Early September in the Appalachians brings crisp night air. The scarred and scuffed wooden tabletop at the coffee shop adjoining the service station where the Land Rover is getting four new replacement tires is filled with the writings of previous customers. A slew of Sharpie in a rainbow of colors reads like a love song, but I’m not studying the poetry.
I keep glancing at the glass door leading to the service station, checking the status on my SUV, my fingers drumming anxiously on the table.
“If they aren’t here by the time the car is done, we’re leaving without them.” My tone warns Dare that I’m dead fucking serious. It’s been two hours since I watched a psychopath drive off with the woman I love and our son. There’s only so much waiting a man can do before he snaps.
And I’m at the tipping point.
The tracker stopped moving an hour and a half after they left, and I’ve had eyes on it, waiting for it to start up again. But it hasn’t. They’re still in these very same mountains, and I need to get on the road so I can get to them.
The thump, thump, thump of my fingertips hitting the table and the beeping of the tracker on my phone, combined with the continuous whir of the espresso machine behind the counter are the only sounds in the room.
“No, Brains. We wait. You can’t do this alone, that’s why you have a team. Swagger and Ghost are on their way…should be here any minute now.”
When we called them, they were staking out a hotel where they’d had confirmation Horton had been staying. As soon as we informed them of what had happened on the mountain road, they abandoned that post and we decided as a group not to put Jacob on the line by telling him what we were doing. We collectively made the decision to go rogue and take the consequences later.
But we knew damn well that if Boss Man were in any of our positions, he wouldn’t hesitate.
I hope he’s not too pissed off at me later, but at this point I really don’t give a fuck.
Thoughts of what Horton could be doing to Rayne and Decker while I’m sitting on my ass waiting for my car to be fixed threaten to drive me over the edge. Dare insisted that taking his truck and going in alone without a plan was a bad idea, something that would surely be more dangerous to my family than waiting and planning.
When the little bell over the shop tingles and I glance up to see Grisham and Ronin walking through the door, I shoot out of my seat.
Ronin locks eyes with me and the sympathy in them almost breaks me.
He walks over and places a hand on my shoulder. “We’ll get them back.”
With a curt nod, I rake both hands through my disheveled hair. “No other option.”
Grisham takes the seat beside Dare and places his tablet on the table. “Show me your app with the tracking device information.”
I slide my phone over to him but there’s no way I can sit down again. Instead, I pace the small space, listening as Grisham starts to strategize.
“Brains.” Grisham addresses me with such a serious note in his voice that I pause in my pacing and glance at him. “I hate to ask this, but…can you handle this? There’s a reason why teams like us aren’t supposed to execute rescue missions for our own families.”
Three sets of eyes focus on me. My jaw tenses, every muscle in my body going rigid with irritation. I feel like an open fucking wound; the extreme rawness of my emotions scrapes with each painful reference to my own capability.
“Ghost. I want you to listen to me.” Each word is succinct for perfect clarity. “There’s no way in hell anybody can keep me from going after them. I’m on this mission. Period. Let’s get a plan in place so we can stop sitting around. Now.”
He studies me for a minute, his pensive gaze probing, before he finally lifts a tattooed arm in a “come here” gesture. Gathering around him, we all stare down at the devices.
“The location is densely wooded. It’s kind of the perfect hiding spot, way up in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The town borders Tennessee and North Carolina, and it’s known for its nearly impassible road conditions in winter. We’re damn lucky that there’s no ice and snow to contend with right now, because if there were we wouldn’t be able to drive in at all.”
With a groan, my head falls back . “I know that area. Used to go there a lot as a kid.”
Grisham glances up, surprised. “Good. The fact that you know the terrain will help. We’ll drive in, test out the lay of the land. It’s probably good we’re gonna have the Land Cruiser. We’ll probably need to take Dare’s truck, too, since this is a rescue mission.”
From the floor beside the table, Night looks up and gives a short, low bark.
Grisham grins. “Yeah, we’ll use Night, too. If they’re not inside a residence, he can follow a scent.”
Nodding, I crouch down and pat Night on his blocky head. “Yeah. He’s good at that.”
“We don’t know until we get there whether they’re being held in a house or a cabin, or some kind of facility. I don’t like the idea of going in blind, of not having time to conduct surveillance first. So none of us can afford to be emotional. Cool heads here, you understand?”
Grisham’s looking at me, but I know he’s addressing everyone. When one of our own is taken, it affects the entire team. I’m not the only one who’s feeling this in my gut. The other guys are like my brothers. They know what’s at stake, and all of our emotions are running high.
We all nod. “Roger that.”
The glass door to the service station opens, and the tall, lanky mechanic in gray coveralls lumbers over. “All set.”
I head straight to the cashier and pull out my credit card. By the time I’m finished paying for the tires and service, Dare, Ronin, and Grisham are headed out the door. Night sits, waiting for me.
Resting a hand on his head, I crouch down and look him in the eye. His are blue, deep, and full of trust and understanding.
“Ready, Night? Let’s go bring our family home.”