Chapter Sixteen – Grayson
An annoying buzzing noise drew him out of bed. Grayson had spent so many sleepless nights that waking up after being so relaxed was a difficult task. He stumbled around the room, searching for his pants and the source of the buzzing. He finally found his phone and sat on the edge of his bed, yawning. It was just getting light outside. Was this Henry asking him why he hadn't relieved him at midnight?
Grayson suppressed another yawn. "Hello?"
"May I talk to Grayson Alexander, please?" a cool, controlled feminine voice said.
"Speaking."
"Ah, good. I do hate wasting time." The woman sounded pleased. "Mr. Alexander, I'm afraid I have bad news. I regret to inform you that Arabella Grant will no longer be living with you."
Ice flooded his veins. He turned to see, for the first time, that Arabella wasn't in the bed next to him. The sleep vanished from his eyes and adrenaline spiked in his blood. He had secured the house. They couldn’t have come in and snatched her while he was sleeping.
"You are to step down from your political aspirations at once and instead turn your attentions to striking down the legislation you have tried to pass. If you do not do as we say, then she will be killed."
Grayson ran to the twin's room. They were still inside, sleeping peacefully. No sign of Arabella. A quick search of the house showed she wasn't there. The woman on the phone hummed pleasantly while he searched, as though waiting.
"Where is she?" he demanded.
"She will be released as soon as you have done us this little favor," she said, then hung up.
Grayson was left frozen. He thought this was over. He thought they could live happily together now, only for this to happen. He had to do what they said or else Arabella would die . . .
But he knew that even if he did give into their demands, they wouldn't release Arabella. Their demands might never be met. He couldn't stop the legislation. What then? His mind flashed to a dozen possibilities. She might already be dead. But how had they gotten her?
He strode out to the flight deck. "Henry!"
A dark shadow leaped from a nearby tree and floated down towards him. Henry shifted as he landed. His expression was grim and he held up his hands in self-defense.
"She said the only way for you and the twins to be safe was if she left. I couldn't have stopped her even if I tried."
"What?"
Henry flinched and shook his head. "Hey, it was her choice. If she loves you that much, I—"
"They have her!"
Grayson resisted the urge to grab his friend and shake him. Helpless rage swept through him. Arabella had left of her own volition – had she been threatened to do so? Or was it because she thought she wasn't worthy enough for him, or because she was afraid the organization and Kennedy would continue to come after her?
"Who has her?"
"The organization that kidnapped her when she was sixteen and forced her into this life. They have her and they're going to kill her unless I undo everything I've done."
"Gray—"
"They'll probably kill her anyway." He paced around the room, eyes wild.
Henry grabbed Grayson's shoulders, stopping him. "What happened?"
Grayson told him about the phone call he had just received. He started pacing again, digging his hands into his hair. His thoughts continually danced everywhere. If he did as he was told, Arabella might be safe. Or it might kill her. He had no leverage. Nothing he could use against them. From everything she had told him about this organization, it wasn't like they were just going to let her go on with her life . . .
"What about the senator?" Henry asked. "He might know something. He hired them in the first place, didn't he?"
Senator White. Of course. Grayson turned back to Henry, face set in determination. "Watch the twins. I'm going to have a word with him."
Henry nodded. Grayson climbed over the patio railing and let his wings burst from his body as a rush of air filled his ears. Maybe he did have a little leverage after all.
***
White couldn't tell him anything, but Grayson hadn't expected him to. On his flight to the jailhouse, he had come up with another plan, and as soon as it became clear that the senator knew nothing about the organization, he set up a computer to live stream across various social media outlets and told the senator to confess to all his illegal dealings with the mining companies.
Maybe he couldn't go after the organization, but he could go after their mysterious client.
It wasn't more than five minutes into the broadcast when Grayson got a call. It was the same feminine voice to threaten Arabella, but this time she wasn't calm and collected. Rage boiled in her voice.
