Page 6

Taylor

A group of four men and three women file out of a black Suburban, and I instantly know they are all brothers, which can mean one thing.

The Hayes brothers are here and judging by the look on their faces, they are not happy.

A man with a gray beanie and black and red flannel heads straight for Boone. “Boone. Start talking now.”

My eyebrows raise and I keep my feet planted firmly in place against the bar next to Tucker.

Boone points to the large circular booth in the corner of the room and the rest of the brothers and the women they brought with them follow.

Boone glances over his shoulder and signals Indy and Zoro to follow and I wait for him to tell everyone else to leave the common room, but he doesn’t.

“Tay and Tucker, stay behind. Everyone else get back to work. Tombstone, cameras.”

Everyone in the room vacates while Tucker and I move to the opposite end of the bar, which sits directly across from the booth.

I look at Tucker in confusion, but he shrugs and turns his attention to the table.

Boone straightens in his seat, and I can tell he is on edge. He goes to speak, but the man in the flannel interrupts him.

“Let’s get introductions out of the way first, since there are some unfamiliar faces.” Leaning forward, he motions for Tucker and me to pull up chairs and join them at the table. We all do so without hesitation and Tucker whispers, “That’s Landon Hayes.”

Well, that certainly makes sense why Boone is on edge.

What I want to say is that I already know who all these men are because the second I found out what this entire organization was, I looked up every single one of them. There wasn’t much, but I suspect that is on purpose. Who I haven’t seen is the women they brought with them.

Landon leans back against the booth, his arm resting behind a girl with short, light brown hair. “This is my fiancée, Allie.” He points to the woman on his other side, who has dark brown hair in long braids down the side of her head, wearing black-rimmed glasses. “This is Logan, and the big brute on the other side of her is her husband and my younger brother, Grayson.”

Grayson nods towards us and the girls wave.

Landon is about to continue when the heavily tattooed blonde man speaks up. “I got this big bro. I’m Noah. The best looking Hayes brother. The growling one, on the other side of the gorgeous redhead Harper, is Wesley. Don’t worry. They both look like they are going to bite, but they won’t…At least I don’t think so.” Noah’s head snaps towards his oldest brother, but Wesley doesn’t give him the time of day.

Tucker chuckles beside me and I smile in the direction of the very intimidating Hayes Crew, also known as Team Blackbird within Resilience.

Boone doesn’t waste a second and introduces all of us, everyone exchanging pleasantries, before attention falls on Landon, anger evident on his face.

His mouth opens to speak, but his fiancée leans in and whispers something. His face falls to a slightly more calm demeanor, and he threads his fingers with Allie’s over her shoulder. Landon’s chest rises as he levels his gaze with Boone. “Speak. Don’t leave out a single detail, then I want to know why you decided to keep this a secret for two fucking months?”

A wave of uneasiness falls over the room, but Boone doesn’t allow it to show when he straightens in his seat and begins explaining everything from the moment Ari left to every dead end we’ve encountered. And by the time he’s done, Landon and the rest of Blackbird have a look of confusion mixed with defeat written all over their features. Well, all except Harper and Wesley. Their unbothered expressions haven’t changed the entire time they’ve been here.

“So he disappeared without a trace and there hasn’t been a lead in nearly two months?” Grayson asks.

“Yes,” Boone says, sadness and regret filling his voice.

“And you haven’t been able to tap into his phone the entire time?”

“No.” Boone pauses and looks to me briefly before returning his attention back to Grayson. “Taylor wasn’t able to gather anything other than the location of the dead end to the Morrison case. We searched every square inch within a fifty-mile radius of that location. Whoever took him was a professional and didn’t leave a shred of evidence in their wake.”

Everyone nods, a silence falling over the group and you can hear the gears turning in their heads.

My chest aches at the sight of the men from both teams realizing that one of their most lethal leaders is out there alone and completely helpless.

Leaning back in my chair, I stare up at the vaulted ceiling and close my eyes.

