Page 123 of Mad Love

“Madison!” I barked her name loud enough that Court swerved the car. Someone honked from the lane next to us. “Don’t even fucking think about it.”

Another soft sigh. “Ry, I’m calling you from the plane. We already took off. But Chase and Tyler are with us,” she added quickly. “Chase said his dad is going to have some hired security guys meet us at the airport.”

Why wasn’t I surprised that Chase was the fucking hero, riding in to save them both?

I pinched the bridge of my nose, panic and fear spiraling me into a stratosphere of anxiety I didn’t know existed. The only reason I’d felt confident going after Gary was because I’d known Maddie was safe and sound in Wyoming. “Are you sitting down?”

She hesitated, and I could practically see the confusion that would be lining her pretty face. “Yes?”

“Enjoy it,” I ground out. “I swear to fuck, when I see you, you won’t sit for another goddamn month without feeling the imprint of my hand on your ass.”

She made a cute little squeaking sound that in any other situation would’ve made my dick harder than steel. Turned out her tiny noises stopped being sexy when her life was in danger.

“Ryan, come on. She’s my best friend,” Maddie tried. “And you’re going after Gary right now, so there’s no real threat to me.”

“You’re kidding, right? Dammit, Maddie, you’re not safe until Gary’s six feet under and being spit-roasted in hell where he belongs,” I argued. I looked back at Knight. “Call Royal. We’re going to L.A.”

“What? No,” Maddie argued, her voice jumping an octave. “Ryan, you have a plan—stick to it. We’ll be okay. Chase—”

“If you mention that asshole to me one more time, I’ll kill him on principle,” I threatened. Maybe I was being irrational, but the idea of Maddie being hours away, walking into a situation I hadn’t fully vetted, scared the piss out of me. Sure, we knew where Gary was, but it wasn’t like Gary was the only enemy we had.

I caught Court’s gaze and knew he was worried about the same thing. Jasper Woods had been quiet—too quiet—lately. He’d gone off the grid, along with Ash’s and Linc’s fathers, when Beckett and Gary had gone down. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that they could come after Maddie or Bex to get at us.

Maddie went quiet for a beat, my first warning a storm was brewing. “He’s helping me, Ryan.”

“I’ll just bet he is,” I drawled, the insinuation heavy in my words. “He’s probably loving every second of this.”

Knight tapped my shoulder with a grim look. “Royal says if we cancel now, we’ll lose our window. Ash has been monitoring his accounts. Gary managed to get enough cash to get him out of the country tomorrow night. He’s already booked a private plane. It’s now or never, Ry.”

“Fuck,” I hissed, slamming my head back against the seat rest.

“Ryan,” Maddie started.

“Not right now,” I snapped, shushing her as I turned to Knight. “What if we split up?”

Knight and Linc exchanged uneasy looks. Yeah, I’d known it was a shit idea as soon as I’d said it. Ash’s intel placed ten guys guarding Gary, and odds were they’d been loaned to him by Jasper Woods. That meant ex-military machines, trained to kill first and ask questions never. Cutting our manpower in half was risky, especially if we wanted to get in and out without this turning into a media circus.

Gary Cabot’s place in Henderson was smack dab in the middle of one of the state’s wealthiest suburbs, a gated community with guards in addition to his personal detail. We’d have to be stealthy and quiet, and that meant no drawn-out fights.

“I’m sorry.” Maddie’s soft voice filled my ear, and I wanted to tie her ass up and lock her in a cage for the rest of her life to make sure she never pulled a stunt like this again. “Ryan, it’s her mom. I couldn’t let her go alone. Bex is a mess, and she needs me.”

I stabbed my fingers into my hair. “Mads, what if Gary set this up to draw you out? I mean, a car accident? Seems pretty convenient.”

She was quiet for a moment. “That still wouldn’t change the fact that Bex needs to go see her mom. And I can’t just let her go by herself, Ryan.”

“Fuck,” I barked, slamming a fist against the door as helplessness surged in my chest. I didn’t know what to do.

“Ry, we’ll stay in public at all times. Gary can’t kidnap me in the middle of a hospital,” Maddie reasoned. “Chase has security guys waiting for us as soon as we get off the plane, and I promise I’ll stay with them.”

Court looked at me, seeming grimly resigned. “It’s your call, bro.” He looked away, knowing that he didn’t have a right to get pissed at Bex or demand she do what he wanted.

“Let me talk to Chase,” I said with an aggrieved sigh.

“Why?” Suspicion clouded her tone.

I gritted my teeth. “Because I want to make sure he understands all the ways I’m going to kill him if anything happens to either of you.”

“Um, okay.” There was a soft rustling as she passed the phone to the Duke of Douches.

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