Page 59 of Cassie
Then he’d intended to cut loose midevening and go to Cassie, but conversations about club business trumped his own desires. Change was coming, and the more people Mason let in on the knowledge, the more management of the information was needed.It’s always something, he thought and sat up on the edge of the mattress.
The house phone rang at the other end of the house and he kicked himself for the hundredth time for losing his cell phone. Pushing to his feet with a groan, he reached for a pair of jeans draped over the foot of the bed and pulled them on. Padding barefoot up the hallway, he asked the air, “House, who’s calling?”
“Tugboat is calling.”Huh. Wonder what the old man wants.
“Go ahead and answer it.” That’d get the call connected before he actually had to hit a button. Once in the kitchen he called out, “I’m comin’, old man. Gimme a minute.” The room was silent and he wondered if the call had disconnected. Then he heard breathing. “Tug, what’s up, brother?”
“Faynez with you?” Hoss stopped short at the alarming panic in Tug’s voice. “She there, Hossman?”
“It’s early and I haven’t seen her. Lemme check.” Leaning back from the phone, he bellowed up the hallway, “Faynez, come here.” Silence greeted him, and he waited for a beat. “She’s probably sleeping in. What’s up?”
“Go see, brother. Go see if she’s in bed. She is, then I’m gonna apologize for waking you.”
He stared at the phone, then as an echo from the past rang through his memories, he whirled and pelted back up the hallway to Faith’s room. Without knocking, something unheard of for the past half a decade, he opened her door to see a neatly made, completely empty bed. He moved to Sammy’s old room and yanked the door open, surprised to see a body under the covers. “Faith, what are you doing in Sam’s—” He stopped abruptly when Garrett lifted his head from the pillow and looked at him, confused and sleepy. “Garrett, you know where Faith Inez is?” Mason’s son shook his head back and forth, but a fleeting emotion crossed his face.
Hoss remembered Faith’s tears from the night before, how Garrett had come and gotten him, told him she’d locked herself in the bathroom. He remembered how angry the boy had been at Jonny, who he’d blamed for everything. And he remembered how Faith had latched onto Garrett when she’d finally come back out, using the boy as a shield against everyone.Fucker better not have touched her. Hoss’ blood was boiling at the terror leeching strength from his legs, and he reached out and ripped the covers back. The boy was alone, not hiding Faith under the sheets like Hoss had suddenly feared. “You sure you don’t know where she is?”
“No, sir.” Garrett sat up and pushed off the bed. He’d slept in his jeans. Hoss had a moment of disorientation when Garrett stood and straightened until he was not even an inch shorter than the older man, so much taller than Hoss remembered. Garrett shook his head and asked, “She’s not in her room? We watched a movie and she told me it would be okay if I stayed.” Something the boy had done countless times in the past, and nothing Hoss had ever worried about before. “Did I do something wrong, Hoss?”
“No, son. You’re fine. I just need to talk to her.” Hoss turned around and called out, “House, put the call on speaker.” A click echoed through the rooms and he clipped out, “She ain’t here, Tugboat. What’s going on?”
“Hoss?” He stopped midstride and looked around as if his dreams and wishes had somehow conjured the woman he loved to his house. “It’s Cassie.”
“Yeah, I got that. What are you doin’ with Tug?” That wasn’t the right question and he knew it, but this was his insecurity talking loud and clear. “What’s going on with Faynez?”Back on track, he thought as he stalked to the kitchen, Garrett padding along behind him.
“You left your phone.” Cassie’s voice cracked and broke and Hoss found his shoulders hunching in as if he could take on whatever was hurting her. “At my house.”
“Yeah?”
Tugboat interrupted, and his words tore the ground out from under Hoss. “Man called your phone this morning, said he’s got Faynez. Said he wanted to talk to you. Deadline was near forty minutes ago, but he didn’t call back yet.”
***
Cassie
Hearing the steady strength in Hoss’ voice calmed Cassie a little. He sounded so sure of himself as he went back and forth with Tugboat about possible players in whatever game Faith had gotten caught up in. Not that he was calm or unmoved, but just from Hoss’ words and his tone, she knew he believed he would find his daughter, get her back, and she’d be okay.
Actually arriving at Tugboat’s home had nearly seemed anticlimactic after her frantic search for the exact street and address. Her memories had led her astray twice and she’d had to backtrack for blocks until another flash of “there” would happen. Tug had already been up and dressed, working on his second cup of coffee when she pulled up to the curb. Which meant he’d heard the bike and been waiting on his porch by the time she made it up his steps, arms out to catch her.
Five minutes of conversation, and he’d made two calls before dialing Hoss’ home number. Myron, who Cassie knew in passing, and Mason, a man Cassie had yet to meet. Listening to Tug’s side of the conversations had been frustrating, but from his responses, she knew they were immediately headed to where Hoss was. Coordination of whatever would happen would be from his home, and the men were rallying their friends to join them. It had been such a relief to pass the baton to those capable men, and she caught another glimpse of what Hoss had in the club, in the brotherhood.
“Get here, brother.” Hoss clipped out the words brusquely to Tug. “Garage is open. I just saw Mason and My roll in. I need you, old man. You get here and help me.”
Before Tug could disconnect the call, Cassie asked, hating how tentative her voice sounded, “May I come, too?” She stumbled over the words, trying to find the right ones to tell him what it would mean to her. “I want to…that is I would…Hoss—”
He interrupted her, his voice deep and soft like satin through the speakers. “Come to me, baby. Please.”
“I will,” she promised and looked up to see Tug’s mouth curved in a sad smile.
***
Garrett
He heard the words but couldn’t make sense out of them.
Someone had taken Faynez, as in kidnapped her.
Someone has her right now. At that thought, an endless round of possible terrifying scenarios raced through his mind, each worse than the others.
He pictured her face bruised and bloody, her mouth open screaming for help. Or maybe she was shivering in a dark cellar. What if Faynez were fighting for her life against shadowy assailants? His heart stuttered at the thought of her lying still and quiet, tears running down her face as someone moved over her. He choked when he imagined her lying still, skin gray, eyes staring sightlessly.
Garrett ruthlessly cut off the thoughts, stopping himself before he could do anything to remind Hoss he was here, because he knew the adult in the room would want to instinctively protect him from whatever was happening.
And Garrett, as he’d been taught by the smartest man he knew, listened andheard.
