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What the hell did I do?
I’m too worried for my brother to care that a Hellion is holding a gun to me in my house. I’m also not dumb enough to bring fists to a gunfight, nor do I have the energy after what I’ve just done. He’s right to defend Trace, and I’m glad he has someone right now. Maybe our relationship is where it’s at because I’ve been so wrapped up in my life that I haven’t been there for Trace like I’ve thought. Maybe I’ve put too much energy into working and school…Have I pushed him away? Have I missed the signs that something was coming? Something that would take my girl from me?
Have I neglected Nox?
It’s possible I’ve become so absorbed in trying to fight my past that—my mind flicks back to every late night, every missed date, all the weekends I never made it to the track to watch Lennox race. The contents of my stomach, consisting of absolutely nothing because I haven’t been able to eat today, bubbles up my throat. I place my hand against my abs.
“Move another muscle and I will kill you,” Spencer threatens. I just stare at him down the barrel of his gun. If he thinks for a second I’m going to flinch or retreat, he can think again. I’m not worked up enough to back down from a Hellion.
“Overkill…Spen…” Trace mumbles.
“Possibly.” Spencer grins. “But bossman will have my ass if I let something else happen to one of his Hellions. I never should have let you come up here alone to begin with.”
Fury and betrayal curdle together in my stomach.
Has he officially joined the Hellions?
CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
TRACE
Knox has been gonefor a month.
I haven’t talked to Benny in just as long and especially since he put his hands on me. We wrestle and fuck around like any friends do, but he knew better. He knew better, and he did it anyway when we were both hurting. Should I still be this mad at him considering the reason I had quit talking to him is that of my feelings for his girl? No, I probably shouldn’t be upset. He had every right to beat the fuck out of me, but it wasn’t like I ever made a move on her or flirted or did anything. Unless you consider my constant bickering with her flirting… Then, maybe. Inadvertently.
I didn’t even know it was my own fucked up way of expressing my feelings for the girl because I’ve always been convinced that I hated her.
Whatever. I’ve been talking to her father, Marcus, trying my best to keep up to date with the investigation… Or lack thereof. It seems NGPD doesn’t really give a fuck about helping us to find her. I’m way out of my league with all of this.
But that’s a benefit of the situation I’m in, isn’t it? The Hellions can figure shit out like that. They have deep pockets and connections to a criminal sort of world. If she was taken by sex traffickers or something, they could find her, right? If someone with money and stakes in the Superbike world has her so she can’t win, they’d be able to help. Hell, they could even bust up a religious cult, couldn’t they?
I shiver at the thought of what Knox is enduring, if she’s even still alive. I’m going to be a part of finding her. And when I find her, she’s going to know how I feel. Shit between Benny and me can’t get worse. So I’m going to let her know. Then everything I’m doing in the Hellions will be worth it when she is safe and sound at home, where she belongs. This isn’t just about drifting anymore. At first, I started hanging with these guys for that reason, but now it’s much deeper.
The Hellions do a lot of bad, but they also do a hell of a lot of good, in a twisted sort of way. Good doesn’t mean people don’t die at their hands through total debauchery, but it means that women and children are saved. Whether they’re sold or abused. The Hellions end their suffering one way or another by saving them. I’m not a fan of the drugs, cars, weapons, and total chaos that surrounds them, but saving people, I can get behind. Even more so if it brings Knox back to me.
That I can fully back, no matter the reputation that joining them garners me.
That being said, I’m officially a Hellion. Well, not yet, I guess. I have to complete some initiation tasks to prove my worth or something. Weird gang shit. I’m joining because I now have an entire crew of friends that have my back and are loyal to a fault. Aside from Benny and Hazel, support is something I’ve severely lacked in my life.
But I also can’t lie and say that their way of life doesn’t intrigue me. My dad’s money brings him power, but the influence the Hellions have… It’s a heady thing to feel a part of. Nevermind the danger that it encompasses. Which is why I’m sitting in on a meeting with Spencer, all the brothers, and Ilya.
I’m not exactly sure how to approach the subject of finding Knox. I’ve kept my head down, listening, and have heard them talk about busting trafficking rings, something about some guy named Marquez who is apparently a key player but seemingly untouchable, even by the Hellions. Apparently, he and Ilya have beef from back in the day, but most stay tight-lipped about it. This Marquez guy sounds like someone you don’t want to fuck with.
I need to know more about him and his connection to Capital City Chaos. If someone has trafficked Knox, perhaps he did it.
I zone back into the meeting taking place, having missed half of it while lost in my thoughts. Ilya hands out manilla folders filled with stacks of what look like pictures. Spencer opens his with a disgusted grunt, his jaw ticking. Koen blows out an indignant breath. Bridger doesn’t bother to look at his and simply stares at it as if it will magically catch fire. Kydd flips through every picture, taking his time to burn the images into his mind.
I’m in no position to glimpse what they’re seeing until Spencer finally lifts the top sheet. It’s a picture of a young girl, mid teens. My heart ticks up both with disdain and slight intrigue. Who is she?
“Thirteen of them went missing a month ago,” Ilya explains and I sit up straighter, my attention finally on the meeting. From what I gather, these sorts of meetings only involve this crew and no one else. I’m not sure why I’m here, but something they see in me apparently makes them feel as if they can trust me. They think I’m much farther into this than I believe I am but I won’t complain. I’m an asset to them. Something that has never happened before and I like the feeling, so I won’t do anything to fuck it up. Not for anything.
Spencer forgoes filtering through the rest of the photos. He’s got the picture. I can’t help but wonder if Knox’s picture is in there and hope at the same time that fate hasn’t subjected her to that.
“Not to be a cunt or anything,” Koen starts. “But why are you showing us these if you don’t intend for us to do anything about it? We all know who has taken them and you won’t engage.” Ilya’s gaze turns to a dark glare, his eyes pitching with hatred that I don’t think is for the oldest brother but for whoever has taken these girls. Is it this Marquez cat I’ve heard about?
“No disrespect or anything, but I have to agree,” Bridger adds.
With a calm inhale of annoyance, Ilya sits up in his chair and leans his elbows over the table. “We know where they are. They haven’t yet left for final transport to the auction house. If everything goes according to plan, we can stop them in their tracks. It’s an easy one that won’t lose us our men.”
