Page 64 of Beta Team-The Saviors: Part two
“We’re going to head back in the morning. It’s too dark right now,” Ari says, wrapping his arm around Gavin’s shoulders. Gavin sags in his arms, and Ari kisses the top of his head. “Wewere ambushed. They surrounded us faster than we could react, and we still didn’t find Cryptic. Just a scared kid and their dead parents.”
“A kid?” I whisper.
“He was no more than thirteen,” Tivon replies. “He was tied up in the basement with his parents dead in the corner. It was bad. They were tortured before their throats were slit. He’s gotta be Cryptic’s brother.”
I lead Gavin over to the couch to sit down because he looks dead on his feet. I sit beside him and grab his hand, lending him all the strength I can. No matter how bad I want to fall apart, I need to be strong for the rest of them. But why Tyler? Was he alive? Hurt? Scared? So many thoughts were running through my head.
“Where’s the kid now?” Kane asks, walking to sit in an empty chair.
“With Axel’s team. They took him to their house because it’s the safest right now.” Tivon sighs and runs his fingers through his hair. “And we need to move again soon.”
“Not until we find Tyler,” Gavin growls, shooting death glares at Tivon. “If he can get away, he’ll come here.”
“I don’t mean without Tyler,” Tivon says softly. Some of the tension drains from Gavin, and he sits back on the couch, squeezing my hand. “Nolan is going to continue trying to make contact with his tracker. We just need one ping, and we’ll be on our way. Until then, we should probably rest.”
I stand up and pull Gavin to stand. He doesn’t protest when I lead him to the bedroom with Kira following closely behind us. We help him strip his gear off, and it’s like he’s a limp noodle. There’s no emotion on his face, and his eyes are blank. I cast a worried look at Kira, and it’s reflected back in her eyes. We get his pants off his hips, and I gently push him to sit down so I can get his boots off. I make short work of it and get him situated inthe middle of the bed so Kira and I can lay on either side of him. We both lay our heads on his chest and grab his hands. It’s quiet for a few minutes before Gavin takes a shuddering breath and starts sobbing. Kira and I whisper soothing things to him, all the while trying to hold back our own tears.
“I can’t lose him.”
“You won’t,” I say with as much conviction as I can muster. “It’s Tyler. He’s too stubborn to go out this way.”
Gavin laughs through his tears. “You’re right. I can’t give up on him.”
Kira wipes tears from his cheeks. “None of us can. Tyler is so fucking smart. He’ll figure a way out of this, or hold on until we get there.”
“I do have good news,” I whisper. “I called Betty to check on that little boy that you guys saved from that trafficking ring.” Gavin looks at me with glassy eyes, and I kiss his cheek. “He’s going home with Betty tomorrow, and he’s finally starting to talk. His name is Isiah.”
Gavin closes his eyes and more tears leak out, but this time they’re happy tears.
We get comfortable, and I feel like I just began to drift off when someone busts through the door. Gavin sits up in a flash and locks eyes with Tivon.
“Nolan got a distress call from Tyler’s tracker. We need to move.”
We’re all out of bed in a hurry, and Gavin starts pulling his clothes on, then his gear. He kisses Kira and me hard before following Tivon from the room. We say our goodbyes, and the guys head toward the SUV, leaving us with Kane again. I wave one last time as they back out of the driveway.
While praying theyallcome back this time.
28
TYLER
“You shrimp dick motherfucker.”
The guy shoves me into the back of the van, ignoring my protests. With my arms zip tied behind my back, I can’t catch myself before I faceplant on the floor. “I’m going to gut every single one of you assholes.”
“Shut the fuck up.” I don’t see the guy in the back until it’s too late. I get a boot to the ribs, and roll over onto my stomach. The guy jumps on me and straps my lower legs to my wrists so I’m hog tied.Fucking awesome.
I’m still pissed as hell that they even got the drop on me, but so much was going on. People were materializing out of nowhere, gunshots were echoing through the night, Tivon was barking orders into the headset, and some asshole just grabbed me. I couldn’t react before my wrists were tied and they gave me a vicious punch to the gut. I’m still wondering if all the guys got out.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask, shuffling away from the asshole in the back with me. “Torture me? Send me back in pieces? I just like to be prepared.”
“That’s none of your business.”
“I’d like to disagree. I’m the one tied up back here.”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
“That’s ominous. At least make sure it’s somewhere warm. I get cold easily.”
