Page 20

Rex

I come awake with a jerk, and it shoots pain through every part of me. I don’t even bother to think about which injury hurts the most anymore. They all hurt. To make things even more miserable, I’m hot. Unbearably so, and I know what that means. I have an infection, and I’m guessing it’s the bullet that caused one. Gunshot wounds are notorious for getting infected. If I’m not found or I don’t escape soon, things are going to go downhill and fast.

“Nice of you to join us again,” Gary taunts from the other side of the table. “You missed out on a lot of the fun.”

“Damn. I hate it when that happens,” I reply, but my voice is scratchy and dry.

“Need water?” Dave asks.

“Yeah,” I say, and am not surprised when it gets thrown on me.

I don’t mind since it was cool, and I’m sure I’m running a fever, but swallowing some would have been nice too.

“Nice touch, Davie,” I mutter.

“Boss doesn’t like that we’ve busted you up a little, but as long as your fingers work, she won’t say much,” Gary explains before planting his foot in the middle of my chest and kicking me and the chair over backward.

I land with a crash but did manage to keep my head from bouncing off the cement again. The movement of the chair being set back upright nearly causes me to blackout again, but my mind holds on. I’m not sure that’s a blessing, though, when I take a blow to my left temple that leaves me reeling. My head falls forward, and I no longer have the strength to raise it up again.

“Who’s here?” Gary suddenly asks.

“No one should be coming by unless it’s Savi,” Dave responds before they walk toward the stairs.

“Oh, it’s just you two. Heard footsteps and wondered if the boss was here,” Gary states.

The words no more than leave his mouth, and I see a flash of something near one of the windows. I concentrate on focusing my eyes enough to see what it is, but it moves out of view.

My four captors continue chatting with Carrot Top and Eddie at the top of the stairs and Gary standing a few up from the bottom. Dave is still standing on the basement floor. When I see movement near the window again, I focus as much as I can, and then the air leaves my lungs when I recognize Loki’s face peering into the window.

“Loki!” I shout as loud as I can.

“What the fuck’s wrong with you? Quit your fucking shouting, asshole,” Dave hollers while pointing a finger at me.

The loud crash of a door being kicked in is a beautiful sound to my battered soul. But the best sound of all time is the one the dogs make when they attack. Dave starts to bolt away from the staircase, reaching for his gun, but he’s not fast enough. Cain tackles Gary on the stairs, and their momentum knocks Dave down with them.

Cain doesn’t take a second to think about his attack plan. He just grabs Gary by the throat, and Gary’s screams stop instantly. Dave is on his back, trying to scramble backward and pull his gun at the same time. Cain lets go of Gary and pounces like a cat on top of Dave. When his large, powerful jaws clamp over Dave’s face, he half lifts Dave’s body from the floor and then shakes him hard. Dave’s screams of agony are music to my ears.

Suddenly, Carrot Top is flying down the stairs. Literally, he’s not running down them, he’s sailing through the air and lands in a heap of busted bones at the bottom. Loki’s halfway down the stairs when he leaps and lands on Carrot Top.

“Kick his ass, Loki! Get him, Cain!” I order.

Loki bites down on Carrot Top’s shoulder and starts tugging him across the room. As much as I enjoy seeing this, I don’t think Carrot Top is still a part of this world. His days have passed, but Loki seems to be enjoying himself, so I sit and watch.

Cain still has a hold of Dave’s face, and Dave’s whole existence is being a squeaky toy for a large, pissed-off dog. Cain jerks on Dave’s head and Dave squeaks. Cain repeats the maneuver, and so does Dave. If I weren’t in so much pain, I’d sit here all day just to watch Cain play with his food.

“Rex! Rex!” I hear shouted from above.

“Down here!”

The pounding of footsteps on the stairs nearly causes my head to split in half, but the sight of my club brothers eases it a little.

“Fuck, brother. Hang on. I’ll get these ropes cut off,” Trigger says while pulling out a knife and proceeding to do what he promised.

“Do we let him continue or call him off?” Pooh asks.

Gunner responds with, “Fuck, no. Let him enjoy himself.”

Several men, faces a little blurry to me, gather around and lift me out of the chair. I try to breathe through the pain, but there’s no stopping it. I do recognize Horse when he appears at my side with water. He holds the bottle to my mouth, and I drink a lot of it.

I remember Cash carrying me up the stairs, and because of the pain it caused, I don’t think I’ll ever forget that short journey. He lays me flat on an old couch, and Petey moves in to assess my injuries. I hear Gunner in the background on his phone and the dogs still growling in the basement. The only other thing my mind can process is that I need Aria to know I’m safe and okay.

“Aria?” I ask.

“She’s at the clubhouse with Pigeon and Axel. She hasn’t stopped helping to find you from the minute she knew you were missing. You’re a lucky bastard,” Petey says. “Lie still, and let me decide whether we’re going to the hospital or not.”

“Not. Clubhouse. Aria and Taja will know what to do,” I order, then promptly pass out.

When I wake up the next time, I know I’m in my room at the clubhouse. Not wanting to move and cause more pain, I only use my eyes to search for Aria. I find her standing near my dresser, filling a syringe.

“Hey,” I say in a croaky voice.

Aria whirls around, and my eyes land on her beautiful face. When a broad smile hits it, I try to smile back, but I’m not sure I succeed.

“Hey yourself,” Aria says as she takes a careful seat on the bed next to me. “So glad you’re finally awake.”

“Did the guys just get me here?” I ask in a tone quiet enough it doesn’t hurt my head.

“No, you’ve been here for three days now. You’ve woken up before this, but you weren’t coherent. Now it seems you are, and that’s a great sign,” Aria states in a soft voice. “You’ve also woken up just in time for your next shot.”

“No. I want to stay awake. Want to talk with you.”

