Chapter Twenty-One

Valor

COURT AND KILLER told me Savannah had gone home to take a nap as soon as I came upstairs from taking care of the sick fuck who bought one of my daughters. She couldn't handle being around everyone and there was no way she'd be able to go back to work. Since everyone was down in the basement with me or up in the common room watching over my daughters, no one went home with Savannah. They didn't even send Martin or George with her. I have no clue what the fuck any of them were thinking as dread fills my gut and my need to get to Savannah overwhelms me. I look at Killer and Court before turning my attention to the girls where they sit in front of their computers and finish up their work for the day.

"I'm gonna go check on my wife. Can you stay here with the girls until we get back?" I ask the men in front of me, fear filling me as I look between my best friend and a man I've known for most of my life.

"You're not goin' up there alone, Valor. I'll go with you. The guys will be comin' up from the basement any minute and they can stay with the girls. Killer and Playboy are already in here. George has been on gate duty and Martin just got back from the store," Court informs me, his voice letting me know he realizes exactly where my mind went about why my wife is alone. "Let's go get my sister-in-law so I can get her to bake for me."

Court has taken to calling my sweet Savannah his sister-in-law over the last week or so. He's my best friend and the brother of my heart. We clicked immediately and there's no way I can let him go when the guys patch in and take over their roles in the new chapter. I want to ask Court to stay here with me in Pine View, but he has always been a lover of traveling and said he never wants to set down roots or be tied to any place for long periods of time. Since he's my best friend, there's no way in hell I can ever let him leave without making sure I know where he is and what he's doing. If he wants to call my wife his sister-in-law, I don't mind. Court would never take things beyond teasing Savannah because he respects me enough to ensure neither one of us are ever uncomfortable with him.

"I don't have a good feelin' about this," I tell them, pulling my phone from the pocket of my jeans.

Nothing is showing up on my phone about any security system alerts being triggered. I see the log where Savannah turned the system off before rearming it. She didn't do anything wrong or to throw up red flags. There's nothing on the security system after the time she armed the alarm again. Dread fills me even more because when I try to pull up the camera feed to check on her in the house, I get an error message.

"We gotta go. Now!" I bark out, racing from the clubhouse with Court hot on my heels.

"What's wrong?" he questions me, his voice full of concern as Playboy and Slim rush from the clubhouse after us.

"The alarm was armed when Savannah got in the house. Nothin' since then. I can't pull up the camera feed of the house. It's givin' me an error message. Somethin' is wrong and we need to get to my wife," I say frantically as fear and pain fill my voice because I know my wife won't be in the house when we get there. If she is, she won't be in good shape.

"Go! We'll wait for your call. Make sure Savannah is safe," Slim orders us, pulling his phone from his pocket and turning away from us.

Court jumps in the driver's seat of his truck and I climb in the passenger side. I barely have my door closed before he's taking off around the clubhouse and toward the houses. Neither one of us says a word as he speeds through the compound and the knot in my stomach continues to twist and turn with every passing second. If I had been in the common room instead of down in the basement with that sick fuck, Savannah would've taken a nap in our room at the clubhouse instead of heading home alone. She wouldn't have been gone for Conrad to take her. I don't have a doubt in my mind that if she's gone, it's because of him and whatever plan he has for her moving forward.

"When I find him, I'm gonna fuckin' gut him," I tell Court as he pulls the truck up to the house and we both jump out before he's barely got it in park.

"Let's go find your wife, Valor," he states as we rush up the steps of the house and I punch in the code to open the door.

The second I hear the click of the lock opening, I twist the handle and shove the door open so hard and fast it slams into the wall behind it. It takes me a second to take in the complete destruction of our home. Everything is tipped over, broken, shattered plates and dishes on the floor surrounding the island, furniture tipped over and splintered, and nothing where it was when we left the house this morning. A cast iron pan and knife lay haphazardly on the floor as I notice the blood. Stepping further in the house with Court following me, I notice the backdoor wide open as the blood trail leads that way.

"Fuck!" Court says, his voice hard and cold as we carefully walk through the house and take in the scene before us. "Your wife fuckin' fought for her life. She didn't want to leave the house and made sure to do everythin' in her power to stay here in her home. A home you made for her."

"I can't lose her, Court. Savannah is my heart and the air I need to breathe. Conrad has her and I know in my heart that he's gonna fuckin' hurt her. He'll make sure to break her down to nothin' until she has nothin' left of herself," I state, knowing the kind of man Conrad is after seeing so many of his type over the years.

"You're not gonna lose her, Valor. We're gonna get her back. Don't you have a trackin' device in her engagement ring?" he asks me, his voice barely audible over the roaring of blood in my ears.

"I do," I tell him, hope flooding me as I continue to walk through the house and take in all the details of Savannah fighting for her life.

Looking down at my phone, I pull up the tracking app I have installed on everyone's phone here in the club. Clicking on Savannah's name, I wait for the red dot to appear letting me know where she is.

