“Believe me. I won't be needing mom or Amelie. That phone call was a distraction.” I can hear a grin on his face as he speaks even louder into the phone. What the hell does he mean by that? I go to speak, but he quickly cuts me off. His next words leave me with a gaping hole in my chest.
“You see, brother. You made one mistake. You fell in love.” I stand instantly, wondering what the fuck he's talking about, refusing to believe his distraction has anything to do with Jade. Pierce moves quietly through the screens to pull up the trackers, and my fucking heart stops beating. She's not at the ranch. Fuck.
I try to compose my anger and work this call like a professional as I watch the reactions of every single one of the guys. They all know what this means. He has her.
“I don't know what you're talking about.” I’m shaking. My muscles are contracting. I close my eyes and play dumb every time I open my mouth even though my mind has already put together the situation.
“Play games with someone else, Kaleb. Bring me Al-Quaren or say goodbye to your precious blonde here with the nice tits.” Jesus. What has he done?
“You fucking dick. I'll cut your goddamn head off and piss down your throat If you so much as touch her.” I’m losing my shit here. He has my weakness. The fucker is spearing me in the heart, and he knows it.
“Oh, big brother. I'm not interested in your threats. Bring me Al-Quaren, or the next time you hear me talk…. It'll be while I'm fucking her with my dick buried deep inside this sweet * of yours. In fact, I’m staring at her long legs and these toned arms… Ohhhh, fuck, and this beautiful face I can just imagine what it’ll look like when I’m deep inside her. I must say I’m impressed. I bet she tastes as sweet as she looks. I can almost see it now. Me on top of her, while she fights to get away from me. Then I can fuck and choke the life out of her.” My skin erupts. My heart explodes, and my head bursts with the thought of Ty having Jade. What the fuck have I done? I can’t think straight.
“I’m warning you, Ty. Stay the hell away from her. And you know I can't bring you a terrorist that's in US custody.”
“You'd better figure something out. I’ll give you six hours to send me a video that proves you have him before I kill her. Until then… I believe I’ll play with this ball of fire. Tell me, Kaleb…. Does she enjoy it in the ass?” My insides twist, and I swear to god my heart is no longer beating as I think of him touching her anywhere.
“Ty, I swear on my life, if you so much as breathe on her, I'll torture you in ways you've never imagined.” He ends the call like the coward he is, and I grip the edge of the table and roar the loudest, animalistic sound I've ever heard. All of the guys are moving around, either hitting keyboards or packing bags. I'm fucking furious. I've never felt disgust and repulsion like I feel right now. This filth is related to me. And to think, when I found out earlier about all the shit he’s involved in, it actually tore me to shreds to think I failed him. He brought this war on himself. He destroyed his family and his own life, not me. I fucking hate him.
“He fucking has Jade. What in the goddamn fuck? Tell me how to fucking breathe.”
Peirce's logical voice is louder than mine. “Move your ass, Kaleb. We have Steele already fired up, and I've got Vice and Ace already positioned with your mom and sister. He doesn't know we have the tracker in Jade’s leg. We go to him. He doesn't have a chance in hell. Get your fucking shit together or I'm pulling you from this.” I challenge him with my glare. He knows better than to try to keep me from going.
“Don’t look at me like you're the one in charge here. He may have the woman you love, but man, if you don’t put that aside and treat this like any other mission, I will leave you here. Now, pull your damn shit together. We find where he has her. We kill him and we move the fuck on.” I let his words sink in, knowing he’s right. The only thing he’s forgetting is once I know we have Jade; I’m going to kill him slowly. I’m going to bring pleasure to myself by torturing the hell out of him and make him wish he were never fucking born.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
JADE
The burn of the rope pulling tight on my wrists wakes me. The struggle to break free only rips my tender flesh even more. I cringe from the sting soaring up my arm and into my shoulders and stiff neck. The room is mostly dark, the only light coming from a small window, and I'm searching for any sign of who might have me.
I hold my breath with the movement of someone behind me, only exhaling slowly when I hear him talk. “Morning, sunshine. Do you always talk in your sleep?” His voice is deep and familiar, with a gritty edge to it. He’s directly behind me, his warm breath at the base of my ear.
God, this has to be Ty. There isn’t anyone else who would dare to come face-to-face with two military experts. My eyes go frantic, and I try to tilt my head to look at the bastard. I’m not concerned about me right now. I need to know how the hell he got past Harris and Mallory. Did he shoot them? Hurt them? Are they still alive?