Chapter Eleven

Reynolds

Two Weeks Later

“W hat the hell, Mark? Did you not think about that before you ran across the damn ocean to hide?”

“I didn’t know there would be a false file,” Mark Paston, the idiot we agreed to protect, says.

“There are ALWAYS at least two files,” King says softly. “Would someone care to explain to this fool as to why?”

“A real one to hide and a fake one that is much easier to access,” I say.

“The fake file,” Taylor continues, not bothering to hide his irritation, “is used to throw people off the trail. Anyone smart enough to cross the line you did knows this. You should’ve known that, Paston.”

Mark pales under Taylor’s hard stare, realizing just how much trouble he’s in. “Look, I’m under your protection,” he protests weakly, his voice wavering. “I hired you to keep me safe.”

Taylor crosses his arms, his expression stone-cold. “Witness protection isn’t a free pass to play fast and loose with the truth, Mark. Obsidian Security put its reputation and resources on the line for you. We don’t risk our necks and our families on faulty intel. And the fucking government hired us, not you.”

“Because I asked them to,” Mark says desperately.

King leans in, his voice barely a whisper, but every word is laced with warning. “You need to understand something. That false file? It puts everyone around you in danger. Including my family. I don’t care if you’re under witness protection or running from God himself. You don’t get to gamble with my family’s lives.”

“The real file, Mark. Where is it?” I ask. Because there’s no way in hell he doesn’t have it hidden somewhere. “If anyone in your family gets to it before we do, that court date you’re counting on isn’t going to mean a thing.”

Mark stammers, looking at each of us with mounting desperation. “I… I swear I don’t know where the real file is. I thought the one I gave you was all they had!”

Taylor shakes his head, exasperated. “You have court in three weeks. Three weeks isn’t much time, and if you don’t give up that file soon, the only thing we’ll be protecting you from is yourself. What’s the point of us keeping you safe if you can’t deliver on your end?”

The officer who told us about the false file stands in the corner of the room, nodding his head.

“Your father keeps a list of wares, goods, buyers, and victims,” the officer says. “The list you gave us was nothing more than a certifiable grocery list.”

“How do you know?” Mark asks.

“Because Harvey James Paston is a power-hungry fool,” King answers. “It’s his trophy list.”

“Well, I don’t know where it’s at.”

I take a step forward, more than willing to beat this idiot to a pulp, but Taylor shakes his head.

“Just so we’re on the same page,” Taylor says, handing Mark a bottle of water. “I don’t believe a word that comes out of your mouth. I think you knew the list you gave the police was fake. I think you have your father’s trophy list hidden away as a bargaining tool to get back into his good graces. So, the question I have, Marky Mark, what did you do to piss off your old man?”

“He slept with my whore of a wife and then killed her.”

“Fuck, put your hands where I can see them.”

The police officer raises his gun at our newcomer.

“Good evening, gentleman,” the newcomer says, raising his hands. “My name is Harvy Paston, But you can just call me Paston. I believe you and I need to talk.”

The room goes dead silent. The only sound is the click of the officer’s gun as he tightens his grip, aiming directly at Paston. My pulse races as Paston’s cold, calculating gaze sweeps over each of us, landing finally on Mark. A smirk plays at the corner of his mouth.

“Mark, my boy,” Paston drawls, his voice as smooth as ice. “I knew you’d end up somewhere like this, hiding behind your protectors.” His eyes flick to Taylor, and he gives a mocking nod. “Nice to meet you all. I trust Obsidian Security is as good as they say.”

“Keep your hands up and step back,” the officer growls, his stance unwavering. But Paston doesn’t flinch.

“Relax, officer,” Paston says, his hands still raised but his expression utterly composed, just like everything about him. His hair, skin, and clothes all appear as if he stepped out of a magazine. I mean, if you don’t count the freshly broken nose and black eye. “I came here for a conversation, not a showdown. And frankly, I don’t think any of you know what’s at stake.” He glances at Mark with a twisted smile. “My son here decided to play both sides, thinking he could keep his life and that file out of my reach. But what he doesn’t realize is that he’s supplied me with the very tools I need to retrieve it.”

