Page 45 of Freeing Souls

“Cade did this?” he murmurs, running his fingers over my red cheek and split lip.

“Yes. He’s pissed at me for upsetting you. He was in his protective brother mode.”

Grayson smiles softly. “He said I should make you grovel and beg.”

Dropping my smile, I stare at him intently. “I will. Whatever you want, Grayson. I mean it.”

Nodding, he hesitantly reaches for my hand, so I take over and thread our fingers together as we leave the bathroom.

Heading downstairs, we find Cade in the kitchen with Presley, Carly, and Lex.

“Good?” Cade ignores me and looks right at Gray, who nods once.

“Are you doing okay, Lex?” Grayson asks her as we sit on the empty barstools.

“I guess. I’m worried about them. My dad is back tonight, so I’ll be heading home here soon. Will you guys keep me updated?” she asks softly, her eyes filling with tears. She has been staying with us since the BBQ, so she knows about Harley and Rage going missing. We’ve kept her out of it, but there’s no way to keep it all a secret.

“I will personally make sure you get any updates we get,” Presley tells her, wrapping her arms around her and hugging her tightly. “We just have to believe they will get through this and both of them will come home safely to us.” Her voice cracks, and she has to clear her throat to keep her composure.

As soon as she releases Lex, I stand and walk over to Presley, pulling her into my arms. She hugs me tightly and then pulls away with a watery smile. “Thank you, Ry.” It feels like there is a rock stuck in my throat, so instead of responding, I just nod and take my seat again.

Grayson squeezes my thigh, and I glance over to find him smiling softly at me.

We have the same clubs that helped us with the warehouse take down coming to help us again. They have started arriving throughout the day, and we will have one more big meeting with everyone before we head to the location Grayson got from the website a few days ago.

Before the meeting, I send out a text asking for all the ranking officers, the girls, Grayson, and Cayden to meet in Rage’s office—a room we have all been avoiding since he was taken.

I’m the first one in the room, so I stand behind Rage’s desk and imagine him sitting in it. What he would say to all of us if it was anyone else missing. How he keeps everything together. How we need to do him proud now so when we get them both back he can be proud of his family.

“What’s up, Ryker?” Axe asks as he comes in, holding Jayce with Presley next to him.

“Let’s wait for everyone,” I say.

“RyRy!” Jayce screeches and holds his little hands out.

“Hey, little man.” I take him from Axe and let his tiny carefree presence remind me of all the good things we do have.

Not long after Axe, the room fills. Grayson stands awkwardly by the door, and I gesture for him to come over to me. When he stops next to me, I take his hand with my free one while he says hi to Jayce and messes with him, his little giggles calming the whole room.

“I know we are all preparing for tonight,” I begin, “but I felt there was something missing before we can go. Since Rage and Harley were taken, we all have been a mess. But one thing we haven’t done is come together and remember we have a room full of people who matter. We can’t go guns blazing and riskanymore. Neither Harley nor Rage would want that. Like Rage always tells us, our safety comes first. We are going to get them both back, but we also need to depend on each other and not keep going like we are, where we only talk when we are planning.”

“Never thought I would say this, but Ryker is right. We have all just isolated because Rage has kept us together all these years. We need to lean on each other,” Raven says as Stone holds her close.

“We are a family and need to be one in order to bring our people home,” Sugar says before looking at me. “Thank you, kid. I knew this conversation needed to happen, but I couldn’t do it. I’ve never been without my brother, Rage, it’s hard to remember there is more. It shoulda been on me.”

“It’s on all of us,” Axe says with a nod towards Sugar, “not just you. We do this together and stay safe no matter what.”

After everyone talks for a few more minutes, the room clears out until it’s just the guys and Nerds left. “Is Oakley ready?” Grayson asks him.

“Yeah, I think so. She’s terrified, but she is being incredibly brave. She’s taking a bath and relaxing before it’s time to go,” Nerds says, but based on the deep frown on his face, he isn’t happy about not going with us since he has to stay here in the tech room.

“She’ll be safe,” I say. We have a few guys from other clubs who are our buyers and a trader and have been prepared for what to expect from Oakley.

“Let’s get this meeting over with so we can get going. I’m done waiting,” I say, a new determination settling in my bones.

After a long meeting with all the clubs, we are finally ready. As Cade, Grayson, and I vest up and grab the guns from the safe room in the basement, Raven and Stone walk in.

Stone grabs two bulletproof vests and then starts strapping one to Raven. “Hey, if you tighten that any farther, I won’t be able to breathe.”

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