn’t lying. Then he nodded, satisfied. “Good. Aspen, keep looking. Try to get us more concrete evidence this is the place. We need all the possible details on the location. If you need help from Maddox or one of the other techs, get it.”

I learned over the last day that Maddox was the head of their technology department and was still back at their home base taking care of things there. “Yes, sir. I will.”

Kai spun Aspen and tucked his fingers under his chin, forcing the younger man’s head up. Once Aspen made eye contact, Kai leaned in and kissed him. It was so intimate that I had to look away. It was a private moment, and it would be rude for me to watch, even if he did it in front of an audience. I noticed that Bronx and Sage also looked away. We all felt the importance of that kiss between the two men and weren’t going to witness more than we had to.

And then Kai broke it, and both men were back at work without hesitation. I was left breathless and a little lightheaded, like I was the one Kai kissed instead of Aspen. I’d been continually impressed with how well these two men could compartmentalize. Kai took his one moment, his tiny sliver of time to be selfish, and then was immediately back into the job. It was impressive, but I knew one thing as fact: when I got Aiden back, I wasn’t just taking one tiny moment. No, I’d be taking all the moments I could, and he wouldn’t be out of my sight for a long time.

Chapter28

Max

“What doyou mean I have to stay here?” I snapped at Kai as I watched him dress in tactical gear I’d never seen outside of a movie. Kai glared at me before returning to his task.

“I mean exactly what I said. I know you care for the boy, Max, but the best thing you can do for him is stay here. You’re not trained to go into this kind of situation. You don’t know what you’re doing and are liable to get yourself, my team, and Aiden killed.”

Well, that was unnecessarily brutal. Aspen’s eyes were as wide as saucers behind his boyfriend/boss, and I could hear Bronx and Sage snickering over to the side. “Ok, well, that was a little harsh.”

Kai sighed heavily, like he was over my shit, which, honestly, I couldn’t blame him. I was pretty close to unbearable the last few hours while he prepared for this mission. I didn’t sit on the sidelines very well. He was right though. I’d probably cause more problems rather than help. Still, I wanted to be there for Aiden when they rescued him. I wanted him to know he wasn’t alone.

“Listen, Max. Trust me, I get what you’re going through. But one, we don’t even know he’s there. And two, if he is, we have no idea what condition he’s in. You need to be prepared for that. I know you want to be there for him, but the best way to do that now is to stay here with Aspen, Sage, and your friend. Aspen has eyes and ears on the whole operation. You won’t be out of the loop. Let us worry about getting the boy out of there. Once he’s safe, then your job will begin, and it’s not going to be easy.”

I turned away from Kai, unable to face him and his cold hard truths, even if they were accurate. Kai didn’t say anything and let me walk toward the big window in the hotel. The curtain was closed, but I suddenly felt very claustrophobic and pushed open the floral fabric. We had a beautiful view of the Wyoming landscape, which was wide open. I could probably see for miles if it weren’t for the mountains in the distance, but it didn’t do anything to help the feeling of the walls closing in on me.

I understood I had to let this go. Kai was right that I’d only hinder them. I pushed my face against the glass like Gray always did whenever we traveled, and I suddenly got the appeal. The cool temperature was enough of a shock to my system to help me think clearly and keep it together.

I took a deep breath.In and out. In and out.After a full minute of smudging the window and breathing deeply, I finally acknowledged Kai again.

Much to his credit, Kai had just gone about his business and let me take the time I needed. “Ok, I’ll stay here. You’re right.”

Kai raised an eyebrow. “And you won’t try to sneak out and follow me or anything?”

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