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I wish Greyson was here too, but he had that meeting he couldn’t miss. As a business owner, I understand that. Your job doesn’t just stop because your girlfriend gets attacked. It seems cold that he still chose to go there, but I really do get it... And I also told him to go. I never cancel meetings, no matter what’s going on. Not like any of my guys have been threatened and kidnapped but still, I do understand the need for maintaining professionalism for business.
As a girlfriend though, I’m feeling upset that he’s not here to comfort me too. I just want to wrap my arms around him and never let go. I’m still so confused by what Brandon said, but my feelings for Greyson aren’t just going to go away because some obsessed asshole started spouting off riddles.
Realizing I’m tired of sitting in my self-pity, I turn to the guys. “I’m ready, let’s go check out Brandon’s place.”
“Meu amor,”Thiago grumbles. “You were just knocked out, cut on the arm, punched in the face, and stabbed in the leg not even four hours ago. We won’t blame you if you need to rest.”
“I’m fine. You patched me up and I feel as good as new now. I’m ready to end that jackass,” I say sternly. I still feel the pain coursing through my leg, arm and head but I need to put an end to this right now. They should know by now that I’m not going to back down. They might be stubborn themselves, but I am the master at never backing down. I’ve rested and gotten my head on straight, so now it's go time.
They all look at each other, trying to decide if they’re going to fight me on this or not. Rian shrugs his shoulders with a knowing look. Zep sighs loudly.
“Fine, gorgeous. We’ll go, but the moment you feel like it’s too much or you’re in too much pain, we’re leaving. No hiding it either. I’ll know.” His gaze is fierce, letting me know he’s not playing around when it comes to my safety.
A genuine smile pulls from my lips. “Thank you.” I lean in, giving Zep a quick kiss, then I move to Rian, and Thiago. “Alright, I remember exactly where he took me. It was on the West Side at an apartment complex.”
“Okay, let’s go. You have your knife on you? Take your gun as well.” Zep hands me the gun that he once gave me as a present. I only ever use it at the shooting range, but the thrill that courses through me as I hold it in my palm brings my mood up. I have my knife strapped to a holster on my good thigh and my gun tucked into the back of my jeans. I’m feeling invincible now.
After all of the events over the last few weeks, hell, even the last few hours, I haven’t felt like myself. Right now though, surrounded by my guys, carrying my weapons, and going into battle, I feel like the badass I know I am. We head out the door, hopping into Rian’s G-Wagon, and take off. Let’s go get this bastard.
I direct Rian to the apartment complex. As we pull up to it, a shudder ripples through my body. I’m lucky I had my knife on me so I could get out, otherwise who knows what kind of condition I’d be in right now. Thiago places a hand on my thigh, gently rubbing it back and forth.
He turns toward me. “You ready? We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.” His eyes are filled with worry.
“I’m ready. I want to nail his ass to the wall.” I lift my chin to let them know I can do this. They know I can, but they still worry about me.
We make our way inside and down the hall to the apartment I remember running from. The smell of the hallways sends me into a memory of stumbling out of here until I ran into Greyson. My heart rate picks up and I can feel my stomach becoming uneasy, wondering what we’re about to walk into.
Brandon’s smart enough to know that if I got free and he lived, my guys would be coming for him. He either took off or he took himself out before we could. He knows they won’t stop until they find him and now that we know he’s the one who’s been doing all this, he’s a dead man walking.
We have our weapons drawn as we wait outside the door. I give Zep the signal to bust the door in. It shatters into pieces from the force of his kick. The guys and I all split up, sweeping each area of the apartment.
“Clear,” I yell, letting them know the bedroom is empty. I hear each of them also yell “clear,” letting me know Brandon isn’t here.
I knew there was a good chance that he wouldn’t be here, but a nagging feeling pulls at my chest. My face drops, realizing he’s still out there. Until we find him, I’m not sure I’ll feel safe. Brandon clearly has some issues that I don’t fully understand. He’s a wild card so there’s a chance he will do the exact opposite of what we expect.
“Well, since we’re here, we might as well look around. See what we can find on this dirtbag,” Rian says with a cold tone. He was ready to blow Brandon to pieces the moment he saw me when I got home. For Zep, that’s a normal reaction, but it was strange seeing my sweet, funny Rian ready for murder. Though when he realized I needed him with me more than going to get Brandon, he calmed down quickly. Still pissed, but contained it enough for me.
“I agree, let’s see what we can find,” I state, sweeping my eyes across the room. Now that I can actually take in my surroundings, this place is neater than I expected, besides the random spots of blood from both Brandon and I. For a West Side apartment, it’s actually not that bad. I know we pay Brandon well so he doesn’t need to live in the West Side, but I guess I didn’t know much about him in the first place to know his preferences.
“I’ll look in the master bedroom. Zep, you can take the other room. Rian, you take the kitchen. Thiago, you take the living room and dining area.” I command each of them in my most authoritative voice.
“Yes, ma’am,” Rian says with a two finger salute and a smirk. Most people wouldn’t be joking around at a time like this, but not Rian. Humor is his coping mechanism so I’m not surprised. I shake my head with a grin, just glad he’s not treating me like I’m fragile.
Walking into the master bedroom, I’m instantly assaulted with the smell of blood and a minty scent. My heart stills. I would know that smell anywhere. It smells exactly like Greyson. He had a meeting though, would he have come back here? He did say he was going to kill Brandon, but he said that in the heat of passion. Right?
Walking further into the room I notice a bottle of cologne that’s the same kind Greyson uses. I shake my head at the doubt that just rippled through me about Greyson. Of course he would have Greyson’s cologne if he was obsessed with him. Brandon’s really messed with my head when it comes to Greyson.That creep probably sprayed the cologne on his pillow and cuddled with it, pretending it was him.I still don’t know what he meant about Greyson’s secrets or how he was so obsessed with him considering he’s only known him for a few months, but I plan on finding out.
I need to talk to Greyson about it, but I’m still not sure how to approach it. I didn’t have enough in me to ask him when he took me home, but I need to know. I can feel my walls coming back up thinking about Greyson. I don’t know if I’ll survive any more hurt in my heart. Brandon could have just been talking out of his ass though. He’s been acting unusual lately compared to his normal self, so who knows if he was telling the truth or not.
After searching every crevice and crack of this room and the attached bathroom, I find nothing. Nothing stands out or seems abnormal to me. Hopefully, the guys are having more luck than me.
Walking out to the living room, I yell loud enough for everyone to hear, “I’ve got nothing. Master bedroom was a bust.” I see Thiago ripping apart every item of furniture, making this place look like a tornado went through it. “Find anything, T?” I ask, trying not to break his concentration.
“Nothing. It seems like the guy didn’t like any unnecessary clutter. He also didn’t hide anything, at least not that I can find.” He looks frustrated about not finding anything. I nod my head, understanding his frustration. Sliding into the kitchen, I watch as Rian pulls all of the drawers out, flipping them over. Just like Thiago did, Rian makes this place look like a disaster struck.
“Find anything out of the ordinary?” I ask as Rian shakes his head aggressively. “Nothing, babe. It doesn’t seem like he had much in the first place.” Getting pissed off that we haven’t found anything, I turn to go check on Zep. I’m honestly not sure what I’m looking for, but Brandon clearly isn’t a decent guy like we all assumed he was, so I was hoping we could find something of value.
Before I can head to the second bedroom, Zep comes out carrying what looks like an old shoebox. I tilt my head and look at him in confusion. “What’s that?”
