Chapter 50

AVERY

Avery woke up slowly and found herself tied to a chair with an older man reading a book in the corner.

She was confused, and after a few moments of deep breathing, images started coming back to her. She vividly remembered seeing Cole shot and falling to the ground.

A sob bubbled from her, and she couldn’t stop them, thinking her best friend was dead. She was heartbroken, angry, and terrified when she realized that she had been taken and was pregnant.

The man came over with a bottle of water in front of her and gave her several drinks. It didn’t stop the tears or the heartache, so she just let them come, trying to figure out what to do.

She asked him who he was, where she was, and why he took her, but he ignored her completely and went back to his chair and book.

Avery closed her eyes and prayed for Justin to find her. But before she could think much, she realized that they had drugged her again and felt herself slipping under.

JUSTIN

Justin was like a caged animal pacing the clubhouse two hours later. Mitch had found a private plane at the local airport, and they flew home after calling a lockdown.

Pete and Trey loaded their bikes and were driving them back, but the rest had to get back and figure things out.

Shaun, whom Avery met at the strip club on their second date, met them at the airport with a large SUV and drove them back.

“I need an update!” Justin barked. “Where are we?”

“Well, Bear and Mama June picked up Lex and Ryan from school, and they are at the clubhouse with Kiki,” Shaun started. “They are all in Mitch’s room watching cartoons.

“Lexi knows something is going on and has asked twice for Avery.”

“Fuck,” Justin growled, and the other men took a sharp breath in.

They all knew the little girl loved Avery and they had gotten very close. If something happened to Avery, it wouldn’t just be Justin that was a mess.

“I have all the other families coming in and already sent Alice out with a couple of guards and other sweetbutts to get food supplies. They should be back within the next thirty minutes.

“Kiki said she will start some menus and other lists for them to follow,” Shaun added.

“Shaun, make sure that those bitches know that Kiki doesn’t get stressed. She is pregnant and I don’t want this affecting my sister or the babies’ health,” Justin demanded, and Shaun nodded.

Mitch patted Justin’s leg in thanks.

“We are closing all the legit businesses as we speak. Any worker that wants to can come to the clubhouse and stay. I have prospects out buying as many pillows and sleeping bags as they can find,” Shaun added.

“That’s why Avery’s ideas for the reno were so perfect, just for something like this,” Cash added sadly. Everyone could see the irony of the situation.

Justin grunted and demanded that Shaun drive faster. He stepped on it as Mikey took a call and added, “Prez, Jennings, and Peterson are going to meet us at the clubhouse.”

Justin nodded. He hoped that the two high-ranking cops in their pocket had some information for them to go on.

Justin sat back, closed his eyes, and willed his mind and heart to stop aching and swirling with the unknown of his wife and unborn child.

Stevo was trying every trick he knew and every contact he had to get video footage of the mall and the roads leading into the warehouse facility.

His fingers were flying all over his keyboard from the minute they got on the plane and only stopped to get off, then was back on the entire drive to the clubhouse.

He set up shop at the conference table and was on his phone constantly to different sources.

The guys were all around him, even the cops twenty minutes later, watching one grainy feed from across from the parking garage.

They saw Cole drive in, then a black van stopped and a man with brown hair got out and talked with what looked like a woman, who gestured inside.

Another person got out from the passenger side of the car, but they couldn’t see anything clearly.

It looked like the man kissed the driver, then got back in and went into the parking garage, and the other people drove away. Ten minutes later, the van came speeding out and drove west.

“Fuck! You find out who the fuck that was helping these assholes, and you find it now. I want a better video feed, and I want to know who these motherfuckers are!” Justin yelled.

Everyone in the room was doing something to help, and Justin was grateful for the brotherhood.

“Justin, just wanted to let you know that I had our guy inside get a message to your dad to watch his back, to tell him what happened. Our guy will let us know if they hear anything,” Jennings added.

Justin had forgotten about his dad and cursed himself. His head was a mess, and he needed to get it together for his wife, his family, and the whole club.

He was watching Mikey and Cash write down people who could have a beef with them and couldn’t find any connection. He couldn’t see anything either.

They were good with all the organizations in all the surrounding states, so they were confused.

“Prez, I was able to tap a different camera and get a better picture,” Stevo called out.

The whole group went over and surrounded him, watching as the video came through almost crystal clear. Someone mumbled, “Thank god Macy’s cares about security feeds.”

They saw the van enter the mall complex and drive around until they met a red car that Cash thought looked familiar.

The door opened, and a woman with long, light-brown hair got out when the van door opened.

The man didn’t look familiar, but Mikey was writing down license plates on both vehicles, and Peterson was running them through the system.

The passenger door opened, and a woman with long blonde hair got out, but they still only saw the backs of the women. They watched her gesture, and the van left.

She turned so they could see their faces finally, and everyone took a sharp breath in when the recognition hit them.

“Those fucking cunts!” Justin roared and spun to face his men. “I want every available man looking for Heather and Dominique. NOW! And I want answers and my wife found.

“If I don’t have it, I will burn this fucking city to the ground!”

Justin’s chest was heaving in anger and pain. No one could believe that Heather would betray the club, as much as she liked Justin. But Dominique was a whole other matter.

“Justin, I thought Dominique was not going to be a problem. I thought that she was secure in that facility,” Mitch said cautiously.

“So did I! She must have manipulated someone into letting her go. Cash, you call that asshole Bennets and see what the fuck happened and how she is out!” Justin demanded.

“Justin, I got a hit on the car!” Peterson called. “Registered to Heather Walsh, 5487 South Flagler Street.”

“Mitch and Mikey, take some guys and go check it out. You find her, take her to Legs, then let me know. Be careful—not sure if those guys are there. Dominique could be there too,” Justin ordered.

“Everyone else, keep looking for that van!”

Everyone went to go when Justin called out, “Wait…”

They all looked at him and he swallowed. “We just found out that Avery is pregnant…”

The guys all know what the miscarriage had done to them both and the realization hit them that if anything happened to Avery or the baby, Justin would go ballistic, and that scared each of them.

“Please, guys…brothers…we have to find them,” he pleaded.

They all came back and hugged him before they all set off, even more determined to find Avery and bring her some safe—and still pregnant.