“It’s an antibiotic. It won’t make you sleepy. Promise,” Aria says before lifting the blankets and giving me the injection in my arm.

“Did the guys find Savi?” I ask.

“The Morales family did with the intel you sent Pigeon. He figured out how to utilize it and turned everything over to the Moraleses. They also tracked down the females that had been taken from the Denver area and the one from Wyoming. They’ve been returned to their families. The other women in that folder you sent haven’t been found yet. The Morales family left yesterday with Savi, and they are positive they can break her and find the other women. They also took the little guy who was still alive. The other three didn’t survive their injuries. So sad.”

“Did Pigeon use facial recognition?” I question because I’m positive I never taught him that yet.

“Not at first. We did it by comparing each photo to missing person photos. It took forever, but we did find several matches. Eventually, my brothers, Craig, and Reeves figured out your facial recognition program, and things went much quicker then.”

“I’m guessing Craig actually figured it out, and the men say they did so they don’t look bad,” I say.

“Pretty much exactly how it went down. Male egos, though, need protecting,” Aria answers with another smile. “Only Luke and Craig could figure out how to fly your drones, too. Craig gave the credit to Luke, though. He said Luke can fly them as well as you.”

“He can. He’s a quick learner, just like Craig.”

“Want some more good news?” Aria asks with an arched brow.

“Please.”

“Craig said your debt is paid off, and you don’t owe him any more money. Mine is too. It’s a win for both of us,” Aria states while placing her cool palm against my forehead.

“That’s great. I wonder how long it’ll last before I incur another debt, though. The kid is ruthless.”

“I’m going to let everyone know you’re awake and doing better. Be right back.”

Aria leaves, and a minute later, I hear loud cheers from the main room. Footsteps follow, and my room is suddenly full of people. It’s nice to be back with my family.

“The funeral home let me stay during the cremation process. I have her ashes, and we can decide later what to do with them. Maybe bury them or spread them somewhere nice,” Candy explains. “Reeves and I found a company to clean the office building. They’re discreet and did a great job.”

“Thanks for all of that, Candy. Not sure what we’d do without you,” I say sincerely.

“I didn’t do much. There were so many men available to kick in the door I decided to stay back with Luke and Craig. Figured if I left them alone, Craig would have definitely found his way into the middle of the fight.”

“No doubt,” I agree.

“If you’re up to it, there’s some little people waiting in the main room that want to see you,” Candy says as she stands.

“Yeah. I am. It’ll be nice to see them again.”

Candy leaves and shows back up with the kids. Liam gets help onto the bed from one of the twins and sits on the edge, staring at my many bruises.

“Kithin door?” he asks, and I smile.

“Not this time, buddy. How’s everyone doing?”

That’s all I need to say, and the kids start chattering. The twins, Mia and Zoe, start in with a story about their donkeys, Moose and Matilda. When one pauses, the other takes over. It’s cute to watch just how identical they are in some ways.

Little Alex is sitting on the other side of the bed near my head and is telling me all about her little sister, Charlie.

Chasin, Gunner’s youngest, and Kalea, Vex’s daughter, are being held by their moms at the foot of the bed. Luke and Craig are sitting on the dresser, signing to each other, totally ignoring the chatter. Some of the guys are near the door, with Chubs and Lucy just inside it. The room is packed with the people that mean the most to me, with only a few not present. While nodding encouragingly at Liam, who I can’t always understand yet, my eyes meet Aria’s, and hers soften along with a small smile touching her mouth. I’m home. We’re both safe, and today is the beginning of our future together.

While it was nice to be at the clubhouse, I’m glad to be back at my place. While there, Aria always had others around to help when she needed it while taking care of me. Now that I can walk, not well yet, but I’m more mobile, I said I was ready to go home. Aria took charge and made it happen even over the protests of some of the others.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather be at your place instead?” I ask as Aria sets plates on the bar.

“No, not really. Lisa and Lucy went there yesterday and packed a lot of clothes and things I need and brought them here. Unless you’d rather be there,” Aria answers.

“No, I’m good. I just know how much you wanted to reclaim it after the Dale situation,” I state and watch her closely.

“I did reclaim it. I stayed and showered and felt at peace. Now, I’m here, and I’m happy about that. If I weren’t, I’d tell you,” Aria replies with a grin.

“Okay. When we decide to move in together, we can discuss which place we want to keep.”

“Rex. Really? Dude, we are living together, and we’re doing it here,” Aria answers with a laugh.

“I thought you were just here to help for now,” I mutter while feeling like an idiot.

“I can do that if that’s where you’re at in our relationship,” she says in a hesitant voice.

“No! No, not at all! I’m way out in front of that with us. I just didn’t realize you were too.”

“Are you sure?” she asks, voice still tentative.

“Positive! If I hadn’t been injured, we would still be sleeping in a bed together each night. That’s where I’m at in our relationship,” I answer with a grin.

“If you’re positive, I’ll find a moving company to pack up the rest of my place and bring it here or put it in storage for now. No sense paying for two homes,” Aria responds, and I love how practical she sees life.

“It’s official then. We’re official,” I say and laugh at her eye roll.

“Aria?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you. So fucking much,” I admit in a gruff voice.

Aria stops rifling through the silverware and stands, staring at me for several beats of my heart. I start to get nervous that I rushed that proclamation, but she quickly pushes that thought out of my mind.

Walking around the bar and stopping at my side, I tip my head up to make eye contact. We do, and it lasts for a hot second before her mouth crashes down on mine. Kissing me, slow and deep, Aria presses her body against mine and runs her hands through my hair. I grasp her hips, and she tilts her head for a better angle.

When she finally pulls her mouth away from mine, I feel the words brush against my skin as she says them.

“I love you, too. So fucking much.”