Mark takes a step back, his face a shade paler as Paston’s smirk deepens. “You see, my boy,” Paston says, his voice as smooth as ice, “you thought you could run, leave me to clean up your mess. I knew about your affair with your stepmother for months. I knew you had an ultimate plan. Did you honestly think I would give her access to files that could send me straight to the chair? You took what you needed, and then you killed her.”

“I didn’t kill her,” Mark says, sweat pouring from his round face. “Why do you keep saying that?”

“Oh, you didn’t pull the trigger, my boy,” Paston smirks. “That was all me. But you are the reason she’s dead. Anyhow, that’s not what we need to discuss.”

Paston shifts his gaze to me, his eyes gleaming with malice. “Reynolds, is it? Well, I have something of yours. A couple of things, actually. A spitfire of a woman named Delphi and one of your club brothers, the scowling, pissed-off twin, Steel.” He smirks, pointing at his crooked nose and black eye. “Quite the pair, those two. They gave my men and me one hell of a time getting them secured. However, they are safe, and they’ll remain that way as long as you give me what I want.”

I grit my teeth, rage boiling in my veins. “I don’t have what you want,” I say, my voice low and dangerous. “That’s on Mark. You think threatening me will get you anywhere?”

Freckles. He has my woman. My brother. Where are my kids?

“Not threatening you, son,” Paston replies, his tone almost conversational. “I’m giving you an opportunity.” He takes a step forward, his hands still raised as he meets my glare head-on. “Your dear friend Mark here knows exactly where my little list is stashed. But he’s chosen to keep that info from all of us. So, I suggest you get it out of him. I’ve heard Killer King can get anyone to talk.”

“Where is my family?” I demand, rage rolling through my body in tidal waves.

“The rest of your family is still tucked away where I can’t find them,” Paston says almost frustratingly. “Your woman and friend just so happened to check into a hospital two days ago. I simply waited for my connections to tell me when they left. I was going to follow them to wherever they were hiding, but I ran out of patience.”

“Why the fuck were they in the hospital? And why the fuck didn’t I know?”

Without thinking, I pull out my phone and power it on. In order to maximize the safety of our family, we never contact them, but my damn president is supposed to keep us up to date on everything via a burner phone.

“Put the phone away until after I leave, please,” Paston says. “Back to our conversation. Finding my son was easy. I’ve had my eyes on him since the day he left.”

“Then you should know where your damn list is,” Taylor says. “Why play these games?”

“There’s something more,” King says. “I can see it in his eyes.”

“Excellent, sire,” Paston laughs as he slowly lowers his raised hands and bows formally at King. “Yes, there’s more. Two things more, actually. First and foremost, one doesn’t simply leave the family. I can’t let my own son make a fool out of me. Either he returns of his own free will or in a body bag. Either works for me.”

Paston’s twisted grin widens, his gaze flicking back to Mark with a sickening sense of pleasure. He seems to savor every second of the tension in the room, dragging out his following words as if each syllable is a piece of bait.

“Secondly,” he continues, “my dear son here has something of significant value. Something beyond that list. You see, Mark managed to swipe a little insurance from me, something I hold very dear.” He steps closer, his gaze shifting to Taylor, King, the officer, and me, lingering with a sharp, assessing look. “And I’m willing to bet he’s hidden it somewhere only he knows. So if he thinks he can just leave me empty-handed, he’s sorely mistaken.”

Mark flinches under his father’s gaze, the color draining from his face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dad,” he mumbles, his voice barely more than a whisper. “I didn’t take anything else.”

“Don’t lie to me, boy.” Paston’s voice is like a whip, cold and slicing. “There’s more at stake than that pathetic little file. And until you deliver what I’m owed, Delphi and Steel stay as my guests. There is a third and most important thing, as well. But you’ll learn of that in due time, right, Mark?”

