“It’s Miller,” Ryker helped. “Sorry, he’s stressed out about his woman. I went with her when she filed for the restraining order since you were working that day, remember?” Ryker asked.
“Yes,” Taz said. “Thanks for that, by the way.” The kid set to work, typing Gabe’s name into the laptop and when he found what he was looking for, he turned the screen for both guys to see.
“Got him,” Adam said proudly. “Here is his address. I’ve also heard some rumors about this guy. He likes to hang out at the frat houses on campus because sorority girls go over there a lot to hook up. He’s a player and he’s bad news. I’ve heard he likes to get rough with the women, but they don’t want to come forward. They’re too afraid that if they do, their college career will be over.”
“If he has Kai, you won’t have to worry about that asshole around here anymore. I’ll fucking kill him,” Taz spat.
Ryker laughed and slapped his shoulder, “Oh—this one likes to kid, don’t you Joker?” he said, using Taz’s biker name. “He’d never hurt anyone,” Ryker assured. “We’ll call the police and let them handle this guy. Thanks for your help, Adam. Your dad should be proud of you.”
“Thanks,” Adam said. “I’m going to have to call this in to the local authorities. There was a gun on campus today, and I can’t keep that quiet. But I’ll give you an hour’s head start. Then, I’ll call them and tell them that I came across something suspicious on my video feed. They usually get out here to take a look within twenty-four hours, but I’ve never told them that the suspicious object looked like a gun.”
Ryker pulled Taz out of there and as soon as they got outside, he turned on Taz. “What the fuck is wrong with you, man?” he asked. “You can’t tell him that you’re going to kill some college kid. What if the asshole who has Kai ends up dead? They’ll come looking for you because you were talking shit to a college security guard. Don’t be a dumbass,” Ryker shouted.
“I’m not going to let the cops handle this,” Taz insisted. “I won’t sit back and wait for them to look for her. They won’t even start for what—forty-eight hours?” he asked.
“I’m not sure how that all works, but I lied. We aren’t going to call the cops. We’re going to check this guy out ourselves. I’m thinking that we start checking out all of the houses on fraternity row. If Adam is right, he might have taken her to one of them.” Taz knew that Ryker was right, but he still had a bad feeling about not involving the police in this.
“Thanks for the assist, man,” Taz said. “And thanks for being there for my girl when I couldn’t be. You and Harlow are like family to us both.”
“We feel the same way about you and Kai, man,” Ryker said. “We’ll find her, man. I don’t know that Gabe would take Kai back to his apartment. I’m betting he’s got her someplace safe where he thinks no one will rat him out—like his fraternity brothers.”
“Good thinking, man,” Taz said. “Let’s get moving.” They were going to have to move fast. The longer that asshole had his woman, the more pissed off he got.Kai
Kai opened her eyes and groaned. It felt as though her head was going to explode and she was pretty sure that it just might. She looked around the room where Gabe was holding her. She was handcuffed to a chair, her ankles bound by rope, and she was sure that she wasn’t going anywhere unless Gabe allowed it. She had tried to pull her wrists free from the cuffs, leaving them bloody from where she tore some of her skin off. It was no use, she was stuck, scared, and pissed at herself for believing that a piece of paper would keep her safe. She had naively believed that the restraining order that she took out against Gabe would keep him away from her, but she was wrong. It only pissed him off more and now, she had the bloody wrists to prove it.
The room that he had her in looked like it was part of the basement. It was cold, damn, and musty like a basement smelled, but she wasn’t sure since he had a hood over her head the whole time that he walked her through what she assumed to be a house. And if she wasn’t mistaken, she could smell pot and the stench of cheap alcohol. It reminded her of her early college days when she’d go to parties on campus, trying to fit in with the other college students, but failing miserably because she was a bit older than the typical student. Yeah—she was a fool for trying to fit into the whole college scene. If she had never gone to those parties, she wouldn’t have met Gabe, and wouldn’t be in this mess right now.
Kai was still trying to work out in her head how she got to this point. She went to class and was on her way back to her car when Gabe pulled up in front of her. He got out and had a gun in his hand, demanding that she get into his car. She thought about screaming or even trying to run, but she knew that she wouldn’t be fast enough. So, she got into his car and that was basically the last thing she remembered—besides the pain in her neck from what she assumed was a needle.
“Oh good,” Gabe said, he walked into the room and smiled at her as if he hadn’t just kidnapped her. “You were out for almost two hours.”
“What did you do to me?” she asked. Her voice sounded scratchy and weak. “What did you give me?”
“I just gave you a little something to help you to relax,” he said. “You really needed to calm the hell down, so I helped out. I mean, you were hysterical.”
“I was hysterical because you kidnapped me, Gabe. How was I supposed to act?” Kai asked.
“You’re fine,” he said. “I told you that I wasn’t going to hurt you.”
“Yet, you stuck a fucking needle in my neck and drugged me,” she said. “God only knows what you did to me while I was passed out.”
“I wouldn’t do anything to you while you were passed out, Kai. It’s not my style I like my women awake, and usually willing, but I do enjoy a little bit of a fight. Are you going to give me a fight, Kai?” he asked.
“I’m going to fucking kill you, Gabe,” she spat.
“Now who needs a restraining order?” Gabe taunted. “You’re threatening to kill me, and I’m the one with a restraining order against me.”
“Rightly so,” she spat, “I mean, you did kidnap me, so I’m pretty sure that the restraining order that I took out on you was warranted, asshole,” she said.
“How else was I supposed to get any time alone with you, Kai? Every time I’ve seen you, that caveman is by your side.” He had come to her work and stalked her around campus, and now, she knew that the only reason why she had avoided this very scene was that Taz had insisted on being with her. She was an idiot for thinking that she was safe because of a piece of paper from the court. She should have let Taz come with her to campus today as she had every day since Gabe broke into her apartment.
“You’ve been stalking me for weeks. You even broke into my apartment the night of our date,” she said. Kai finally wanted to hear him admit that he was the one who broke into her place.
“That wasn’t a date,” he spat. “It was a setup. You made me look like a fool, Kai. You used me to get to your giant boyfriend. I felt like an idiot, and I don’t like feeling that way.”
“So, you broke into my place,” she insisted.
“I broke into your place to scare you, but instead, it just pushed you right into that asshole’s arms. You moved out and I had no choice but to show up at your work. I wanted to talk to you, but you didn’t give me that chance. So, we’ll talk now.”