CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

JJ was as focused as he’d ever been. “Sitrep,” he barked as he entered the back room of Jack’s Lumber. They’d decided to use it as home base. They all felt closer to their women there, since that’s where they’d last known them to be.

It was well into the evening now, dark outside, but no one was tired. Not even close.

“The police chief has organized some search parties, but we all know they aren’t going to find anything around here. Whoever took our women is long gone,” Bob said.

“My parents have gotten in touch with the king and queen, and their best tech experts are on it, seeing if they can find any digital trace of who might’ve done this,” Cal said. “But more importantly, thanks to Chief Rutkey’s help, the phone company is finally working on pinging their phones. They should be getting back to me anytime now.”

“I talked to Tex. He’s pissed. Like, really pissed. He’s contacting a group of men he knows who live in Indianapolis,” Chappy informed them.

“Who are they, and how can they help?” JJ asked.

“I’m not sure. All I know is that they have a towing company called Silverstone.”

Irritation swamped JJ. The last thing they needed was some random guys without resources. Just bringing them up to date was precious time they needed to find their women.

“Holy shit! Silverstone?” Bob asked.

“You know them?” JJ asked, a little harsher than intended.

“They worked with Willis, the FBI contact I also worked with on my missions. He didn’t mention the name of their business, just said he worked with a group of former Special Forces soldiers who ran a towing business in Indiana. They took contract jobs to . . . eliminate bad guys.”

“Assassins?” Cal asked with both brows raised.

“Apparently,” Bob said with a nod. “I’ve heard nothing but amazing things. Willis was super upset to lose them. They stopped contracting after getting married and starting families. They’re completely legit now, running Silverstone, but they’re the real deal.”

JJ nodded reluctantly. Another former Special Forces team on their side would be great.

“Do we have any clue who the perp is?” Bob asked. “Who has our women and why?”

“Unknown at this time, but Tex is working on it,” Chappy said.

Given some of the violent things they’d done in the course of serving their country, Tex was literally the only person who JJ wasn’t worried about digging into their backgrounds.

Just then, Cal’s phone rang, and he answered it and put it on speaker. “Callum Redmon,” he said.

“Mr. Redmon, this is Alice from the phone company, returning your call.”

“What did you find out? Where is she?” he asked without beating around the bush.

“Well, it looks like your wife’s phone is in Canada.”

The four men exchanged confused looks.

“Excuse me?” Cal asked the woman.

“It’s currently pinging off a tower in Montreal. And for the record, she doesn’t have the international plan, which I can help you activate. Trust me, it’ll save you hundreds of dollars.”

“What about the others?” Cal barked, obviously not interested in a sales pitch. “Are they in Montreal too?”

JJ tensed as he heard the woman’s fingers clicking on a keyboard. “No. The other three numbers you gave me are in three different places. One’s in Boston, the other is in Portland. Maine, that is, not Oregon.” The woman laughed at her own joke, but when Cal didn’t seem to appreciate her humor, she continued quickly. “And the last number is no longer transmitting, but the last ping was near Albany, New York.”

JJ’s mind spun. All the reasons he could think of for their phones ending up in different places weren’t good. Not at all.

“Sir?” Alice asked. “Are you still there? Do you want me to activate the international plan on your wife’s phone? It’s only ten dollars a day, and trust me, that’s way cheaper than what accessing Canadian cell towers in roaming mode is costing now.”

“Shut it down. Deactivate the phone,” Cal said, then hung up without another word, cutting off the poor woman.

“So whoever took them either gave their phones away, or they were stolen,” Chappy said.

“Looks that way,” Bob said tightly.

JJ pressed his lips together. The possibility of tracking the women via phone was out. Unless . . . “They could’ve been taken by traffickers,” he said. “Heading to different places.”

Cal shook his head. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Why not?” JJ asked, wanting desperately to agree with his friend. Fear rolled in his gut at the thought of April being in the hands of anyone in the trafficking industry.

“Whoever took them took them together. Yes, it’s possible that he or she stopped somewhere and split them up, but I’m thinking two obviously very pregnant ladies and—no offense, JJ—an older woman like April aren’t exactly the usual suspects when it comes to the sex trade.”

He wasn’t wrong. JJ nodded.

“Then who? And why?” Bob asked.

“At this point, it doesn’t matter. Whoever took them is dead,” JJ growled. “What else do we have? Video?”

“Nothing I’ve found yet,” Chappy said. “Our inside camera is pointed at the front door, and the one outside catches the street directly in front of Jack’s Lumber. If the vehicle pulled around to the street, it must’ve turned right, out of frame, because no truck with a trailer passed in front of our camera.”