Rage builds in me. My fists clench so tight my knuckles turn white. “You have no idea what line you’re crossing, Paston. You’re not just taking on your son’s problems. You’re messing with my family.” I barely keep the fury out of my voice, but it’s a struggle. Every instinct in me is screaming to rip him apart right here.

Paston just laughs, his gaze settling on me with a look of condescension. “Is that a threat, Reynolds? Because I don’t think you fully grasp your position here.” He tilts his head, eyes gleaming with the satisfaction of someone who believes they’re holding all the cards. “Do you think my son here has what it takes to protect them? Or you, for that matter? Do you think he’s brave enough to keep his tongue quiet?”

Taylor steps forward, his stance cold and unyielding. “We’ll get you what you want, Paston. But know this: you might get what you’re after, but you’re not leaving this town untouched. And when we’re done, there won’t be a place on this planet you can hide.

Paston chuckles softly, clearly entertained by the threat. “I’ll hold you to that, gentlemen.” He turns, glancing back with one final look of amusement. “Three days, Reynolds. Get what I need out of my son. Or the next time we speak, it’ll be to discuss how much of Delphi and Steel I’ll be sending back.”

With that, he turns and, as quick as lightning, has a gun out and aimed at the officer’s head. Within a single second, the officer falls dead to the floor. Sighing, Paston saunters out, leaving an icy silence in his wake.

The moment the door closes, I’m on Mark, shoving him back against the wall. “Start talking, now,” I growl, my voice deadly low. “Because if you don’t, I swear to God, your father will be the least of your worries.”

“Ghost, what the fuck is going on?”

“Where’s Reynolds?” I hear him ask over Taylor’s phone.

“He’s right here about to tear the head off of our client,” Taylor explains. “We just got a visit from his father.”

“Paston was there? Knox said he had eyes on him and he was somewhere in Russia.”

“Well, he got it wrong somehow,” Taylor explains. “He threatened his son, told us he took Steel and Delphi, shot the officer, and then left.”

“I heard from Steel last night,” Ghost says. “He called from his personal cell and said something about me sending backup, which I didn’t. I haven’t heard from them since, but we’ve been looking at his cell’s last location. I’m sorry, Reynolds. We knew informing you of your woman’s condition would only distract you. That’s why we didn’t tell you she had surgery.”

“Surgery?” I shout. “What the fuck, Ghost?”

“Her appendix was about to rupture,” he says calmly. “She was screaming in pain, and Steel had no choice but to rush her to the hospital. The doctors said an hour longer and she would have died. She had emergency surgery yesterday, but they were letting her leave this morning.”

“What happened?”

Ghost sighs, his voice somber over the line. “After surgery, Delphi seemed stable. She and Steel checked out early this morning, planning to head straight back to Oasis. But somehow, Paston’s men must have tracked them. We think they were intercepted in the parking garage. Knox is trying to access the camera from down there, but he’s not having any luck.”

I squeeze my eyes shut, fury warring with a gnawing worry that claws at my chest. My voice comes out rougher than I intended. “You let them leave without extra backup? How the hell did that happen, Ghost?”

Ghost’s silence on the other end of the line speaks louder than words. “I know, Reynolds. We didn’t expect someone to make a move. We grew complacent.”

“And now my woman might get killed because of your complacency,” I growl. “You would have brought in an entire club to follow Amara had she been the one leaving the safety net. If she dies, Ghost…”

“Easy, brother,” King says. “He’s still our President.”

“No, he’s right, King. This is on me. I’m sorry, brother. Words will never express how sorry I am. But right now, we need to focus on getting her and Steel back. What do we know?”

“Paston has given us three days to get the information from Mark,” King explains. “He says there’s more than the list that he’s wanting back.”

“He says he’ll release Steel and Delphi once he gets what he wants,” Taylor continues. “But, there’s more at play that we don’t know about. I’m sure of it.”

“Make the fucker tell you everything he knows about his father,” Ghost says. “I want any locations he owns and what names they might be under. You focus on him and let me fix my mistake.”

