Chapter Twenty Six

Mr. Adams scowled at Skye. On her knees in front of his wheelchair, she held the strap six inches above his feet.

"Three more times." She softened her voice. "You're doing wonderful."

"If I'm doing so great, why do I need to do more?" He fisted his hands and slammed them down on the arms of his wheelchair. "I'm not getting out of this damn chair anyway."

At fifty-seven years old, Mr. Adams suffered a vehicle accident while driving a semi-truck, breaking most of the bones from his waist down. While he had feeling in his legs again, his muscles had deteriorated. The doctors weren't sure he'd ever walk again, but he would regain movement.

"The exercises will not only help when you'd like to move from one chair to another but will also help with the pain and restlessness you suffer with now, Mr. Adams." She kept the strap strung out in the air. "Three more and we can finish with your last exercise." She leaned forward and lowered her voice. "The next one is your favorite."

Her patient grunted his cooperation. Gripping the handles of the wheelchair, he managed to lift his right foot six inches off the floor. She counted each time and put the strap down the moment he completed the set .

Standing up, she went to her bag and returned with a bottle of lotion, waving it in front of her. "Okay, let's do ten heel lifts on each leg to get those muscles nice and warm, and then I'll finish up with the crème de la crème of massages."

Behind her, Mrs. Adams laughed. "That's all he talks about all week."

"I don't blame him." She looked over her shoulder. "The lotion is my favorite, too."

Thankfully, her patient's doctor okayed her use of lotion with CBD and THC infused in it. Depending on the injuries and the outlook, she often used the lotion on her younger, healthier clients and had a good response to it.

Mr. Adams stopped the final exercise and motioned for her to apply the lotion. She slipped on gloves and kneeled in front of him again.

"Okay, you know the routine. The lotion is cool to the touch, so brace yourself." She rubbed her hands together to warm it for him and then touched his thigh.

He inhaled swiftly but quickly relaxed as she manipulated the weak and unresponsive muscles. She'd seen an improvement in his results over the last month. He was getting stronger, even if he'd never walk again. And that was the reason for her job.

"I heard the kite show is next weekend." She looked over her shoulder at Mrs. Adams. "Have you ever gone?"

"Oh, yes. Many times." Mrs. Adams smiled. "Hopefully, the storm today will clear out before this weekend. Even the ocean seems angry today."

Skye moved down to Mr. Adams' calves, spreading the lotion along the gastrocnemius, soleus, and plantaris muscles. "I read on my phone app that we're supposed to have sunshine next week. It sounds perfect for kites."

Every year, she went to the show. She loved watching all the kites fly in the sky. But this year, she'd miss going. The high-security measures Havlin Motorcycle Club was under made it impossible to get away for a couple of hours.

Usually, Mariah would go with her every year. She would've loved to have taken Dio—her stomach warmed at the thought of him.

She sat back on her heels and pulled off her gloves. "That should help you for the rest of the day. Call your primary doctor if you have any unusual cramping or pain after I leave."

Mr. Adams grunted with his eyes closed. She looked at his wife and winked. She'd worn the older man out. It wasn't rude that he dozed in his wheelchair. She took it as a compliment.

She gathered her supplies, zipped up her bag, and whispered, "I'll see you next week."

"Thanks, dear." Mrs. Adams struggled to push herself to her feet.

"Please, don't get up. I'll see myself out." She smiled and walked to the entryway.

Peeking out the door and seeing Brett, she slipped outside. Although it was his job to watch her, she still felt guilty for having him wait. The poor guy sat on his motorcycle, drenched and miserable.

She looked up at the sky. The thick cover of clouds moved fast. One of the things she loved about Seaglass Cove was the constant change of weather. A storm could blow in and the next day the sun would visit.

In the summer, storms were good and bad. For a few hours, rain dampened everything in sight and the waves came in bigger and stronger, washing any debris from the sand that the tourists left behind. But, lightning could always start fires inland.

"I'm all done for the day." She opened her car, tossed her bag inside, and raised her shoulders against the raindrops. "Have you heard from Mariah?"

"Nope." Brett rolled his Harley out from behind her car. "She gets off work in an hour."

"Her mom is probably wondering what's going on." She frowned. "Hopefully, she blames you."

"Nice, Skye," he drawled.

She laughed. "I didn't mean it that way. She knows Mariah is all caught up in you lately, so she won't think much of you escorting her to and from work."

"Dania likes me." Brett shrugged "By now, she knows not to question what Havlin does."

"True." She pulled the rubber band out of her hair and shook it out. "Where should we go? Dad's house, the apartment, or the clubhouse?"

"Clubhouse." He grinned. "It'll save me a trip when I pick up Mariah and we can get out of this rain."

She gave him a thumbs-up, slid into the car, and reversed out of the driveway. As she drove, she rolled her head side to side, trying to shake off the headache that had hovered in the background all day. Tomorrow, she needed some serious downtime .

Even more, she needed time with Dio. This was the longest week ever.