Why am I feeling so guilty? Why am I so troubled by this man that I am fifty percent certain hates my guts? I know he looks at me as if I am a loose cannon, and some days, wishes I had never come to Braveheart.

What can I say? I’m a tough pill to swallow and I have no plans to change.

I say what I feel. Refuse to put up with anyone’s shit. And most of all, I am constantly in a state of protecting myself and the ones I love within this clubhouse. If I had a dollar for every time I broke a nose or cracked the rib of a prospect or any man in general because they stepped just a hair over the line with one of the women within these walls, I’d be a millionaire. Hence why Aries and Boone installed a hanging bag in the gym. I was becoming a liability, but they couldn’t let me go, so they had to redirect my anger elsewhere before I scared off all the eager prospects itching to fulfill their needs to avenge whatever demons they joined Braveheart to slay.

As the million and one reasons cross my mind to why Aries has kept me around for so long filter through my head, I feel my knee start bouncing.

Quickly, I place my hand on my leg and glance around the room to make sure no one caught a lapse of letting my guard down. It’s bad enough I have a large red flag in the form of a brace on my wrist, reminding everyone of the day that I let my emotions get the best of me.

Landon’s voice cuts through my never ending thoughts and I focus my attention on him.

“Well. I’ll commend you all on a job well done. You have done everything I would have done and more. Unfortunately, I agree with you. Whoever this is, he’s an expert and didn’t want anyone finding him.”

Great. Even the leader of this entire organization looks just as lost as everyone else is.

“So, what would you advise us to do next?” Zoro asks.

Wesley leans forward, his hands balling and resting on the table. “You sit and wait for them to mess up.”

Indy’s eyes narrow and he briefly glances at his husband before returning his attention back to Wesley.

“You’re going to need to explain to us common, non-psychotic folks what you mean, almighty dark lord?” Harper’s voice is full of sarcasm and maybe a hint of hatred. Her eyes never meet Wesley’s, but the look he is drilling into the side of her head could kill someone on the spot.

Leaning over, he whispers something in her ear before turning his attention back to the group. “My apologies. Harper is jealous that she doesn’t share the same instincts that we do within Resilience.” He pauses for a brief moment as Harper drives her elbow into his ribs. Hard. My eyes widen at his lack of reaction and glance at Tucker, who mouths “scary”, before turning his attention back to the table.

“Whoever is responsible is a professional. They have done this before. You have exhausted all your attempts at finding him and it has been unsuccessful. Now you wait for them to mess up. Even the most trained killer cannot stay hidden for long. Especially because they kidnapped Aries while he was on a mission. They are waiting for you to give up and strike you when you least expect it. All you can do is sit back and wait for them to come to you. And when they do, be ready, because this will be your only chance at getting Aries back. That is, if he is still breathing.”

It feels as if a knife is stabbing me in the chest at Wesley’s casual innuendo that Aries may not be alive at this point rings in the air.

Logan leans forward, her eyes narrowing at Wesley. “Nice delivery. You couldn’t have just told them to be prepared? You had to throw in that last jab?”

Wesley shrugs and sits back against the booth, clearly done with the conversation.

Geez. That man is terrifying.

“Although his delivery may be off, Wes is right. All we can do is wait.” Landon looks to me and continues, “Taylor. I’ve heard your skills are excellent. You will be crucial when they expose themselves, so even if you come across something that looks like a dead end, explore it.”

I nod, and a bit of pride fills my chest at my obsessive digging. The past nearly two months have been futile, but if the leader of the most lethal and successful mercenary group thinks I should continue on my path, I sure as hell will.

The rest of the room erupts in chatter and I excuse myself, needing a break from the noise.

My feet move quickly and as soon as I shut my door, I walk straight to my bed and fall face first into the mattress.

An overwhelming wave of exhaustion hits me and I feel myself drift off to sleep, the mental and physical stress of the past few months smacking me in the face.

Where are you, Aries? Just give me one sign and I will come running.