The anger burns through me like wildfire as I keep taking deep breaths to control the rage, each word from Ghost feeling like salt in an open wound. I stare down at Mark, who’s still leaning against the wall, trying to avoid looking anyone in the eye.

“Three days,” I mutter, more to myself than anyone else. “Three damn days to save them from his twisted games.” My gaze hardens as I finally address Mark, who flinches when our eyes meet. “This is your last chance, Mark. Start talking. I want every detail, every hiding place, every connection your father has in the state.”

Mark swallows, glancing between the cold, unyielding faces of me, Taylor, and King. “Look… my dad’s got properties all over, most under fake names. Safe houses, compounds, places he uses to stash people or things when he needs to keep them hidden. But he never tells anyone the full scope. He’s too paranoid.”

“Not good enough,” I snap, grabbing him by the collar and forcing him to look at me. “Where would he take them if he wanted to keep them close? Think, Mark. Because if they’re harmed, your father’s paranoia will be the least of your problems.”

“There’s… there’s a cabin upstate, two hours from here,” Mark stammers, sweat beading on his forehead. “He doesn’t use it often. He calls it ‘the Vault.’ It’s off-grid, remote. That’s where he’d go if he needed to make sure no one could find him or whoever he was holding. But you won’t get close without backup. It’s heavily guarded.”

“The address,” I demand.

“It doesn’t have one,” he says. “It’s just listed as land. It’s under the name Penny Stanford located in West Virginia.”

Ghost’s voice cuts through, calm and steely. “I’ll mobilize a few brothers and head up there. You, Taylor, and King focus on breaking Mark’s defenses down. Keep digging until there’s nothing left to hide. I don’t want a single stone unturned.”

Ghost’s voice, steady but laced with determination, comes through the line one last time. “I’ll gather intel and bring in extra firepower. We’re getting them back, Reynolds. But you need to break him, break him completely. We won’t get another chance at this.”

“I have someone coming to clean up this mess,” King says, pointing at the dead officer. “Don’t worry. It’s all by the books. But our names will be left out. As for this one,” King nods toward Mark, whose face pales deathly white. “Let’s take him to Hotel King. I have toys there that I want to introduce to him. By the time I’m through with you, boy, you’ll be begging me to let you talk.”

“I’ll talk now,” he cries out.

“You’ll lie.”

I ignore the rest of the conversation and focus on my inner turmoil. I want nothing more than to run out of this damn building and to find Freckles. But I know I need to focus.

“I need to call Eli,” I say. “Tell Knox I need a secure line.”

“I’ll let him know now,” Ghost says. “Listen, brothers, Blaze is trying his best to keep it together for the ones he’s protecting, but Steel is his other half. He’s on edge. He’ll be fine, though. Snow, Dove, Eli, Knox, and Baby Butterfly are all still under his protection. He won’t let them down. Just wanted you to know. Anyway, I just messaged Knox. He’ll contact you in five.”

The weight of Ghost’s words hangs heavy in the room. Blaze and Steel, twins so close they might as well share the same heartbeat. Blaze might be keeping his composure for now, but with Steel in Harvey’s hands, I know he’s barely hanging on.

I nod, grounding myself in the grim task at hand. “King, get this scumbag to your little playground,” I say, casting a hard look at Mark. “And make it hurt. I want every damn detail he’s hiding about his father’s operations.”

King’s smile is sharp and predatory. “Oh, don’t worry. We’re going to make him sing.”

But even as I try to focus on our next moves, my mind keeps slipping back to Delphi. My Freckles, out there somewhere, possibly terrified and hurt. I clench my fists until my knuckles go white, willing myself to keep it together. If I lose it now, I won’t be any use to her or Steel.

“I need that line to Eli,” I say, a tight edge in my voice. “He needs to know what’s happened.”

Ghost replies, “Knox is setting it up. He’ll be in touch any minute now. Blaze knows Delphi and Steel are gone, but I think the gravity of what Harvey might do hasn’t fully set in. He’ll keep his head straight, for everyone’s sake.” Ghost hesitates, then adds, “But you should know, Reynolds, if Blaze starts to feel Steel slipping away… he’s not gonna hold back. He might do something drastic.”