"Stop the senator this instant or Arabella dies," she hissed. "Do you really care for her so little that you'd flaunt our demands this way?"
Grayson hit a button on the computer, ending the broadcast. White looked up at him with a sickly sheen on his face. The dragon ignored him, grinning to himself. It had worked – at least, he had their attention now.
"I had to have some way to contact you," he said, keeping his tone low and even. "You didn't leave a number."
"I don't think you quite understand how this works. You do as we want, Arabella lives. You try something like this again, she dies."
"Oh, I think I know just fine how this works. I do as you say, you kill her anyway. But you don't care about my politics, do you? It's your clients. All those mining corporations stand to lose a lot of money if I continue. Which one hired you to go after my children?"
The woman growled. "Don't play games. Arabella's life means nothing to us. Does it mean nothing to you?"
"How do I know she's still alive?"
There was a brief pause, and then Arabella's voice came over the line. "Grayson. I'm here."
Relief washed over him and he clutched his phone to his ear. "Arabella! Are you alright? Have they hurt you?"
"No, I'm fine. Just do as they say. Please. They'll go after the twins again if this doesn't work. You have to look after yourself and the children. Just forget about me. Forget you ever met me."
She let out a brief cry, and then the first voice was back. "Proof enough for you, Mr. Alexander? She is alive. But she will only stay that way if you do as we want. Understood?"
"If you harm her, I will burn you all," he hissed, fire leaping and writhing in his gut. "I will find you and—"
"You will only do that if you want to die. Cross us and you will die. Your children will die. All your friends will die," the woman interrupted. "We have said all we're going to say on the matter. Do as we say or—"
"I can pay you," he interrupted. "Whatever you've been paid to do this, I'll double it. I will give you everything I have if you call off this hunt on me and release Arabella. Everything. I won't be able to lobby the government without my money. You'll have satisfied your clients' wants and you'll have more money than you would have otherwise had."
The woman sighed. "Please, Mr. Alexander. You are becoming quite pathetic. Our organization does not work that way. Arabella betrayed the code and—"
"So you'll kill her no matter what I do?"
Silence.
Grayson took it as all the confirmation he needed. He drew in a deep breath and released it slowly. "If we don't come to some sort of other understanding, I am putting the senator back on to broadcast all his sins, and that of every mining corporation he's associated with. You're going to kill Arabella no matter what I do, so I will be damn sure to make sure that you fail in your mission unless I get her back safe."
Another prolonged silence. When the woman spoke again, her voice was once calmer. "Very well. It seems we need to speak in person. Meet me at noon tomorrow and we'll discuss the terms of Arabella's release. Come alone or she dies in front of you."
***
Grayson held his children tightly, burying his face in their black hair. Olivia clung to him while Hudson was content being held loosely, playing with the blocks he had been given. Grayson couldn’t help but wonder if he was making the right choice or if it would be better if he just meekly did as he was told and hope that it would work out for the best.
Or if he should sacrifice Arabella for the sake of his children. Forget about her, just as she asked him to do, to keep them safe and alive. The thought made him sick to his stomach and hate himself.
"I love you," he said, kissing Olivia's head and then Hudson’s. "I love you both."
"Dada?" Hudson looked up at him with big, trusting eyes. "Bella-Bella?"
He kissed them again. "I'm going to get her back. Right now, Uncle Henry is going to stay with you, okay?"
Olivia kicked up a fuss, but let him hand her to Henry soon enough. Hudson was more silent in his protest, clinging to his father tightly. It broke Grayson's heart to have to pry his children off of him. Tears burned his eyes and he hated the doubt that continually swept through him. But if he didn't do this, what sort of future was he giving them?
"I don't think you should do this," Henry said, worry tingeing his voice. "She didn't want—"
"I'm not losing my mate again," Grayson interrupted. Determination replaced his doubt and he took a deep breath. He had lost Christine because he wasn't there when she needed him. He wasn't making that mistake again. "Never again."