“Shit,” JJ said, running a hand through his hair. Living in Newton had made him complacent. Crime rarely happened in the small town, but he should’ve known better—especially after shit had happened. To his own friends’ women. He blamed himself for not having a camera on the back door. It was stupid, and possibly the worst mistake he’d ever made.

“What about other businesses?” Cal asked.

“The police chief is checking with them.”

“We don’t have time for that,” JJ said, knowing down to his bones that time was ticking. They needed to figure out where their women were now.

The gazes of his best friends were locked on him. Looking to him for direction. But for the first time in his life, JJ was at a loss.

He always had a plan. Was the team leader, the man the others turned to when missions were FUBAR. But he had nothing right now. It was as if their women had disappeared without a trace.

His heart raced, and inside, he panicked. Outwardly, he remained as calm as ever.

“You got nothin’?” Bob finally asked. “How can you be so relaxed right now?” he barked harshly. “Oh, because April’s not your wife? Because she’s not pregnant?”

Anger rose hard and fast within JJ, but he didn’t lash out. Didn’t respond in any way. He understood where his friend’s anger was coming from.

“Seriously, JJ, are you made of fucking ice?” Chappy asked. “April’s out there! Maybe hurt. Definitely scared. We thought you two finally admitted how much you meant to each other. Were we wrong?”

Again, JJ knew their anger was coming from a place of fear and helplessness and despair—all the things JJ felt inside himself. And Chappy wasn’t wrong—he was encased in ice. It was the only way to keep all those emotions inside. He knew himself too well. If he let them out, he wouldn’t be able to think. Wouldn’t be able to help April and the others at all.

“June’s about ready to have our son,” Cal said in the most tortured voice JJ had ever heard. “Stress isn’t good for her or our child. What if she goes into labor while we’re standing around twiddling our thumbs? For God’s sake, help us!” He was practically yelling by the time he was done.

JJ straightened. His hands shook with the adrenaline coursing through his bloodstream. He didn’t hate his friends for turning their fear and frustration on him. That had always been his job as team leader. To stay stoic, to make decisions that were best for everyone . . . and yes, to be a punching bag when needed.

“We’re going to find them,” he said in a voice he didn’t recognize. It was full of venom, and hate, and determination. “Cal, your wife and son will be fine. The others will take care of her. Chappy, Carlise is smart and steady. Bob, Marlowe’s been to hell, and she still had your back when things seemed hopeless. And my April is the glue that will hold them all together.

“They’re holding on. For us. And we will not let them down. Whoever has them made the worst mistake of his life. No matter what his beef with us might be, he should’ve let it go. Because now he’s going to die a very painful death. Mark my words, we’re going to find them. And when we do, anyone and everyone who had a hand in taking them will pay.

“As for not caring . . . I care,” JJ said. “You know I do. But I’m keeping it locked down. I can’t lose myself to my fear. I can’t think about how scared April is. How worried she has to be. Whether or not she’s hurt. Whose blood that is on the floor. If I do, I’ll lose it, and I won’t be able to help them at all.

“So you guys can be pissed. You can rant and rave, punch shit, throw stuff. I don’t care if you destroy this office and everything in it. I’ll continue to keep it together for us all. Hate me if you want, but that won’t change a goddamn thing. I’m still going to find my woman and tear apart anyone who’s hurt one hair on her head.”

His teammates had gone still at his first words. Now, they stared at him with a mixture of appreciation and guilt. Finally, Chappy spoke quietly. “I’m sorry for doubting you, even for a second. We all know who you are. You’ve saved our lives more than once and gotten us through situations no one should’ve lived through.”

“I’m sorry too,” Cal told him. “I just . . . I’m so damn worried for June, I can’t think straight!”

“You’re right. Our women are stronger than we’re giving them credit for. We just need one fucking clue! Even the smallest scrap, and we’ll be on them,” Bob said.

“Damn straight,” JJ said with a nod.

Chappy came over and put a hand on his shoulder. The weight of his friend’s hand was negligible, but the support and meaning behind it were immeasurable. Cal approached and rested a hand on his other shoulder. Then Bob advanced from the front, wrapping his arms around Chappy and Cal’s shoulders, engulfing them all in one large embrace.

No one said a word, but the support the men had for each other invigorated them. Gave them strength.

JJ loved these men. He’d literally die for them, just as he’d die for their wives. He prayed long and hard it wouldn’t come to that. That they’d somehow luck out and find the women safe and sound and without a scratch on them.

But he knew deep down, instinctively, the fight of their lives was upon them. What they’d experienced as POWs would seem like a walk in the park compared to getting their women back. That didn’t matter. They hadn’t trained so long and so hard, hadn’t seen and done what they had, hadn’t experienced hell, only to lose the people who’d made it all worthwhile.

Stay strong, April. We’re coming for you.

The words were silent, in his head, but JJ didn’t need to say them out loud. He knew without a doubt that April knew he’d find her.