Chapter 154
Chapter 154
-Logan-
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Andrews glanced past me to where the squad cars were pulling up. Her eyes narrowed, calculating. “Not here” She jerked
her head.
I followed her. River fell in step beside me. We stopped behind an old signal box. The light didn’t reach us here.
Andrews leaned against it. She looked wrecked. “She called me the other night. Said Anatoly wanted to meet with her alone. She knew you’d never allow it. She asked me to create a distraction so she could slip out.”
Each sentence drove the knife in deeper. “So the shit with Ramirez… You set that up.”
Sam nodded. “I told her this was a suicide mission. She wouldn’t listen. Said she was doing it with or without my help.” She met my eyes. “She was scared. But she was more scared of him coming for you. And the club.”
I ran a hand over my face before remembering it was still wet with Shawn’s blood. “So you were here with her the whole time,” I spat. “Why’d you let him take her?”
She glared at me. “I couldn’t do anything about it. He had me pinned down. They would’ve killed me and her both. And probably Shawn for good measure.”
There it was again. That wicked urge to strangle the cop standing in front of me.
“Me showing up in person,” she continued. “That was part of the plan, too. Anatoly had called the station that morning and left a message for Hailey on my machine. I slipped her a note.”
Fuckin hell.
“The meet was at midnight. Here.” She gestured broadly. “I dropped her about a half mile out. She had an earpiece. I was listening the whole time.”
An earpiece. “So you heard it. You heard everything?”
‘A lot of it. Everything Hailey said, at least.” Her face pinched.
‘He knew I was there, hiding. Called me out by name, told me he had scopes on me.” She rubbed her arms. “He did. And he had Shawn with him. Said it was a consequence of something Hailey did… I’m not sure what. He was going to execute him. To make a point.”
I didn’t like where this was going.
‘She tried to talk him down,” she continued, her voice dropping lower. “Offered deals, truces. He wasn’t having it. He said this wasn’t about sharing. Then he put the gun to Shawn’s head. She offered herself. Said if he had to kill someone, to kill her. To take her instead.”
I closed my eyes. Saw it. Watched it play out.
My Ace.
I was gonna fucking kill her myself when I found her.
“He shot Shawn anyway and told his men to take her. She shouted to me, told me she’d be okay. Told me to help Shawn. They tied her hands and put her in the car.”
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Chapter 154
“The earpiece,” I said, opening my eyes. “She still has it?”
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She nodded. “It’s live. Or it was when they drove off. Weak signal, but it’s still transmitting GPS data. I’ve got a tech at the station trying to get a solid triangulation. It’s moving northeast, last I checked. Probably heading for one of the industrial parks, or maybe out toward the state line.”
I was processing all of it when footsteps crunched on the gravel behind me. We all turned. Officer Ramirez was heading toward us. His eyes landed on me and hardened.
“Andrews,” he said, stopping a few feet away. He was looking at my bloody hands. “What’s the situation?”
Andrews straightened up and slipped her professional mask back on. “Victim is Shawn Dobbs. Not a local. He’s a primary witness to an abduction. He’s given a preliminary statement. Perps are three Russian males in a black Mercedes sedan. Didn’t get a plate. They abducted a female, Hailey Conway. This is now a kidnapping investigation, Javier. Top priority.”
Ramirez’s eyebrows shot up. “Conway? Nash’s…” He looked at me again. For a second I saw something like pity. He squashed it. “And you’re here because…?”
“Because he found her note and went looking for her,” Andrews said smoothly. “We converged here. I’ve taken his statement. Right now, we need to secure this scene and get that BOLO out on the Mercedes. I want you to coordinate the perimeter teams. Have them expand the search radius. Check any properties with gated access large enough to hide a vehicle like that.”
She was giving him orders. Sending him away. Ramirez hesitated, his eyes darting between us.
“Andrews, maybe you should let another officer-”
“I’m fine, Javier,” she cut him off. “This is my case. She’s my… she’s a friend. Now please, the perimeter.”
Ramirez’s jaw flexed, but he gave her a nod. “Fine. I’ll handle it.” He shot me one last look and then turned and stalked back toward the other officers.
When he was out of earshot, Andrews let out a slow breath. “He’s a good cop. A little too by the book, but I guess that’s helpful right now.”
“I don’t give a shit about him,” I hissed. “The earpiece. I need that frequency. The trace. Everything you can get me.”
She nodded. “I’ll get it to you. But Logan… you can’t go in guns blazing. He’s expecting that. He wants you to charge in. He’ll be ready.”
“I know what he wants,” I said. “He wants to pick us off. Break us. He took the one thing that would make me charge in without thinking.” I met her eyes again. “But he doesn’t get to set the fuckin rules anymore.”
I looked at River. He’d been silent through it all, absorbing. He gave me a single, slow nod. Ready.
We had a description of the car. We knew Anatoly’s mug from the hospital security tape.
We had a direction. Northeast.
We had witnesses. Sort of.
And we had an ally in the PD.
The hunt wasn’t gonna be a chaotic scramble through dark streets anymore. It’d be a stalk.
We had the scent.
My mind was racing as the sound of approaching engines drowned it all out. I glanced behind me to see thirty dark figures
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Chapter 154
on bikes riding up the access road, headlights bouncing.
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“Get me that data,” I said, turning back to Andrews and half–yelling over the sound. “Send it to Hailey’s phone, since you already got her number. And keep your people back. We don’t need the cops for this.”
“Logan,” she said reaching for my arm.
“It’s war,” I said, turning away from the light and the sirens. Toward Talon and the rest of my club.
“And after we get my girl back, it’s a massacre. Tell your captain to keep her distance. The Warriors are going hunting”
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
