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“He took off. Or got taken. Don’t know yet.”
“What?”
“He didn’t show up tonight for a dinner thing with Tess. She hasn’t heard from him. He was supposed to be here at midnight to pull night duty and relieve Dex. Dex had to split so I got someone in to cover when Jimmy didn’t answer his phone but he’s been acting weird. It’s possible he’s flipped. Or someone has him. It could have something to do with the cops picking you up today. That he didn’t tell me about the weapons you gave him isn’t cool, doesn’t look good. He didn’t know I was armed under the bed. No one but you knew that. Did you tell him where you got them?”
“No, I just carried them out to him in a plastic grocery bag and said, can you please put these somewhere? Tommy left them. He just took them from me and said okay.”
“He has all the codes to get in the house and I’ve changed everything but I won’t have us be sitting ducks. I don’t know where the guards are all gone. I woke up out of nowhere, feeling like something wasn’t right and no one’s here. Shoulda been two guys. Phones all go to voicemail.”
“And you think it’s James?”
“I dunno.”
“But he’s your brother in law, he’s…”
“Dare’s moving Tess and the boys to his place while we figure it out. He’s either been taken or gone rogue. My guards are gone, Tia. Gone. Two guys just vanished and the gate was closed but unlocked. Something is fucking very wrong and we’re not sitting around to wait to find out what that something is.”
We pulled into the driveway of an indu
strial plaza and then behind to a gated mini storage place, Tommy’s cell blooped and he looked at it, “Fuck. Luciana’s in labor.”
“Should we go to the hospital?” I asked.
He shook his head, “No, Ed’ll text me with news.”
Tommy stopped at the storage place, a big long alleyway of orange garage doors. He replied to his text then got out, leaving the car running, opened one of the orange doors and shut the door behind him. Then he came back out with a black backpack slung over one shoulder. He drove us the rest of the way to the farm and when we got there we headed up the stairs in the barn and dropped our bags and I flopped into bed. It was 4:20 AM. I wasn’t sure I could sleep, though. He wasn’t sleeping. He sat at the table texting or doing something on his phone, drinking a beer, the backpack on the floor beside him. I didn’t wanna know what was in it but I could guess.
I laid there for a long time watching him and eventually he got in beside me and pulled me to him and we both fell asleep around the time the sun rose.
He woke me up, “Baby, let’s go get coffee.”
I groaned, then asked, “Is the baby here yet?”
“No. Get up; I have to talk to you.”
I sat up, “What time is it?”
“8:15.”
“Argh, didn’t we just fall asleep?”
“Tia.” The seriousness of his tone snapped me out of my sleepy grumpy haze. I got to my feet and reached for a pair of yoga pants in the bag I’d packed, which was lying open on the floor beside the bed.
He continued, “Luc isn’t in labor. That was a fake text. Someone was trying to coax me to the hospital.”
“What?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s going on?”
He shook his head, “I need coffee. Let’s go please, I’ll explain. This place needs a fucking coffee pot. We’ll get coffee and then you get supplies in for us to do us a week or so here.” I nodded. He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration and picked up his keys. I grabbed an elastic from my purse, threw a hoodie on, and tied my hair up in a ponytail as I ran into the bathroom, quickly peed, washed my hands, quickly brushed my teeth, swished some mouthwash, and splashed water on my face, then met him down at the jeep.
“What took you?” he snarled.
“I had to pee, honey, holy shit; relax.” I put my seatbelt on.
He made a growly sound and backed out of the barn. He’d closed the jeep inside and locked it last night.