Twenty minutes later, she pulled behind the clubhouse. She gazed at the bikes and spotted Dio's. Rejuvenated after working all day, she hurried out of the car.

"He's here." She bounced, giggling like a child.

Brett laughed. "Go on."

She jogged to the back door and found it locked. Looking over her shoulder, she shouted. "Was there a meeting?"

"Earlier." Brett walked across the lot. "It should be out by now. I haven't talked to anyone all day."

She cringed, knowing he was babysitting her and would've loved to be with his MC brothers instead of sitting in people's driveways waiting for her in the rain all day.

He tried the door and found it locked, then knocked. She peered around the lot. There were a lot of motorcycles here for the afternoon. Most of the men should be working but maybe the rain drove them all inside.

"My dad's here, too," she mumbled.

That was strange. He'd been riding with Dio all week. She looked at Brett, a thought hitting her.

"Do you think it's over?" she asked.

"Don't know." Brett took out his phone and texted.

There wasn't much she could do until someone unlocked the clubhouse. She texted Mariah, shooting off a teasing message about being with her boyfriend. She was so happy that Mariah was falling in love. It was perfect timing, considering they could share another step in their lives together.

"Dio's not answering." He wiped the raindrops off the phone and pocketed it. "Either is your dad."

"What should we do?"

He lifted his fist and banged on the door. "Someone will open the door."

Time slowed. She paced back and forth. The crazy idea that everyone had gone in lockdown, except them, crossed her mind.

"It's like the apocalypse. We're left out here to survive—disease, zombies, mutants, and rainstorms." She pressed her ear against the door. "I can't even hear music or talking."

Brett cocked his brow. "It's a steel door, Skye."

"It was worth a try." She shrugged. "Maybe we should go to the coffee shop and wait."

"Give me a sec." Brett pulled his cell out again. "Wire's answering."

She stopped and waited to see what was said when the door opened, making her jump. Pressing her hand to her heart, she exhaled loudly.

"You scared me to death." She stepped forward to go inside.

Wire blocked her way in. She stood between the two men. They were looking at each other as if she wasn't even there.

A chill went through her, and she shivered. "What's going on?"

Worry about her dad hit her first. She'd lost him before when he went to prison .

Her dad pushed past Wire and stepped outside. She sagged in relief.

"Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?" She slipped her phone in her back pocket. "I've never been locked out before."

Her dad cupped her face and ran his thumbs over her cheeks. She gazed into his pained eyes. Her heart raced and the bottom of her world fell out. Something bad had happened.

"Wh-where's Aunt Brooke?" she asked.

"She's working." Her dad let his chin drop to his chest. "Skye. Baby."

She shook, grabbing onto her dad's vest. "Dad? No. No."

He cleared his throat and kissed her forehead. "Dio's missing."

Her spine snapped and she pulled her head back to look up into her dad's face. "What do you mean missing? H-his bike is here. He has to be here."

"Let's go inside and talk and get out of the rain." He smoothed her wet hair off her face. "Cord's bringing Brooke and Mariah over to be with you."

She walked inside, holding onto her dad. "Why aren't you out there looking for him?"

But Dio's Harley was here. He always rode his motorcycle.

"We're getting crews organized to go out." Her dad looked over her head at Brett.

She hated it when the bikers spoke without saying anything. There were too many shared looks and exchanged glances passed around as if Havlin members had their own silent language. She'd seen it before, and she hated it every time .

The Havlin members surrounded the large table they used for meetings. She couldn't follow the conversation. Her stomach flipped. The stiffness of their bodies and the stern expressions sent a chill down her spine. They were acting like Dio was gone forever.

"He's coming back." She nodded violently. "He'd never leave me."

"We're going to find him." Her dad put his arm around her.

She leaned against him. Nothing seemed real. Dio never went missing. He was always there for her whenever she needed him.

"I'm going to check in." Brett walked to the table and left her with her dad.

She grabbed her dad's vest and made him look at her. "Dio would never leave on his own. How can he go missing?"

Her dad's lips thinned. Her vision blurred. She wanted the truth.

"We were after some bad men." He paused. "Dio was, uh, taking them away from Seaglass Cove. He left in their car. We heard gunshots—"

"What?" Her knees weakened, and she hung on to her dad. "He got shot?"

"I don't know, baby." He raked his fingers through his hair. "We don't know if Dio was hurt. He was in the alley, out of our sight."

She wildly looked around the room. "Y-you said there were gunshots. Everyone must've heard them, right? What do the police say?"

"No." He grunted. "The shots were suppressed. There were many people in town but if you're not familiar with the muffled sound, most people would think a car backfired or someone nearby used an impact tool. Ruger and I recognized the sound and found the bullet casings in the alley. Dio and the car he drove were gone."

She pressed her hand to her head. "Okay, so you heard. You know where he was. How can he be missing?"

Her dad gripped the back of her neck, holding her in front of him. "Because they took him."

"Who?" She cried. "Who took him?"

"Los Li."