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So yeah…we aren’t fucking believing that this is a mugging. No way in hell. I need Spence to wake up and tell me what happened so I can go get some revenge. And maybe then we will know if this is connected to Dakota. My gut is saying it is but I can't do anything about it until he manages to pull through. I also don’t want to get my hopes up on the small chance that this isn’t related.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Aiden sit up and yawn, he stands and on quiet feet moves to the bed where he lifts his uncle's hand and holds it.
“Has he woken up yet?” He asks softly like he doesn't want to bother his sleeping uncle.
I shake my head and force a small smile, “Soon. He just needs a little more rest.”
Aiden's eyes fill with tears and he murmurs, “I’m glad you're here with us. Are you…staying until he wakes up?”
“I’m not going anywhere, big guy,” I respond immediately.
It's the truth. I don't plan on ever leaving again. Even after we find Dakota and bring her home…because we will fucking find her and bring her back. I don't plan on leaving their side. I might need to beg Dakota to give me a second chance but I will. I'll drop to my knees and grovel, I'll let her tie me to a leash and use me as her own personal guard dog…I don't care what she wants I’ll do it. I would cut my own goddamn heart out and hand it to her if she would just give me one more chance at showing her how much I love her.
Because that's the real truth. I love Dakota and I have for over a decade. The girl that I fell in love with on paper and over the phone ended up being a woman that I can't imagine living without.
Aiden pulls up a chair and sits beside me, resting his head on my shoulder. I realize that I love him too. He's special and kind and so fucking smart. He’s been given a really shitty hand in life but I want to make things better. I won't ever be able to be his father….but I can try my best to be someone who matters to him. I can be the dad that he never had the chance to have. If that’s something he might want. Even if I fail or stumble, I'll learn. I'll give him the strength and guidance and love he deserves. I’ll stay…no matter what.
Spencer's voice echoes through the room in a strained whisper, making my gaze snap up to his eyes. "Rodrigo," he breathes out, the name a curse-laden with fear and anger. "He's the one... he took me…he has her. He..he has my phone.”
Anger and fear war within me. Rodrigo fucking came for this family again. I knew it but that doesn’t stop the fucking anger from flooding me instantly. He hurt Spence, stole Dakota, and he's still managing to cause Aiden pain. I don't give a single fuck what I have to do…that man is going to die.
Spencer's eyes are heavy with exhaustion and pain as they meet mine. "Track the phone... it's how you'll find her.”
I’m on my phone shooting a message to Madd and Sebastian before he even finishes his thought. I can barely focus on the way Aiden is clinging to his uncle or the pure joy at knowing Aiden hasn't lost his family. I'm too busy plotting how I am going to get to my girl.
Wolf:Track Spencer's phone. Rodrigo has it.
Before I even take my eyes off the message, the door to the hospital room flies open and they enter the room. Sebastian is already on his phone, fingers flying over the screen with a speed born of desperation. The tracking software quickly picks up the signal.
“Go,” Maddox murmurs, glancing down at Aiden who is now curled up in the bed next to his uncle. “I’ll watch over them.”
I don’t need to be told twice and neither does Seb. Both of us are flying out of the hospital and barreling into the SUV. Seb drives and I navigate, relief flowing through me that she's right here. I don’t even waste time calling for backup. I don’t fucking care at this point. That sick motherfucker has her in Denver.
Right under our noses.
The drive is a blur, every second stretching out, filled with the tension and fear of what we might find. When we arrive outside of a rundown house with an overgrown lawn and broken windows I almost don't believe she's here. The tracker doesn't lie though…and the little green dot continues to dance from inside these walls.
“Let’s go kill this motherfucker,” Seb growls as he climbs out of the car, his weapon already in hand.
I climb out and follow suit but I keep checking my surroundings.
Why is there no one else here? If Rodrigo managed to escape prison…where are his loyal followers? How did he manage to get out and remain undetected?
“Why is it so quiet?” I ask Seb. I'm missing something…I know I am. There’s no way that it should be this quiet.
Seb scoffs and continues onward with me following him, “Rodrigo was fucking kicked out of his family. They were ashamed of him. He has a couple of guys who stayed loyal but the rest of the Sandoval Cartel has blacklisted him. It’s highly likely that he is in there alone.”
Relief flows through me. We might have a chance of going in there and making it out alive with my girl. “So, we shouldn't have too much company?”
He nods and with one swift movement kicks the front door to the house down, charging inside like a fucking maniac. Like me, he wants to find Dakota. He wants to end the man who managed to take her right out from under our watch.
Room by room we clear and find nothing. Empty bedrooms with dirty discarded mattresses, a kitchen full of empty beer cans and take-out containers, and barely functioning bathrooms that look like they house diseases. The house is empty and that relief I felt just dwindles down to nothing but despair. It looks more like a halfway house or a drug den than it does a place to hold a hostage.
“Wolf!” Seb calls from down the long hallway leading to the back of the house. I rush to him, hoping that he found answers.
He’s standing in front of a door that we hadn't checked initially but now it stands wide open. There is a set of stairs leading down into a dimly lit room that I can't see from here. But the smell of blood and death waft upwards. Hope anddevastation war inside of me as I rush down the stairs without a single shit.
And there, in the dimly lit room, we find her.