Even though Ghost can’t see me, I still nod my agreement. I’ve never felt such rage and worry before. So, I’m right there with him.

I grip the burner phone in my hand, willing it to ring. Paston already knows where we are, but I don’t want to take the chance of them tracing a call right back to the rest of my family. So, my phone remains off.

The burner phone buzzes in my hand, and I rush to answer it.

“Reynolds, tell me something only I would know so that I know it’s really you,” Knox says. “Otherwise, you’re not talking to anyone.”

“Fuck, Knoxy,” I sigh. “Uhm, okay, when you were having trouble leaving the house on your own, I tried to help you feel safe by telling you how to find my house through the trail beside Taylor’s. When you went to take the trail to hide from the man who betrayed us, you hid by climbing a tree.”

“The whole club knows that,” he whispers. “Which means anyone could know. But okay. Love you, Reynolds. She’s going to be okay. They both are.”

“Love you back, Knoxy,” I smile. “And I know they will. Steel will fillet anyone who tries to hurt her.”

“That he will,” I hear Blaze say, his voice far firmer and more emotionless than I’ve ever heard. “Your Pa’s on the phone, boy. Come and reassure him that you and your sister are safe.”

I feel a sense of relief flood through me as I hear confirmation that my kids are okay. Despite everything he’s been through, I know my boy will hold it together for Jessica, keeping her safe while we sort this mess out. He’s stronger than he knows, and right now, that strength is what’s keeping me from unraveling.

I press the phone to my ear, my tone softening, though the intensity doesn’t leave. “Eli, it’s me. You good, son? Your sister? No one’s come near you?”

Eli’s voice is solid and steady. “We’re fine, Pa. Blaze has the place locked down. No one’s getting within a mile of us without him knowing. But... Ma…”

Hearing the worry in his voice tightens something in my chest, and I force myself to respond evenly. “We’re going to get her back, Eli. She’s stronger than you think, and Steel’s with her. You just stay put and keep your sister safe. Help Blaze keep you all safe.”

There’s a moment of silence, and I know he’s gathering himself. Then, in a voice laced with determination, Eli replies, “I’m ready to help however I can. Don’t leave me in the dark on this, Pa. I know I’m young, but she’s my Ma.”

I let out a shaky breath, proud but conflicted. “I know, son. But right now, you’re doing exactly what I need you to do. Keep your head up, and stay strong for your little Butterfly. That’s how you help us the most. Can you do that?”

“Yeah,” he says, voice softer. “Yeah, I’ll do it. Just… bring her back. Bring them both back. We love you, Pa.”

“Love you both,” I respond around the knot in my throat.

The line goes silent, and I let the phone drop from my ear, the weight of my son’s words pressing heavily on me.

“You still there, brother?” I hear Blaze says through the phone.

“Yeah,” I clear my throat, putting the phone back against my ear. “Yeah, I’m here. How are you doing?”

“Fucking pissed,” he says. “I need you guys to get my brother back, Reynolds. I’ll lose my fucking mind without him.”

“We will,” I promise. “I bet wherever they are, he’s giving them hell.”

“I guarantee it,” Blaze says, a little laughter in his voice. “He’ll do everything he can to keep your woman safe.”

“I have no doubt.”

“We’re heading out before the cleanup crew comes,” King says.

“I’ll keep you updated,” I tell Blaze. “You keep our family safe.”

“You have my word,” he says. “Ghost is bringing over the rest of the family so everyone else can focus on helping you guys. Don’t worry about us. Focus. Get the job done. Don’t let that mother fucker walk.”

Knowing he’s talking about Paston, I nod my agreement.

“On that, you have my word,” I say, repeating his promise.

Ending the call, I pocket the phone, step around the dead officer, and follow Taylor, King, and an apparent knocked-out Mark hanging over King’s shoulder out of the building.