Page 33 of Ma Belle Marguerite (Hidden Secrets #1)

Alexander

I meet up with Josh at Bella’s place after I drop the kids off at school. He brings a couple of laptops so he can keep an eye on the searches he has running for me while helping with packing.

I decide to text Bella. She hasn’t texted me today, and I expected a few sassy remarks, considering I just left her at the house.

Did D get to the house yet to pick you up? I’m waiting for you at your place.

When she doesn’t read or respond after a few minutes, my stomach drops.

“Josh, has D said if he got to the house yet to pick up Bella?” I’m getting anxious.

Something doesn’t feel right. “They are supposed to be getting here any minute. I’m surprised she didn’t sneak off and get here earlier. I left the key in the Mustang for her.”

“Relax, boss. He should just be getting there now. I can check their phone trackers if you want.” Josh sounds like he is trying to placate me, his voice quiet and reserved. “Maybe she is just giving D a hard time. You did mention she wasn’t happy this morning about all of this.”

“Yes, check them, and look at the security cameras while you’re at it.” I can’t seem to stop pacing around the small dining room we set up a temporary workspace in. “I need to know. My gut says something is wrong, and it’s rarely off.” I knew I shouldn’t have left her alone.

“Everything looks normal on the security feed. I can only see outside, since you had me disable the inside cameras. D’s truck isn’t there yet.” He starts typing away while I lean over his shoulder to see what he’s looking at on his screen.

“Okay, so where is D, then?” He’s never let me down before, but I feel like I’m missing something. He wouldn’t go MIA for no reason.

“Well, his phone is showing his last location right here, about two minutes away from your place.” He points to a dot on the screen only a few blocks from the house.

“It hasn’t moved in about 15 minutes.” Josh sighs.

“Reception is spotty there so it could just be slow. I’ll send a ping through to get an update. ”

“What about Bella’s?” She doesn’t know we snuck a tracker on her phone. She would have freaked out if I had asked. This is a case of ‘better to ask for forgiveness than permission.’

“Well, she definitely found the keys to the Mustang.” Josh sounds worried. That can’t be good. “It’s on the move, but her phone is at home.” He looks at me with his mouth in a grimace and squinted eyes.

“What do you mean by that? Show me,” I demand. There is no room for pleasantries here.

He turns his second laptop towards me, and I can see two dots moving along a road outside of town. Where the hell is she going? “I thought her phone was at home.” My stomach starts to cramp and I feel like I am going to be sick.

“It is, I don't know if she is with Cole. The other dot with the mustang is his phone.” His voice shakes, as if he’s scared I may take my anger out on him. My hands are white from my grip on the arm of his chair.

“That’s the road to the bunker.” He pulls out his phone, and I see that he’s dialing D’s number before he puts it on speaker. That fucker better pick up.

“Why the hell would they be together? Cole hates her.” I knew something was going on.

“Also, why would she be headed to the bunker? She doesn’t even know it exists.

Them being together doesn’t make any sense.

” My hands are shaking and I want to smash things.

He may be my brother, but he is never up to anything good.

If he even harms a hair on her head I will make sure he wishes he was never even born.

“Come on, man, answer the phone.” I hear Josh mumble to himself.

After about five rings, D answers, and all we can hear is the sound of him groaning.

“D, are you okay?” Josh asks.

“Josh, what’s going on?” D sounds groggy. “My head hurts. I don’t know what happened.”

“Look around, where are you?” I need to figure how out of it he is.

“I’m close to your place. By the old sled trail.” I can hear him moving around like his feet are shuffling through long weeds. “I was driving and saw a car pulled off on the side of the road. There was a girl trying to change a tire by herself. I stopped to help. Then everything went dark.”

“D, do you still have your dashcam in the truck?” Josh asks him.

“Yeah, good thinking. Let me get back to the truck, and I’ll head to you.” After a moment, I hear the rattle of his keys as he starts the engine.

“No,” I say. “Go to my place and see if you can find Bella. We’ll meet you there. We’re at her place, so it won’t take us long to get home. Be careful.” Josh has more of this equipment there and it’s a shorter drive for D in his condition.

“10-4 boss,” D says as he hangs up.

“What the fuck is going on around here?” I’m getting very pissed off not knowing everything that I should. My father may still be the head of the organization, but I am the one that people are supposed to report to, not hide things from. “Someone's head is going to roll for this.”

Josh is moving quickly, putting his computers away in his bag, and nods towards me. “We’ll figure it out, don’t worry.”

I wish I felt half as confident as he sounds right now.

It doesn’t take Josh long to finish packing his stuff up, and then we hop in the car and head home. Bella’s and the kids' things can wait.

Josh watches Bella’s tracker on his phone as I race us through town towards my house. One of the perks of my position in this town is that no cop will dare pull me over.

Once we reach my place, I jump out to check on D, who is sitting on the tailgate of his truck. He isn’t looking so great, his face is pale and his eyes half closed. I can see blood dripping down the back of his head.

“Josh check on him. I am going to look for Bella.” I run into the house searching every room for her. Fuck! Where the hell is she?

I run back out to see the guys are still by the truck.

“I’m sorry, boss. I should have kept driving and come straight here.” He won’t meet my eyes as he talks and stares at the ground as if he is waiting for me to punish him.

Is D seriously apologizing right now? “Stop that. You did what any decent person would do. You stopped to help someone in need. How were you supposed to know they’d attack you?” I pat his shoulder, avoiding the blood in case it’s another injury. “Did she take your wallet or anything?”

“No, I still have everything, which is what I don’t get.” D grimaces as he shakes his head.

“Do you want to see the Doc?” D is ex-military and tough as they come, but head wounds can really mess you up.

“I’m good. I’ll just take some ibuprofen and walk it off.” He tries to wave me away while I try and see how bad the back of his head looks.

I hear a door slam and turn to see Josh walking towards us from the passenger side of the truck. “Let’s go inside and check out what is on here, shall we?” He waves the dash cam in the air in front of him.

Nodding, I turn and walk towards the front doors as D jumps off the back of the truck and follows behind me.

“Let’s set up in the kitchen so I can get someone to check out the back of your head, D,” I say as I pull my phone out to text one of the housekeepers, who used to be a nurse. I don’t care if he thinks he is fine, we need to make sure.

While Josh is setting up and looking through the footage, D is getting his head looked at. Of course he is grunting his disapproval and saying this isn’t necessary.

I decide to text Bella again while I wait. I know Josh said her phone was here but what if that was wrong?

Me: I’m getting worried, Ma Belle . Where are you? I’m home, and you’re not here. Please answer me.

“Boss, you’re going to want to see this.” Josh looks at me with squinted eyes.

I walk over to him, “Show me.” My voice comes out as more of a growl than words, but I can’t find it in myself to care.

He hits play on the video from the camera. I see D walking towards a brunette with her back to him. She’s fighting with the tire on her car.

Wait, that car looks familiar, but I can’t place where I know it from. As D bends down to help her, a man runs out from the bushes in the ditch and hits him over the head with a tire iron.

What the hell? The girl gets up and turns around to look at the man with a smirk. Seeing her face shocks me and I am stuck staring at the screen like an idiot. It can’t be!