"Fuck!" I yell out, wanting to slam my phone into the ground at my feet or throw it across the room as rage fills me. "Her ring says she's here. See if you can find it in this fuckin' mess."

Court and I look around the house and it feels like forever passes before I squat down behind the island and see her engagement ring laying on the floor under the bottom ledge of the counter. Picking it up in my hand, I hold it in the palm of my hand. Court makes his way over to my side and looks at the ring nestled in the palm of my hand.

"Okay. We've gotta be smart about this, Valor. Savannah is still here in Pine View. We know both Conrad and his father are in the city somewhere. There are only so many places to hide. We need to make sure we send everyone out while leavin' a few guys at the clubhouse to protect the girls and other kids. The ol' ladies will die for them, but I'd prefer some guys to remain behind. You're not gonna make any plans because we both know your head isn't in the game right now. Let me get with your brother and Slim to put somethin' in place," Court says, stepping up and leading me from the house where my wife was taken by force.

"If that blood is hers," I begin, stopping before I even get the chance to finish my thought because it's too hard to think about her being hurt and alone with a fucking pussy like Conrad.

"We'll figure it out, Valor. For now, you need to calm down and not let on to the girls that somethin' is goin' on. We don't need them to lose their shit when we have no clue what the fuck is goin' on," Court says, his voice hard but gentle as he briefly looks over at me and checks on me.

Pulling up the security app again, I search the camera feed for the compound. Whoever disabled my alarm system also disconnected the one for the compound. It's the reason why we weren't alerted to someone getting onto the compound and then away again with Savannah. My wife is going to be scared and out of her mind with worry when she wakes up. I have no doubt at least some of the blood belongs to Savannah. Someone was dragged away through the house based on the mess that was scattered even more as we walked through the lower level of the house.

I didn't even go upstairs to make sure no one was there. However, the feeling in my gut lets me know that Savannah is no longer in our home. She was taken from our sanctuary and now I'm not going to make her go back there again. We'll figure out something else to do for a home with the girls. The girls won't want to live there either knowing their sister was removed by force from the one place that should've been safe and secure. I wasn't even thinking about someone fucking with the security system of our home or the compound. This is my fault and no one else's. I should've been thinking about someone coming in right under our nose to take Savannah from me.

Court parks his truck in front of the clubhouse and we jump out, heading straight inside where everyone is waiting for us. The second Vault sees me, he stands from his chair and calls for church. We all make our way there and I don't look at anyone. I can feel the girls' eyes on me as I stride through the room and try to keep my face as neutral as possible. I'm not sure if I actually succeed or not because I don't take a second to stop and look at anyone. Without handing over my phone or gun, I make my way into church and take my seat around the table. Tossing my phone on the table in front of me, everyone settles in the seats or lined up against the walls of the room.

"Meetin' in session," Vault says, slamming the gavel on the table in front of him. "Valor, what's goin' on? Where's Savannah?"

"Went to the house to check on Savannah. The house is fuckin' destroyed. Furniture tipped over, dishes smashed into the floor, everythin' has been thrown or knocked down. There's blood on the floor leadin' to the back door that was left open. I'm not sure if it's Savannah's blood or whoever took her. And by that I mean Conrad. He's been too fuckin' quiet when we know he's in town. I have no doubt that he took my wife and she fought against him. Pretty sure some of the blood is his with the pan and knife layin' in the middle of the floor. My wife is more than likely hurt and Conrad is gonna keep hurtin' her until he gets what he wants. I have no doubt we'll be gettin' somethin' about handin' the girls over to him and I'm not gonna give my daughters up too," I state, keeping the emotion out of my voice as I keep my eyes glued to the table in front of me.

"What about the security system for the house and compound? Did you pull up the footage to see what happened?" Buzz asks me, making my blood boil even more than it already is because I'm not a fucking idiot.

"Yeah, Buzz, I did. Pulled up the footage from the house first. Not only was the alarm bypassed somehow, but all the cameras were disable. The house and the compound is the same way. Whoever did this knew exactly what they were doin'. I don't see Conrad or his father bein' able to disarm the system we have in place for the entire compound or the houses," I state, my voice showing my annoyance with the man as he stares at me and I get that thick feeling of dread in my gut once again. "Why wouldn't I pull up the footage? Or do you have somethin' to tell us? If someone knows how to bypass the system I put in place it would be you. Maybe we need to see what you've been doin' on the computer when Fox and Kingston aren't in the room with you. Or when you're in your room by yourself."

"What the fuck, Valor?" Buzz questions, his voice hard and cold as he sits straight up in his chair. "You're gonna sit there and say I'm guilty of helpin' this sick fuck?"

"Well, why the fuck would you question if I checked the system? That's like askin' if I dragged her from the house so I could get rid of her or somethin'. My fuckin' wife is missin' and I'm goin' to go through everythin' to make sure I cover all of my bases," I tell Buzz as Killer and Playboy step up behind me and place their hands on my shoulders so I stay in my seat instead of going after Buzz where he sits across the table from me.

