Page 267 of G.O.D.S Omnibus

“No need. They won’t know where he is now. We already have an idea of why he needs them, but our little criminal, while not knowing much, told me a lot.”

“I’m listening.”

“He said when they were dropped at the building, Melinda mentioned the babies being hungry and Ziyon said that they could wait ten minutes. So, he is within a ten-minute radius of the city, which makes sense if they were going to be working out of that building. I don’t know why he was staying so close, but nothing he or Mr Z have done ever makes any fucking sense.”

“Let’s lock these guys up for a bit then,” Brennan announces. “We don’t want to erase their memories yet or have them make calls if we let them go. I will gather everyone and then take Jolie home. We will all meet there, go over everything, and narrowdown anywhere he could have taken Melinda and the babies. I will get Marlow and Jimmie on it right away.”

Jolie steps out into the hall.

“We have a lead, but we are going home to make a plan of attack and you will need to pump again soon,” I explain to her.

She nods at me and doesn’t put up a fight like I was expecting. Jolie is pulling away, and it breaks my heart to see her like this. But she doesn’t need to worry—none of us will give up, no matter what. We will keep hunting him down until we find him, or he kills us all.

Chapter Thirty

Jolie

The guys have been working for the last twenty-four hours straight to narrow down where Ziyon could have taken the babies. They have ruled out a lot of nearby areas, but we don’t seem any closer to knowing for sure. He has managed to move around like a ghost—not popping up on any traffic cameras or CCTV, but why would he when he knows what we have access to?

I leave the nursery and walk down into the kitchen, but the last thing I want to do is eat. Petra is brutal, though, and won’t take no for an answer. I have never known her to be so pushy, but she is making me eat to keep up my strength and trying to get me to sleep, even though I’m filled with dread.

She figured out one of my weaknesses and uses Creed to make that happen. He is like a syphon for all the negative energy that keeps me awake. Exhaustion has wrecked my body so badly that whenever he holds me, my eyes can’t stay open. Avoidinghim only works for so long, especially since I don’t want to hurt his feelings, but right now, I need to be awake.

What if we need to leave quickly? There is no way I’m not going. I refuse to be left behind or kept in the dark to spare my feelings. I’m not fragile and was born into this life just like them, making me just as capable. I want my babies back, and no one will stand in my way.

I needed a break from feeling like we take ten steps forwards and twenty steps backwards, so I have hidden away and haven’t seen any of my guys for a few hours. As the days move on, I feel like all hope is lost. Regret builds over not involving the police, but that’s not how Olympia works. Besides, we have more resources than they do.

My phone rings, and I see Grace’s name on the screen. Feeling guilty that I haven’t even checked up on her, I let her call go to voicemail. I send Petra a message to see if she can send her some flowers.

I just can’t deal with talking to anyone right now. Sinclair and Blayne stopped calling and now send me messages instead. Even though I don’t reply, they keep telling me they are thinking of me and ask if there is anything they can do. I miss them, but I just can’t handle the pity in their voices. Jimmie hasn’t left here in days, and it makes me feel bad that he is missing the end of Betty’s pregnancy right when she needs him the most.

I look around the empty living room with disdain. Creed worked hard to have this house done for us, but staring at the same four walls is driving me bat-shit crazy. Something has to give soon before I can no longer keep up appearances and have a full-blown breakdown. I’m being strong for the babies and for the guys, but I don’t know how much longer my strength can hold out.

“Hello?” I hear the word echo through the foyer. “Someone, please help me.”

My ears prick up, and I’m on my feet instantly. I know that voice, but it can’t be her. There’s no way. I push myself as fast as I can, running through the house. Tears spring to my eyes at the sight before me. Melinda stands in the foyer, two baby capsules in her hands, and her body covered in copious amounts of blood.

“Guys!” I scream at the top of my lungs. “Help me!”

I take the capsules from Melinda’s hands, and the second they are secure, she collapses on the ground. The awe I feel at seeing my babies sleeping soundly before me is astounding, and I place them safely on the ground. Then I rush over to Melinda’s crumpled form and lift her shirt. Blood pours freely from a hole in her side. I cover it with my hand, putting as much pressure on it as I can to try and stop the bleeding.

Suddenly Case is kneeling at my side. “Here, let me take over. You take the babies into their room.”

I nod, wiping my hands on my shirt. “Come on, Star. I will help you get them upstairs. Creed needs to look over Melinda.”

“I need to know if she is okay,” I whisper as Trace helps me to my feet.

“Little Angel,” Chester growls, pulling me away from Trace. “She’s in shock and she has lost a bit of blood. We will fix her and set her up in a guest room. Then you can speak with her.”

I nod, moving out of his arms towards Trace and Marlow, who have each picked up a capsule. Brennan is at my side in an instant and takes my hand as we follow behind them. I leave the others to take care of Melinda and find out exactly what happened. We stop at the bathroom so I can wash my hands, before heading into the nursery.

“What do we do?” I ask the guys. They have placed the capsules on the mat in the nursery, and the babies are strapped in and sound asleep. The four of us stand around them in a circle and look down.

“Should we take them out?” Marlow suggests.

“Mum used to say ‘never wake a sleeping baby’ when Boston was born,” Brennan adds.

“Does it apply to babies this small?” Trace asks.

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