Page 53 of My Hotshot

I fumbled with the lock, my heart in my throat, and yanked the door open.

Duane stood there, his eyes fierce and chest heaving. Behind him were four men—each looking like they could bend steel with their bare hands.

They barreled into my house like a storm and shut the door hard behind them. I took a step back. My living room felt suddenly tiny.

“I—uh…” I didn’t even know what I was trying to say. My brain was spinning. “I—”

“Tell me everything,” one of them said, with a firm voice.

I glanced at the name on his leather vest.Yarder.

Duane stepped beside him. “That’s Yarder,” he said quickly, and pointed to the others. “Compass. Cue Ball. Aero.”

My eyes caught on Aero. I recognized him. The farmers market.

Felt like another lifetime ago now.

I nodded, but I knew I wouldn’t remember their names. I didn’t care. I just wanted Lottie.

“Lottie was supposed to be home by six. Her friend Julie was going to drop her off,” I said, my voice shaking as I pushed my hair off my face. “I waited because… because I didn’t want to be that mom—you know? The one who panics if she’s five minutes late.”

I gestured at the clock. “It’s after nine-thirty. That’s not late—that’smissing.”

Yarder nodded once.

“I’ve called her over and over. Her phone just keeps going to voicemail. I drove to Julie’s house, and nobody was home. Even her friend next door wasn’t there.”

“When was the last time you heard from her? Text or call?” Aero asked.

I opened my phone and scrolled back. My fingers trembled. “She texted me at 12:34 to say Julie was driving her home. That’s it.” My voice cracked. “I should’ve said no. I should’ve picked her up myself.”

“There’s no way you could’ve known,” Duane said.

But that didn’t stop the guilt from sitting like a boulder on my chest.

“Give us the address to the friend,” Yarder said. “Aero and Compass will head there now.”

“No one’s home,” I insisted. “No one will let you in.”

Compass smirked. “That won’t matter.”

“We don’t need a key,” Aero added, rolling his shoulders like he was warming up to kick a door down.

That stopped me for a second.

These weren’t just Duane’s friends. They were hisclub. His brothers.

They were going to do what I wouldn’t.

And I was okay with that—if it meant getting Lottie back.

I rattled off the address.

“We’re on it,” Aero said, and the two of them were gone in seconds.

“What do we do?” I asked, feeling helpless. “Shouldn’t we call the police?”

Duane, Yarder, and Cue Ball all shook their heads.

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