Page 44 of Rivals & Revenge

Cold fury raced down my spine. Fuck. This. My eyes flicked to his, finding the same fire mirrored in his eyes.

"Looks like it's time to go hunting."

"Count me in."

Chapter 25

AHREN

Tierney stiffened beside me, pushing out a shuddering breath before turning, heading for the stairs.

"I like the way you think." I murmured, following her up. We needed to figure out this riddle, but if she was anything like me, and I'm betting she was, she thought better with a weapon in her hand.

Twenty minutes later, I stepped back into the kitchen, not surprised to find her already standing at the table, arms folded across her chest as her eyes scanned over Connor's picture. A spark of jealousy slipped through me as I took in the daggers sheathed on her thighs, caressing places I had only dreamed of. Her new Scout strapped across her back and my Walther tucked into her waistband, right where her stomach dipped in. Fuck! I had never wanted to be the barrel of a gun more in my life than I did at this moment.

I shook off the thoughts of the lethal temptress before me. Connor needed me, and while I had a reputation of being a heartless bastard, she had earned my loyalty a dozen times over in the last eight years.

"It says follow the clues," she murmured, sensing my approach. "But there's nothing here but the picture. The clues must be in the picture."

"Good point." I said, snapping a picture and emailing it to my tech guy, asking him to look for any irregularities.

My phone chimed immediately—Jax letting me know he was on it.

I turned my attention back to the photo. Tierney was right. The clues must be in the picture.

A smile worked its way onto my face as I took in Connor's defiant expression. She may not believe in taking lives, but I had a feeling that right now that principle was being tested and whoever took her might not need to worry about me.

"There are bricks in the background." I said absentmindedly.

“Half the city is brick.” She retorted, dismissing my observation. “Pretty sure this vine along the right edge is Virginia creeper or some variety of it.”

"How exactly does that help?" I asked, my brow pinching together as I tried to understand how the two were connected.

"I'm not sure. But—It's an invasive species, it grows like wildfire. It's likely the building we are looking for—"

"Is covered in it." I said, finishing her thought.

She nodded, a small smile playing at the corner of her lips, and my fingers danced at my side, aching to reach for her.

"It's not much, but it's something."

"You're right. It's not enough, but it's somewhere to start."

My eyes searched the picture, desperate for anything meaningful. The vine was a good catch, but we couldn't very well go busting intoevery brick building with climbing vines in the city. That would be mental.

"There's dirt on her face." Tierney whispered.

I swallowed hard, pushing down the bile that had risen in my throat. "Yeah. I noticed. They will pay for roughing her up."

She nodded, pulling her favorite Karambit from the sheath on her inner thigh. "I will give them a scratch for every one on her body."

We studied the picture in silence, our vows hanging in the air, spurring us onward, both of us painfully aware of the ticking clock.

A frustrated growl slipped from her. Under different circumstances, I would have found it adorable.

"There's nothing here. Nothing on the walls. She's wearing the same clothes as the last time we saw her. No debris in her hair. Just—nothing."

"Maybe Jax can find something. He's been known to work miracles."

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