‘Ow! Stop it! Get off me you son of a bitch! Kayla! Kayla, wake up!’
Listening to Julia scream and struggle from the 911 recording is almost too much for me to bare. My body shakes with a violent rage the same time my heart clenches in fear.
‘Shut the fuck up you dirty whore!’ Then everything goes silent.
I close my eyes and swallow thickly.
“Mother fucker!” Cade seethes through a clenched jaw.
My chest heaves from trying to control all the violent emotions that threaten to consume me. I’m trying so goddamn hard to push them aside so I can keep a clear head, but fuck is it hard.
Cade, Sawyer and I look back to the two way mirror that looks into the interrogation room where Ray Jennings is being questioned by Cooper.
“I’m tellin’ ya, you’re wrong. There’s no way my son took Miss Julia.” Ray lifts his hand and points his finger at Cooper, “If I were you I would look at Jaxson Reid, Wyatt warned her…”
Cooper cuts him off slamming his fist on the table,” Goddamn it! I have a 911 recording that says Wyatt kidnapped her not Jaxson. You arguing is wasting time that could spare Julia her life. So I am going to ask you again, do you have any idea where he could have taken her? What other properties do you guys own?”
Ray narrows his eyes, “I don’t believe you. I want my lawyer, now!”
“Jesus Christ!” Cooper storms out of the room coming over to join us on the other side.
Then he shouts out the open door, “Wright! What the fuck is taking so long on the list of properties?”
“I should be getting them anytime now sir.”
I rake a hand through my hair frustratedly, “Fuck! We don’t have time for this shit.”
“I’m with Jaxson, maybe we should split up, some of us can at least start patrolling. We can back track from where the accident happened.”
I’m about to agree with Sawyer when my cell starts ringing. Lifting it from my pocket I look at the call display. My heart stops when I see Julia’s number.
“It’s Julia’s number!” I bark out.
Cooper slams the door and I hit the speaker, “Julia baby, you there?”
“Oh she’s here alright.”
My blood runs hot with rage at the sound of Wyatt’s taunting voice. “Where the fuck are you hiding mother fucker?”
“Tsk, tsk, it isn’t very smart Reid to be calling someone names when that person has something that means a whole lot to you.”
“I’m telling you now Jennings, I will find you and if you have hurt any part of her, I will fucking gut you alive and feed you your own insides.”
The son of a bitch laughs, “Oh Jaxson, I plan to hurt her alright. And you are finally going to know what it’s like to have her taken away from you. I’m just deciding though, do I record me fucking her or would you rather I just keep you on the phone so you can listen to her beg.”
I clench my jaw as my rage reaches a whole new level. Cooper cuts in obviously being able to tell I’m about to lose control, “Wyatt, it’s Cooper. It’s not too late to change things around here. Think hard, is it worth losing everything over this?”
Wyatt scoffs, “Of course you’re already with the good sheriff. Sorry about your woman there Sheriff, nothing personal she just happened to be in the way. I’m assuming she’s okay though if you already knew Julia was with me?”
I cut back in ignoring his question, “This is between you and me, it always has been, so leave Julia out of it and we can deal with it one on one.”
Wyatt’s cool facade collapses, “This has everything to do with her you son of a bitch! She was mine and you took her from me, for years you kept her from me!”
“You’re fucking crazy Jennings, Julia has always been mine, and everyone in this town knows it, including you.”
“No! You’re wrong! Tell him you bitch, tell him right now that you were mine, that you are mine!”
I hear shuffling before Julia’s voice comes on the line, “Jaxson?”
Agony rips through my chest when she sobs out my name. “Julia baby, I’m here. Hang in there okay, I’m coming for you.”
Her sobbing fills the line then I hear a loud crack, “Ahhh!” Julia screams in pain.
“Tell him right fucking now!”
“Jaxson,” she whimpers, “I- I love you.” Another crack on the phone has her crying out.
“You fucking whore!”
I growl with violence and punch the wall, feeling my knuckles split open. “Jennings you mother-fucker! I swear to God I’m going…”
“You are going to do nothing because you will never find me! I am finally going to have her. And when I’m done I’m going to leave her handcuffed to this bed naked, which is how I have her now, then I’m going to light the whole place on fire, leaving her to burn to death. I will be long gone when you find nothing but fucking rubble. Have a nice life, you son of a bitch!”
I hear the click but still scream out his name, “Jennings!? Jennings!?” I drop the phone on the table. “Fuck! Fuck!” I punch the two way mirror making it crack. When I look through it at Ray I lose all control.
“Shit! Goddamn it, grab him!”
I escape the arms that reach out for me and in a flash I’m in the room next door. Picking up Ray I slam him down on the table and wrap my hands around his fucking throat, “You start cooperating right now you son of a bitch.”
“Jaxson stop! Come on man you’re going to fucking kill him.”
My rage fuels a strength that makes it impossible for all the arms to rip me off him. I watch Ray’s face turn purple while he tries to pry my hands from around his throat, “If anything happens to her because you didn’t cooperate I will make you watch while I gut your fucking son like a fish.”
Hoping this got through to the arrogant prick I let go, allowing the arms to pull me away from him.
Ray chokes and sputters with his hands around his throat while he tries to breathe, “Are you fucking crazy?”
Cooper walks over and leans down in his face, “We just got a call from your son saying he’s going to kill Julia. She’s fucking pregnant and her life is depending on you. So tell us where the fuck they might be or I will leave Jaxson in this room with you and lock the door on my way out.”
Ray looks over at me nervously then shakes his head, “I have no idea where they are. I swear, I never thought he would do something like this.”
“Properties, give us properties that you own,” Cooper presses.
Before Ray can answer a deputy comes running in, “Sir, Melissa Carmicheal is here saying she has information on Miss Julia’s whereabouts.”
I bolt out the door with everyone close behind me. Melissa stands nervously by the front desk, sporting a black eye. Suspicion rears its ugly head…
Fuck! I should have known!
She backs into the counter looking scared shitless when she sees me storming towards her. She shakes her head, “I’m sorry. We were only supposed to scare her…”
I grab her arms roughly, “What the fuck have you done? Where is she!?”
She starts crying but I feel no sympathy, “Wyatt’s holding her at some fishing cabin that’s 20 minutes from here. He’s expecting me to pick him up in an hour to take him to the airport. His private plane is waiting for him… I swear I didn’t know it would escalate to this.”
“Why would you help him? She never did a goddamn thing to you!”
Anger flashes in her gaze masking some of the fear that was just there, “She took everything from me! From the moment she fucking moved here everyone flocked to her, especially you!”
Jesus, all this over fucking jealousy?
“You make me sick,” I shove her away from me, “If anything happens to her or my baby that she’s carrying I will come back and make you fucking pay.”
She pales, “I didn’t know she was pregnant. We were only supposed to scare her. I didn’t think he would take it this far.”
Cooper cuts in, “Directions now!”
Melissa shakily hands him a paper with directions written on it, “This is what he gave me.”
Coop looks to the deputy, “Take her into custody. And keep Ray here too, don’t allow him any phone calls.”
Fuck! Please let me make it on time.