Page 56 of Never Gonna Lie (Forbidden #2)
Chapter Fifty-Six
JAMES
I drive as fast as I can, weaving in and out of traffic like a dickhead to get to Raven.
Theo’s sat in the passenger seat, holding on for dear life, his jaw clenched but thankfully not commenting.
Flashbacks of Raven being attacked at the Honey Pot enter my head, sending a wave of anxiety through me.
She’s okay. I will not accept anything less.
“Fuck,” Theo exclaims. “Slow down, you’re gonna get us both killed.”
“I need to get to her,” I growl, never taking my eyes off the road.
“I’m well aware of that but killing us in the process isn’t going to help anything,” he snaps.
I ignore him. I don’t have time for his griping. Not when Raven’s in trouble.
We arrive at the location The Hood gave us, and I slam on the brakes, the echoing sound of police sirens not far away.
“I’m going in,” I tell Theo, storming toward the building .
He grabs my arm. “Like fuck you are. We wait here.”
I shake his hand off, ready to punch the fucker for standing in my way. “Move.” I’ve never laid a hand on Theo out of anger, but I’m ready to throw down right about now.
Theo gets in my face, jaw clenched as he grits out, “You’re not trained to deal with this. You’ll get her killed.” He jabs a finger into my chest as he continues, “You have no fucking clue what you’re doing, think with your fucking head.”
“Theo,” I choke out, emotion hitting me hard in the chest. “I?—”
He grabs the back of my head and places his forehead against mine. “I know, brother, I know.”
“What’s taking so long?” I mutter, pacing anxiously outside. I keep tugging at my hair in frustration, hoping that’ll help—it doesn’t.
It’s been too long. Why aren’t they here yet?
“You gotta give ‘em time, man. Leo and his team will be here soon,” Theo tries to soothe me, but it does nothing to ease the pit in my stomach.
He’s been just as restless as I’ve been, but I think he’s been more worried about my reaction than anything. The last two days have been pure hell, and he’s seen another side to me—one that I never knew existed before.
“Fuck this.” I start walking toward the entrance when Theo grabs me from behind.
“Are you fucking crazy? What are you doing? he shouts. “Have you lost your goddamn mind? ”
“Get the fuck off me, Theo, I’m going in.” I shake him off me, daring him to fight me.
He must sense my determination because he throws his arms in the air in defeat, exclaiming, “Ah fuck, who needs to be a lawyer anyway? Let’s go get ourselves killed.”
I slap him upside his head before pulling out my Glock G17 from my back that I’d stashed before we left.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” Theo whisper-yells. “I did not see that, I did not see that,” he mumbles to himself, placing his hands over his eyes. “I know nothing. Absolutely fucking nothing.”
“You coming or what?” I grit out.
Theo grumbles something unintelligible, and I storm over to the entrance, gun held high.
I was trained in weapons when I was sixteen.
Dear old Dad said a man should always be able to protect himself and his family.
I don’t know why, my father hated his family, so who the fuck he was protecting, I’ll never know.
I’ve never had to use a gun, but that might quickly change.
Slowly moving through the dark corridors with Theo close behind, I check for movement, but it looks clear. Each room we pass—most of them only used for storage—is completely empty.
“This is fucking creepy.” Theo shudders next to me. “I’m just waiting for that creepy clown, IT , to jump out at me and say, ‘Hi, Theo.’” He brushes up closer to me, clutching my jacket.
“Shh, keep your voice down,” I chastise, glancing back at him. “They could still be here.”
“Sorry,” he mumbles. “You know I get chatty when I’m nervous.”
I raise a brow at him but continue down the hallway. “You’re chatty all the time. You’re like the fucking Energizer bunny on steroids.”
“It’s the meds. ”
I come to a stop as I hear voices further down. I gesture with my head to Theo, and we slowly creep toward the sound.
“She goes with the Sheriff. I want her to pay for what he did.”
Not hearing the reply, I press up against the door that’s slightly ajar, looking to see who’s in the room. Two guys in black tactical gear are standing surrounded by storage containers, and a feeling of dread works its way through me.
What the fuck is in them?
The person who kidnapped my girl turns around, and I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut. “Motherfucker.”