“I know you will. Go, we’ll be fine. I’ll stay in her room.” She grasped me tightly. I gave her a kiss then popped in to kiss Hope and tell her I’d be back later. As I went out the door, she called out to me, “Bye, Daddy.” My heart stopped, and I looked at Ilara in shock. She gave me a smile.
“Goodbye, Sugarplum. Daddy will be back soon. Love you,” I told her before I rushed out of the room. My eyes were stinging. In the hall, I briefly talked to Thorn and Tiger then I was on my way. The ride back to the compound seemed to take twice as long as usual, though I knew it really didn’t. When I pulled into the gate, I saw all the bikes were parked at the clubhouse. I ran inside. The common room was full. All the guys gave me looks of concern and maybe pity. I didn’t have time to check. I rushed past them to Outlaw’s room.
He was inside typing away on his computer with Bull and Tank. They all looked up when I rushed into the room. Bull came straight over to me. He hugged me close. “We’ll find her, I swear, Bear. This motherfucker doesn’t know who he’s messing with.”
“What if we can’t, Bull? We’ve been looking for him for over a month. We haven’t found him. He’s out there and we don’t have a clue where. She’s been gone for ten hours. God knows what he’s doing to her.”
A sound of pain and rage came out of Outlaw. His eyes were burning with it. Jesus, he did have feelings for my daughter, if that look was anything to go by. “See anything?”
“I see he left town headed south on the 111 toward Spencer. There aren’t any cameras on that road, so I don’t know if he stayed on it or took off on another one like I-70.” I could hear the frustration in his voice. I was just about to say that we’d head out and start doing searches of every damn building we could find in that direction when we heard a commotion coming from the common room. I looked at the others and then I headed out to see what the hell was going on now. We couldn’t deal with any more drama right now. They all followed me.
I came to a screeching halt when I got there. Standing in the middle of the common room, looking a little dazed and messy, was Tarin. She was being held up by the last person I ever thought I’d see again, our ex-prospect Tate. I ran over to her. He handed her off to me. She sagged in my arms. I held her close and kissed her head over and over as I whispered, “Thank God, thank God.”
I looked over to see Outlaw beside me. He looked like he was in pain because he wasn’t touching her. I passed her to him. His eyes closed as he held her tight to him. I turned to Tate. He was looking at me with trepidation in his eyes.
“What the fuck are you doing with my daughter, Tate? You’d better tell me and convince me that I shouldn’t kill you in the next thirty seconds,” I growled low.
Tarin stirred in Outlaw’s arms. “No, don’t hurt him! He saved me. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be here,” she sobbed. I looked back to Tate.
“Sit and start talking.” He sat at the table closest to us. Outlaw sat down with Tarin on his lap. I don’t even think it registered that she was on his lap. She was still looking dazed. The rest of my club and our guests crowded around us.
“Okay, let me start at the beginning. I know I screwed up when I told Eddie about Ilara and he blabbed to Todd Hamilton. You guys were right to kick me out. I deserved it. However, it just didn’t sit right with me that he now knew where she was. I knew you were afraid he’d come after her, so, I’ve been trying to track him down for weeks. I went to Philly and started there.” I looked at him in shock. He’d been searching all this time.
He continued, “It was time consuming since he tried to stay off the grid and I kept losing him and then I’d find him. Finally, I realized he’d made it to Hunters Creek. I knew you guys probably wouldn’t want to hear from me, so I’ve been searching the area to find where he was holed up. I heard about him trying to take Ilara. I had narrowed down the area I thought he was in to a ten-mile radius the day before yesterday.”
He coughed. Alex slid a bottle of water across the table to him. He nodded his thanks and took a big drink. “I was going to every structure that even looked like it could hold someone, checking to see if he was there. Then this morning, I found this old, abandoned house out on the 111 as you head toward Spencer. It looked like someone had been there recently because of fresh tire tracks. I broke in to investigate, and I found her tied up. She was sort of out of it. I think he might have been drugging her. I got her untied, and I asked her where she wanted to go. She told me to take her to you, Bear. I almost shit when she told me that. On the drive I asked her why she wanted you and she said you’re her dad?” He gave me an unbelieving look. I nodded.
