“You and I both agree on something. I’ll give you that, but it doesn’t change what happened.” Rick dragged a chair across the basement.
Landon looked toward his woman and saw her lips were blue. “She’ll die if you don’t get her somewhere warm.”
“Well, that’s all up to you, isn’t it, Landon?” Rick said. “I have to say I was surprised to see the Castillo girl alive and well, and what’s more, a part of your little group.”
“Have you told her family?”
“No. I know I’m going to need some information first on what the fuck is going on. I’m not an idiot and I don’t make deals, not without all the answers. She’s your fiancée, Landon. Tell me what deal you made with her.”
“No, you get them into the warmth before I make any deals with you.”
He expected the blow to the face and took it. Jade cried out. “You leave him alone. We didn’t need your help.”
“You think it wouldn’t have taken people long to figure out where you were?” Rick asked. “It didn’t take me long and I’m family. Your family, Jade, would have made an example out of you and Landon. You can’t go off thinking you’re the shit when you don’t know what you’re getting into.”
“Why does it matter to you, Rick? This isn’t your family anymore. You’ve got Mandy back at home. Why not leave this shit behind and go back to her?”
He got another two blows. One to his face, the other to his stomach. He couldn’t fight back, but Rick had trained him to take a beating.
“I’m getting tired of you saying my wife’s name.”
“Mandy, Mandy, Mandy.” He laughed as Rick’s eye twitched.
“Okay, fine, you want to play that game?” Rick got up and walked over to the cage where Tulip was.
“What are you doing? Let her go.”
Tulip screamed as Rick grabbed her hair and pulled her out of the cage. He threw her down to the ground and lifted her head up.
“You won’t do anything.”
“To kill her?” Rick asked. “Of course not. I won’t kill her. No, but seeing as this woman isn’t mine, that I found her and brought her to you, there’s nothing stopping me from breaking her just a little bit.” He grabbed her arm, twisting it. If he put too much pressure at that angle, it would break.
“Landon, don’t,” Tulip said.
“Where’s Tamsin?” Rick asked. “What deal do you have with Jade?”
“Don’t do it, Landon. You’re protecting her.”
Rick had him.
He wasn’t going to give away Tamsin’s location but he couldn’t allow for Tulip to be heard.
“I don’t know where she is,” he said. “My cell phone. Call her. If you tell her it’s a code red, she’ll give her location.”
It was a lie. To give Tamsin a code red, his sister would know he was in trouble and she was to give a fake location.
“How about this?” Rick said, dropping Tulip to the floor. He dragged her back to the cage and threw her inside. “Let’s see how long she lasts being all cold.”
“I will kill you.”
“No, you won’t. One day, you’ll see I’m doing this for your own good.” Rick went over to the pile of clothes. While he looked for a cell phone, the basement door opened and down came his brothers.
Jacob, Abel, Oliver, Gideon, and Damian, of course, no one could forget Gabriel Colton either.
“I should have known you guys wouldn’t be far behind,” he said.
“What the fuck did you do to him?” Jacob asked.