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I looked at Sadie for her reaction while Bonnie gave us the gruesome details. Apparently, Bonnie was the one that found him lying in a pool of blood.
Bonnie paused for a moment to blow her nose, then said, “Sorry, I’m rambling. Anyway, I’ve heard the rumors about your family and I thought this might have something to do with Maze seeing your brother. The guy was following her and then hit her from behind but not hard. And, well, I just didn’t know who else to call.”
“You were right to call, Bonnie. I appreciate it,” I told her. “Are you still at the church?”
“No. I called 911 and after they were finished questioning me, I came home.” She sniffled again. “It was so bad.”
What the fuck? Another priest dead?
“Cal,” I said, “go get Bonnie. I’ll trace the path from Maisie’s place to the church.” Jasper, Ma and Kat stared at both of us, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.
“Hang on, Bonnie.” Calvin shook his head and said to me, low so Bonnie wouldn’t hear, “You get Bonnie. I’ll send the address to your navigation system. Then I’ll hack into the city’s camera system and see if I can track the red SUV, but we both know who that bald-headed fuck sounds like. Maisie comes from Mayhem, right?”
“Yeah, Braddock Circle.” I nodded and looked to Ma and then Jasper. “We good?”
“Yes,” Ma sighed which meant she had more to say.
“Bonnie pack a bag. Virgil will pick you up soon and don’t open the door for anyone but him. Got it?”
“Mmmhmm,” she replied, sobbing into the phone.
“Okay, I’ll see you in a few.” I said and Calvin hung up.
Three pairs of eyes looked to me for answers. “All right, Virgil. Tell us what the fuck is going on,” Jasper demanded.
“I’ve been seeing Maisie for a few weeks now.”
“The not Savannah Rhymer girl that you drugged and kidnapped?”
Asshole. “Yeah, Jasper, her name is Maisie. But she doesn’t know that was me. She thinks I’m just the guy who saved her.”
“Well thank fuck for that,” Ma grumbled and shook her head. “Does she have any idea who we are?”
“She knows we own a few casinos and bars in town, but if Bonnie’s heard the rumors, no doubt Maisie has too.” Whatever she heard obviously hadn’t colored her opinion of me, which only made me more determined than ever to find her. “Shit,” I muttered, finishing off my drink.
“Sounds serious,” Kat said, her tone grave despite the delight in her blue eyes.
“It’s not,” I told my family honestly, but the more I thought about Maisie, about what The Crusaders would do to her just to make a buck. Just to fuck with us. It made my stomach churn with acid.
“But now it is,” Ma guessed accurately.
I nodded, and she surprised me with a smile. “Then get the girl and we’ll get started on the rest. Thomas,” she called at the same time she shooed me from the dining room. “Prepare a room for a guest. And call in the muscle. All of it.”
I flashed a grateful smile at Ma and left, grabbing my keys and my piece before heading out into the cool desert air.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Maisie
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was the sound of music blasting in the distance. It was close enough that I could tell it was electronic dance music, but far away enough that it wasn't deafening. At least I wouldn't have to listen to all of the fucking noises around me if it were.
The last thing I remembered was that bald dude hitting me. I sat up slowly, trying to figure out where the hell I was because clearly, he’d taken me somewhere. I moved too fast and my head spun, sending bile rising up my throat. I dry heaved a few times before leaning over the side of the bed, praying there was a bathroom close by.
When the heaving subsided, I looked around the room and saw that I was in some kind of shitty place.
Looking around was no easy task. My left cheek was so swollen it blurred my vision, which explained the headache.
Between the music, the fucking sounds and the disgusting stinky mattress and box spring underneath me, I figured this was some kind of crack house or brothel, maybe a combination of the two. I didn’t know who these people were or what they wanted with me, but I had two guesses.
The Ashby family or the Reckless Bastards.
The door flew open, startling the fuck out of me.
The specimen standing before me would make any version of sleaze look classy. Yellow stained teeth, a stink that made me gag all the way across the room, bloodshot eyes, and a complexion that spelled too many drugs and back ally ass-kickings. “Oh good. You’re awake,” the charmer said.
