Page 25 of Protected By Saint

He didn’t just report the weapons we were smuggling in but made a media circus out of it. There was the press when the weapons were “discovered.” He was praised for being such a great cop and curbing crime in the city and got a promotion out of it. And what did the fucker do with our money? He used it to buy a cozy condo in the South Loop, brought in his mistress and went on about life as if nothing had happened.

No one crosses the Steel Rebels and gets away with it, and Derrick Halpin is going to set a great example for anyone who dares mess with us.

“Okay, now let me tell you what is going to happen next,” I start, but before I can continue, my phone vibrates in my back pocket. I straighten up and take it out. I find myself smiling when I see Kyle’s number, figuring it’s Jade calling to ask about something again. Fuck, it’s about time I replaced her phone, but I keep forgetting in my hurry to get back home to her.

The grin on my face has Knox snickering from somewhere in the room, but I don’t look up at the fucker. I’ll hold him in check when he falls in love too.

The thought gives me pause.

Love?

I’ve never thought I would associate such an emotion with myself. The thought of a biker falling in love is comical, and yet, I realize that this is exactly what I am—in love with a girl fate just dropped into my hands. Well, I had to fight off dozens of men to get to her, but it was all worth it.

“Hello,” I say with a smile once the call connects, but instead of Jade’s sweet voice, I hear Kyle’s distressed one.

“Prez,” Kyle’s weak voice breaks through the speaker, sending all the hair on the back of my neck standing up. I can already sense something is wrong even before he goes on. “I’m sorry, Prez. I couldn’t stop them. They took her!”

My heart drops to my stomach, settling there like a heavy bolder.

“Who?” There is ice in my tone. Enough of it to have the man tied to the chair shrinking into his seat.

“A girl,” he pants, almost like he’s out of breath. “There was a blonde girl and the two seemed to know each other. She… I’m sorry, Prez. I didn’t see the taser. I’m so fucking sorry!”

Kyle is a great kid, and that was the reason I left him with Jade. She seemed more comfortable around him with his baby face than she did around someone like Knox with his hardened features and sarcastic attitude. It’s clear that I made an error in judgment. Fuck, I should have had a patched-in member guarding her, not a prospect, least of all one who is still wet behind the ears.

“Tell me everything that happened,” I say, walking away from Derrick toward the door as Kyle fills in everything he remembers from the blonde woman to the getaway car that took Jade. He didn’t see the driver, but I have a feeling I already know who it is after the information I’d gotten out of the Den’s manager, Buck, earlier today.

Fuck!

They could be anywhere in the city. Chicago is not a small place, and even though we have control of the most districts in the city, our reach is weaker in the northern part of the city where our rival MC, the Vipers, is established. There are a shit ton of other, smaller crime organizations in other parts of the city that we don’t control. It doesn’t fucking matter, I will comb through every fucking corner until I find Jade. Whoever has her ought to know better than touch a strand on her head, or I will wipe out his entire lineage, and I will not be kind or quick about it.

I hang up the call with Kyle as I push open the door and leave the room in our clubhouse basement where we hold people we want to interrogate. Knox follows behind, but before he can say anything, my phone rings once more. I am tempted to ignore it, but one look at the unknown number flashing on my screen is enough to send me on high alert.

I take the call.

“Your original bid for the girl, one million. We’ll send you the drop location, but if you bring company, she dies.”

I grit my teeth at the words, taking note of the voice of the man I am going to tear into bits until there’s nothing left for the forensic team. He’s mistaken if he thinks I need anyone with me to deal with him. “Send me the location.”

The call ends, and minutes later, a message pops up with an address for an apartment building in the South Shore district, deep in Viper territory, which pisses me off for so many fucking reasons. Are they somehow involved in this? I’ll have to get to the bottom of that later. Good thing Buck is still coherent enough to answer some questions…for now.

“Need a hand?” Knox calls out from behind, and I barely hear him over the flood of thoughts raging in my head.

“Don’t insult me.”

The fucker laughs as if he finds the situation amusing. “Alright then, I’ll leave you to deal with buttercup. Maybe you’ll finally let the rest of us play a little with Derrick Halpin.”

“He’s all yours,” I say, figuring I have people that need more of my attention than the fucking rat.

My blood is boiling as I exit the basement and move to the common area of the clubhouse. It’s a fucking Wednesday afternoon, there aren’t many people here besides a few guys playing pool, and some are smoking and drinking. Something changes in the air as I stomp past them, and I can feel the tension as they all stop what they’re doing to watch me. It’s not common for me to display such rage. I am called Saint for a reason, and yet, it seems I have been taking it easy on people. I grab a prospect on his way out. “Grab someone and go check on Kyle at my house. Call Doc if you need to.”

The man, slightly older than Kyle’s twenty, nods. “Yes, Prez.”

I pat the man’s back before making my way out, pushing through the heavy doors, the sound of my boots slapping against the concrete walkway. Each step toward my bike is fueled by an image of her terrified face. I swing my leg over the seat of my motorcycle, the familiar rumble of the engine echoing my own fury. I rev it hard, the roar resonating through the air, before tearing away.

It’s a forty-minute ride in low traffic, but I intend to make it much faster as I speed down the streets, my focus on getting to Jade as soon as I can. She must’ve been terrified when they took her. Fucking hell, I can’t shake the image from forming in my head of Jade huddled somewhere, terrified for her life.

I promised to protect her. I never should have left her alone with an inexperienced prospect!

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