“Well, shit, who would have thought that. Damn.”
“Can you take us to where you found her? We still need to catch Hamilton,” I asked him urgently. Tarin was starting to stir in Outlaw’s lap. She sat up. She seemed to realize where she was and she gave him a funny look, then she glanced over at me.
“He took me to use as a bargaining chip. He was going to contact you and tell you he had me. He’d be willing to let me go if you gave him Ilara and Hope. He left to go get something and told me he’d be back.” She whispered like her throat hurt. Outlaw grabbed another bottle of water and opened it. He held it to her lips. She drank it eagerly.
“Honey, we know he took you last night. Tarin, did he... do anything to you, besides drug you?” I asked her. I hated to ask, but I needed to know. She’d need different medical help if he’d raped her. I saw Outlaw’s face go rigid and the vein in his temple throbbed. His hands were clenched into fists.
She shook her head. “He didn’t. He told me he was going to come back and we’d have some time to get to know each other while he waited for you to arrange an exchange. I knew what that meant. He’s sick, Bear. He’s totally convinced that Ilara is his, and that she wants him. She just has been playing a game. Also, he’s determined to get Hope. Said that you were trying to steal his kid and wife. I told him he was crazy, that Ilara wasn’t his, and she wanted nothing to do with him. He got mad and that’s when he hit me.” She turned her face and I could now see a dark bruise on her left cheek.
“One more question, what happened when he grabbed you at your hotel?”
“I was asleep and suddenly my door was opening. I don’t know how he got it, but he had a card and a way to slip off that security bar thing. I tried to get up and to the bathroom, but he was on me too fast. He stabbed me with a needle and I got all woozy and then I was out. I didn’t wake up until he had me at that house. I’m still a little fuzzy.”
“Honey, let’s get you to a doctor, You need to be checked out.” I stood up.
“I’m okay, just dehydrated and needing to shake off this drug. A few bruises and some aches, but I’m fine. You need to go find him. Make sure you have enough guys on Ilara and Hope. I wouldn’t put anything past him, especially when he realizes I’m gone. He’s going to go apeshit.”
I’d been so busy listening to Tate and her, that I didn’t pay attention that the old ladies were in the room. Zara came over to Tarin. “Come on, sweetie, I’ll check you out and then I’ll draw some blood. We need to know what he used on you. We can go to my house or one of the room’s here.”
Tarin was helped shakily to her feet by Outlaw. “You can use my room. I’ll be out here for a while,” Outlaw told Zara gruffly. His eyes never left Tarin. She blushed and then glanced away. Zara smiled and took her hand and led her down the hall.
As soon as I was sure Tarin was out of earshot, I spoke, “Get your gear, we’re going on a hunt. He’s out there and I’m finding him today. Send two more guys over to the hospital to keep an eye on my family. I want Tarin to stay here where she’s safe. Will one of you take her to your house?” I asked the remaining old ladies. They all nodded. I looked at Tate. He was watching us with worry in his eyes. I pointed at him. “You’re coming with us. Show us where you found her.”
He got to his feet. “Sure thing. I can show you exactly where it is. It’s in a really wooded area, so be ready. I have no idea if he’s got any hidey-holes on it or not. I didn’t waste time looking once I found Tarin. She knocked me for a loop,” he said, with an admiring look in his eye.
Outlaw jumped into the conversation. “Don’t get any ideas, she’s already taken.” My brothers were smiling at each other hearing his claim.
Tate held up his hands. “Noted. When do you want to go?”
I thought about it. “I’m rolling out in ten. Whoever is coming with me, be ready. We’ll need a truck or van. The rest of you can ride if you want. I need to get my go-bag and call Ilara. She’s worried to death over this. Who’s going to the hospital?”