Chapter Forty-Four
Isabel
I felt my heart drop in to my stomach as he held up the tracker.
I quickly surmised that there was no point in trying to hide. “I can explain,” I whispered.
“Motherfucker!” Rem chucked the plastic to the ground then toppled the table next to me. It caused a loud clatter as it crashed on the floor and into other tables. I huddled in my chair, trying to make myself smaller. His breathing was ragged and loud, like a bull in an arena.
I spoke in an effort to head off his rage. “I took it, but I never intended to use it. My uncle said the Snakes would kill my dad unless I put it on your bike. But I knew I couldn’t do it. I was trying to buy time to figure out a way to save my dad without hurting the club.”
Rem was pacing in front of me, his eyes never leaving me. They held a cruel determination that I had never seen before. It was as if he was holding himself back from hurting me.
“But you still did it?” said Max in an accusing tone.
“W-what?”
“You planted it on Rem’s bike.”
I sputtered. They found it on Rem’s bike? “I didn’t. It’s been in my makeup bag since I got back. I swear.”
Rem stopped pacing and glared at me, his face still full of menace. Then he took a slow step towards me. “We have a witness who says otherwise.” His voice was a deep timbre, the same that spoke to me in the darkness of night. But there was something different. It was almost sinister. He stopped only a few inches in front of me and glared down. “A witness that has been trusted by this club a lot longer than you have. Someone who lives this life without doubt.”
His statement made my heart slow. It went from a panicked beat to a loud pounding, measured and deliberate, aching to be heard behind the bricks layering inside my chest. He was calling me an outsider, someone who was weak, someone different from them … from him. I felt my eyes burn. “So you’re going to believe this witness over me?”
He bent forward and whispered, “Why shouldn’t I believe them?”
“Because I love you,” I said simply, desperately.
He leaned back a little. I could see the change in his gaze. There was a flicker of doubt. Still angry but uncertain.
“And you love me. Shouldn’t that be enough?” He stood up and turned away.
I knew I would lose the fight if I gave up now, so I continued. “I’ll admit, I was stupid to keep the tracker from you. I thought I could figure this out on my own, but I was wrong. I ask for your forgiveness for doing what I did. But I swear I didn’t put it on your bike.” I stared at his back, shoulders shrugged in sadness and frustration. He must feel it. He had to believe me. “Please, Rem.”
The room was quiet with all eyes on Rem. After a few moments, he finally turned back to me. I was hoping to see compassion in his face, but it was stoic, like the first time I met him. His mask to keep his feelings hidden. He just shook his head.
“I don’t believe you,” he said.
The he walked toward the door leading outside.
Greyson gave me a look of pity before he said, “Take her to the warehouse.”
****
Hawk and Max led me to the warehouse. Hawk opened the door for me, but I couldn’t go in. I was too scared. I started to sway backwards when I felt Max at my back. “Come on, Isabel.” He said my name softly, as if he was sorry for forcing me.
I stepped over the threshold, and I suddenly felt a sob come out of my throat. I had been crying since Rem left me, but this was different. I was terrified of what waited for me inside. I tried to keep quiet, embarrassed that I was being such a coward in front of Max and Hawk.
They ignored my strangled whines as they led me through the maze of boxes and shelves.
We soon came to a large crate. Max put his shoulder against it and pushed to reveal a metal door in the floor. He flipped the latch and opened it before he stepped down into darkness. I saw a light come on in the dark, and Hawk gave a little nudge on my lower back. When I didn’t move, he said, “It’s only a holding cell until the brothers can meet. No one is going to hurt you.”
No one is going to hurt me in the next few hours, I thought. I knew he couldn’t guarantee my safety after that.
I went down the stairs, and Hawk stayed where he was. It was a small bunker with a cot and a bucket. It reminded me a lot of the basement I was in only two days ago.
“You won’t be in here very long. I promise. It is just a precaution until we decide.”
I nodded and walked toward the cot to sit down. My sobs had calmed down a bit, but the tears were still coming.
Max gave me one last look before going up the stairs. The door slammed shut. I lay down on the cot and curled into a ball. I wasn’t ready to stop crying, not by a long shot.