Page 151 of Steel

“Baby girl, I need you to look up something.”

“What is it?”

“Property. Under the name Donald Moore. Check everywhere, Jaeda. In and out of state.”

“I got you. We’re heading back to the compound right now.”

“We’ll meet you there. Love you.”

“Love you too.” He hung up and slipped his phone back into his pocket before looking at me. “We’re gonna find him,” he said, pulling me in for a hug.

I prayed to God this road led to somewhere.

I wasin awe as I sat in Quaid and Jaeda’s office space.

It looked like something straight out of a movie. There were so many monitors and electronic devices that I was afraid to even touch anything. I knew she was the family tech and that he owned a cyber security company, but this . . . this was amazing. Watching them go at it on those keyboards and seeing so much information pop up was exciting. It was clear that they weren’t your average nerds.

“They do this all day?” I asked the girls.

I was sitting with them and my sister in the back of the room while everyone else gathered around the work area.

“All day,” Shar confirmed. “The rest of the family might be dangerous, but these are the two I would never want to fuck with. They can wipe out your entire bank account or plant incriminating evidence that will put you away for life. Plus, both of them have hands and can shoot. Triple threat.”

“Speaking of a threat,” Dinah said. “So we’re just not gonna talk about the way Ms. Tavia snatched that big ass man up?”

Salima smirked. “Girl, all of them get snatched up by their mamas. In most cases, they love fucking with them. I feared for my damn self when he yelled at her, ’cause what?”

Shar giggled. “Girl, I was ready to put myself in the corner. You see Senior was quick to grab her up. He knew what time it was.”

“You also saw how he fell in line,” Romi added.

“Straight drill sergeant his ass,” Shar agreed. “It’s funny now, but on some real shit, that man and his baby mamas don’t play about their kids. Grown and all, they will gather them in one breath and love on them in the next.”

That much I knew was true. When they left the house, Nayelli had tapped my shoulder and asked me if Kerrion was in trouble with her grandmother. Ms. Tavia was usually cool, calm, and collected, so to see her out of character was alarming. I understood it, though. He needed his family, and he was pushing them away. KJ might have been his son, but they loved him, and this was hurting them too.

“You think they’ll be able to find her?” I asked, choking on my tears.

They all reached out and touched my hand.

“They will,” Salima said. “Shar and I were both kidnapped and they found us. It’s kind of their thing.”

“Wait,” Dinah said. “I’m not trying to be funny, but you mean to tell me that kidnapping is a regular occurrence in this family?”

The girls nodded. “Pretty much,” they all said.

“Oh, hell nah. I gotta get away from Kaylynn’s ass.”

We shared a small laugh, a first for me in days. I was so worried about KJ, especially with the state of mind his grandmother was in. If anything were to happen to him, it wouldkill me. A tear slipped down my cheek, and I quickly swiped it away.

“You really love that baby, don’t you?” Shar asked.

I nodded. “I do. That’s my baby. I love him as much as I love Nayelli. My heart hurts so bad right now.”

I broke into tears for what felt like the millionth time in the last couple of days. I never thought I’d grow so attached to that little boy so soon, but I did. I loved and cared for him, and not knowing where he was or if he was safe tore me up inside.

“Found it!” Jaeda exclaimed.

We all sprang to our feet and went over to the rest of the group to see her findings.