"I know it's your wife, Valor. That's why I'm askin' if you checked the security system. You might not be thinkin' right and forgot somethin'. It would be understandable and we'd all get it if you didn't check somethin'," Buzz states, trying to cover his ass for questioning me when this entire security thing was my idea to begin with.

"Yeah. And that's why I fuckin' checked everythin'. The same as I'd do for my sister-in-law and every other ol' lady in this fuckin' clubhouse. Savannah is my wife but knowin' she's been taken from me hasn't caused my brain to completely shut the fuck down. I know how to do my fuckin' job. Why don't you do yours and give us somethin' if you're so much fuckin' smarter than me. Where did they go when they left the compound? What kind of vehicle is Conrad drivin'? Are they still in Pine View? Come on, Buzz, give me the answers to those fuckin' questions," I growl, rage fueling me as everyone in our meeting room watches me lose my shit while my eyes remain locked on Buzz across the table from me.

"That's enough," Vault finally says as Slim keeps his eyes on me. I can feel them drilling into the side of my head where I sit and know he's not happy with how I'm acting. "Fox, see if you can pull up anythin' so we have a lead on where Savannah is and what kind of vehicle Conrad is in right now. I want Kingston to go over everythin' regardin' Conrad and his father. Triple check all of their fuckin' contacts so we can figure out who cut out the security system. I'm callin' church for one fuckin' hour. Don't leave the compound at all. Get somethin' to eat, rest, and spend time with your loved ones if they're here."

My brother slams the gavel on the table in front of him again and everyone leaves with the exception of Court, Killer, Playboy, Slim, Stryker, Chrome, and my brother. Buzz was the first one out of the room. The second the door closes, all eyes are on me. They're waiting for me to break the fuck down but I can't. If I do, I'm not gonna be able to stop.

"I'm gonna have Shy bring the girls in so we can talk to them. They need to know what's goin' on, Valor. Usually, I'm all for keepin' kids and ol' ladies in the dark. We know this is gonna impact them though. Not only is their sister missin', but we know Conrad will be after them next. He's losin' out on a ton of money and he's gonna want it back. I want them in the clubhouse and nowhere else. Five guys on them at all times. No excuses or reasons one of the guys leave them without havin' a replacement ready," Vault states as he looks directly at me and no one else. "We've got the girls, Brother. No one will get them. And we'll do everythin' in our power to find Savannah too. Fox is gonna look into Buzz to be on the safe side. He knows without me sayin' a word to him."

With a nod of my head, Slim pulls out his phone and calls his wife. The conversation is short and barely audible as I try to keep all the rage and fear consuming me from overloading and sending me flying into a fit of rage. It takes every ounce of control I have as the door opens and Shy brings the girls into us. Miracle rushes to my side as Killer and Playboy move out of her way.

"What's going on?" Ava asks, as I look at her to find tears already filling her eyes. "Something happened to Savannah."

It's not a question as my oldest daughter looks at me for confirmation.

"Yeah, Sweetheart," I tell her, my voice breaking as Miracle's arms squeeze tighter around me and I hold her close. "Someone broke into the house and took her. For now, you're not goin' home. We're gonna stay at the clubhouse and you're gonna have men on you at all times."

"This is because of the woman who gave birth to us?" Chloe asks, knowing they were sold by that skank.

"Yeah, Darlin'," Vault answers, standing up and holding his arms open for her as she rushes into his arms. "We're gonna get Savannah back as soon as we can. Kingston and Fox are lookin' into things right now. They're the best and won't rest until she's home with us."

"I want to go to our room," Ava says trying to remain so strong for her younger sisters as I nod my head in response.

The first tear spills over her lashes and I take one of my arms from around Miracle. Ava doesn't hesitate to rush into my arms as I hold two of my daughters close. Closing my eyes, I make a silent promise that I will get my wife back and make sure Conrad suffers for the hell he's causing our family. When the time is right, he'll be taken out for good and none of us will ever be tied to his murder.

I hold the girls as they cry while Vault holds Chloe as she cries against his chest. We let them cry for as long as they need and don't move a muscle. Ava is the first to pull back as she wipes the tears from her face and Chloe follows suit. Miracle finally breaks free from me and follows her sisters and Shy out of the meeting room. Playboy and Killer leave with them and I know they'll grab three more men to surround my daughters with.

Taking my seat again, I don't bother leaving the room because there's nothing in the common room for me. If I'm surrounded by everyone, I'll go insane. So, the best place for me right now is here in this room with very few guys at my side. No one tries to talk to me as I sit in silence and stare at the wall in front of me without seeing a damn thing. Thoughts of Savannah fill my head as I relive memories we've created over the years. The good and bad times play on repeat as I let the images filter through my mind and take over while I wait and do nothing to stop them. The sooner we get my wife back, the better I'll be. Until then, it's going to take everything in me to keep the rage under wraps and be as calm as I can be so I don't get benched and locked in a room while everyone else searches for my wife and brings her home where she belongs.