If someone had plunged their bare hand into my chest and ripped out my heart, I couldn’t have hurt more. Thankfully, Raptor wrapped me up in his arms, because I would’ve collapsed to the floor when my knees gave out. The wail that slipped through my cold lips was enough to rattle the windows as I unraveled.
Through the rushing in my ears, I vaguely heard Voodoo’s grandmother as she tried to soothe me. Then Angel calmed down, broke free of his brothers, and held me close. He didn’t say anything, just clutched my hair as I pressed the side of my face into his chest.
As I fought to maintain a minimal level of sanity, a cold realization washed over me.
Before this was over, I was going to kill my mother.
But first, I needed to speak to my father.
While Angel and his brothers sequestered themselves with Madame Laveaux and Julia went to the room she had down the hall from mine, I waited impatiently.
Imagine my surprise when Voodoo and Kira came through the door with an infant carrier.
“Oh my God! How is the baby doing?” I exclaimed. Kira looked exhausted as they shared a glance.
“I didn’t sleep a wink last night for fear that someone would try to take Parker again. I couldn’t stay there another minute,” Kira admitted with a shudder. I couldn’t say I blamed her. They couldn’t have a lot of faith in the hospital’s security.
“How are you holding up?” Voodoo asked me with concern in his hypnotic eyes.
Blinking away the tears, I tried my best to stay strong. “I’m doing okay,” I whispered in a small voice. Empathy filled Kira’s eyes as she took my hand in hers and squeezed.
“Is there anything I can do?” she asked with a sniffle of her own.
A tear slipped free as I shook my head. “You just take care of that sweet little boy,” I said with a sad, watery smile. She threw her arms around me and squeezed. Silent sobs shook me, but I could only whimper.
“Let me get you settled, baby,” Voodoo said as he kissed her cheek. She nodded and followed him down the hall. Briefly, I saw him again as he passed down the hall to their meeting room. The not knowing was killing me, and panic clawed up my throat.
Once they came out, Angel made a beeline for me. He framed my face with his hands.
“I need to go out, but you’ll be safe here. Several of the brothers and prospects will be here. We have a good lead. We’re going to get them back, baby. I promise you.” His lips feathered over mine before he embraced me tightly. He kissed my temple as he stepped back. “Keep your phone on you. I’ll keep you updated.”
“Angel, maybe we need to call the police,” I said as I desperately gripped the front of his thick sweatshirt. That was when I realized he was no longer wearing his cut and was dressed more like a thief than a biker.
“No way, not until we’ve exhausted all our efforts. We have better resources than they could ever hope to have anyway,” he said, full of a confidence I wasn’t sure I believed. Softly, and full of gentle promise, he gave me one last kiss before he stepped back. “I love you.”
I wanted to believe him, but I was terrified my mother was telling the truth. Knowing I’d break down if I opened my mouth, I simply nodded.
Most of them left as I sat on a couch pretending to be absorbed in my phone. The last thing I wanted to do was talk. I breathed a sigh of relief when Hawk disappeared into the back rooms, presumably to check on Julia and his grandbaby. The two older guys were sitting in the recliners watching TV. Jameson and Sadie sat at the bar.
They got up and stopped by where I was sitting. “I’m going to get Sadie settled. Will you be okay out here?” He glanced around, obviously making note of where all the people were. He was good-looking but, in my opinion, a little terrifying. He was gruff and broody, but that must’ve appealed to Sadie.
“Yeah, there’s no way I can relax. I’m going to wait and pray,” I said in a trembling whisper. Waiting sounded like the absolute worst form of torture. I needed todosomething. Anything.
So I paced. And paced. Then paced some more, until I was sure I’d worn a path in the concrete floor.
How much more could I handle? Every fiber of my being seemed as if it was unraveling. Barely hanging on to my sanity, I didn’t know what to do. Did I sneak out to aimlessly scour the streets? I was at a loss.
I missed my son so much, it was like I was dying every second he was gone. I worried that he was hurt, or hungry, cold, scared; the possibilities were enough to cripple me.
Unable to process much more, I went to Trace’s room and curled up on his bed. The purple frog was under his pillow, and I dragged it out to tuck it under my chin.
All the agony of my baby being gone shredded through the last of my resolve, and I disintegrated as I broke down. Sobs wracked my body until I’d exhausted myself, and I fell into a fitful sleep.
“CityofAngels”—Journey
It might’ve been five minutes, or it could’ve been five hours—I wasn’t sure how much time had passed before Ghost came in and shook my shoulder. He gave me a nod, telling me Madame Laveaux must be back.
She’d spent the entire night in Voodoo’s Temple.