Today has been a fucking good day.
I woke up wrapped around my girl. I had her screaming in the shower. I watched her prance around the bar for a few hours, thinking about all the dirty things I planned to do to her once I got her home later.
And then I got called out to go sort some club shit. The bouncers at Beavers had managed to catch one of the motherfuckers who’ve been causing trouble, and me and Sleaze taught him a couple of broken bones’ worth of lessons.
All in all, a fucking good day.
I’m cruising my bike back towards my house and my girl; I can’t wait to get home. My cock’s so fucking hard, I plan to bend her over the kitchen counter as soon as I walk through the door. Then maybe I’ll eat her perfect little pussy on the stairs, and then I’m gonna claim that ass of hers.
The truck’s parked in the driveway, and I ride past it and park my bike in the garage. I walk past the truck and see an apple on the ground, then another a few steps further along. I circle around the back of the truck. Grocery bags are on the ground, food spilling from them. The tailgate’s still down, and the hairs on the back of my neck prickle.
Something’s not right.
I rush to the house; the front door’s wide open. “Livvy,” I shout. As I move from room to room, my shouts become more frantic. “Olivia. Livvy, you here, sugar?” The house is empty, so I pull my phone from my pocket and call her cell. The stupid country song she’s set as a ringtone screams into life. I follow the noise and find her phone next to her purse, covered in dirt on the ground beneath the truck.
Panicking, I fumble as I call Sleaze. He answers after the first ring. “Brother,” Sleaze says in greeting.
“Is Livvy with Brandi?” I ask.
His response is immediate. “No, Brandi’s with me. She’s been home all day. Why, what’s up?”
Growling, I hold the phone away from my ear and pull in a breath. “I don’t know. Livvy said she was going to get groceries then come straight home. The truck’s here, the groceries are dumped all over the driveway. The door to the house’s wide open, but Livvy’s not here.”
I hear him mutter to Brandi in the background. “On my way, brother,” he says and ends the call.
The sight of the bags scattered on the ground pushes me over the edge, and throwing my head back, I roar. Frustration, anger, and fear fill me.
The old guy across the street is sitting in his rocking chair on his porch, quietly watching the world go by. I stomp across the street and shout up to him, “Hey, you seen Livvy?”
He stands and makes his way to the railing. “Why hello, Echo. No, I haven’t seen her since you two went into the woods earlier. Why? Did she say she was coming to call on me?”
Fear takes hold of me, my heart slowing so quickly the breath in my chest falters. “You saw her going into the woods with me?”
“Well, erm, I wasn’t prying or nothing. Just after all that screaming an’ shouting the kids were doin’ earlier, I came out to see what all the fuss was about.”
“Gus!” I shout, and the old guy jumps, shocked. “Gus, are you sure it was Livvy?”
Gus reaches up and scratches his head. “Well, my eyesight’s not what it used to be, mind you. But it sure looked like a man and a woman walking from your driveway and disappearing into the trees.”
Dread fills my stomach; I haven’t felt fear like this since my first day on deployment in Iraq.
“And you heard screaming?”
He nods slowly, his eyes sharpening, like the pieces are beginning to fall into place in his mind. “You don’t think it was kids doing all that screaming?” he says morosely.
I shake my head, my eyes narrowing. “My house is wide open, bags full of groceries scattered all over my driveway. You heard screaming and then saw people disappearing into the woods behind my house.”
Gus straightens, the frail old gent gone and in his place an angry man. “You think someone took her?”
I nod and look him in the eyes, needing him to see the fear there. “I think so, yes. I don’t know why anyone would target her, but I think they did. Can you show me where they went into the woods? There’s a few paths that run from my house. I need to know where to start searching.”
Slowly backing away, he opens to door to the house. “Yes, I can show you. I’ll be right out.”
I watch him disappear into his house, and grabbing my phone, I call Sleaze. He answers on the first ring. “I think someone took her,” I say. “Gus, the old guy from across the street, heard screaming and then saw two people walk into the woods at the side of my house. It’s too much of a coincidence for it not to be related. I’m going to look for her.”
Sleaze growls. “Wait for me. I’ll be there in ten.”
I shake my head, and reply, “I can’t, man. I don’t know how long she’s been gone or how far into the woods she is. I need to get going.”
Sleaze’s voice is full of worry when he speaks. “Echo, brother, don’t go in there alone, who knows what you’re gonna find.”
“She’s my fucking world. I love her. I need to find her. I’m going to find her,” I say emphatically. I end the call as Gus rounds the corner of his house, two shotguns resting across his shoulders. “What the fuck you got there, old man?” I say, surprised.
Gus scowls and racks the slide on the shotgun, loading the weapon. “Less of the old man. I’m coming with you. If someone’s got Miss Olivia, I’m gonna help you find her. I was in the army for fifteen years. I might be old, but I still know how to shoot a gun.”