Looking around, everybody nods, and I open the door. Expecting to find her aunt on the other side, instead it’s a man. Instantly, I know this is her uncle, without ever having met him or seen a photo of him before.
"I'm her uncle and am here to see Willow. We've been worried about her since her dad's funeral. The way she up and disappeared, she's obviously not stable." The man in front of me says this without even offering me his name or asking mine.
So, he's going to play the she’s unstable game to make it seem like any of her decisions or anything she says isn't worth a damn. Somehow, that doesn't surprise me. I can tell the moment the men step up behind me because her uncle's eyes go wide for a fraction of a moment before he regains his composure. Without a doubt, I know they want to get a good look at him and know who we are dealing with.
"More like you're worried about her opening her mouth and telling everyone what you did to her," I say. In that moment, he realizes I know what happened and his entire demeanor changes.
"That girl is mentally unstable and has no idea what she's talking about. She needs to be at home with her family," he says in a tone that I'm sure is meant to scare some people.
"Not only is she perfectly stable, but she's my wife, and I am her family. She will be staying here, and you will be leaving her alone. This is your one and only warning. If you step foot on my property again, I will put a bullet between your eyes. See these men here with me? They live all over this mountain and you accidentally step foot on one of their properties, they'll do the same thing," I tell him without losing eye contact.
Then Axel steps forward and stands right next to me. I'm a tall man at over six feet tall, but Axel is pushing seven feet. If you don't know him, he can look to be one scary son of a bitch, even though he's one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. But he also knows when to use his size to his advantage, like right now.
The moment Axel steps up to my side, her uncle takes a step backwards. Fight back a smile, all I can think is how cowardly this man truly is.
As I raise my gun, point it directly at him, and cocked the trigger, I growl, "Now get off my property.”
Chapter 20
Bennett
Standingontheotherside of the door is Detective Geer. He was a huge help with Hope and Jana were kidnapped and have taken the men up here on the mountain under his wing and we all appreciate it.
"Bennett," he says.
I lower my shotgun and invite him in.
"Listen, Willow’s uncle has come into the station saying that you kidnapped her and that you're holding her against her will," he says.
I know the instant Willow pops up beside me because she starts talking.
"No, I ran away from my uncle and came here where Bennett and I were married. It was both of our choices, and he's not holding me against my will." She sounds panicked and I hate that.
Wrapping my arm around her waist, I hope it will help calm her down. I trust detective Greer and I know that everything will be all right, even if it doesn't seem like it right now.
"I know all that, but I need you both to come down to the station and give a statement. That way, we will have it on file. Though it's not going to be fun, and you will have to be questioned in separate rooms. We have to do this by the book so that it can't be used against you later. I know the type of person your uncle is and I think we have a long fight ahead of us. Everyone at the station is willing to make that fight with you, but we have to do it the right way."
Greer says this with such sincerity in his voice that we can’t help but trust him. All of this is difficult because I want to be the one to protect her. Now I have to hand it off to someone else.
"Okay, let me call the guys. Then we will follow you in," I tell him and Willow's eyes go wide.
"It's all right, Willow. We had to go through this with Axel and Emelie. They will ask us some questions on the record, and we will be home for dinner tonight." I hope I'm telling her the truth, so I look over at Detective Greer who nods to me.
A quick call to Phoenix and he lets me know he’ll call the other guys and Jack to meet us down at the station.
Then we begin the drive into town.. The whole way there, I can feel Willow's nerves. I try to comfort her the best that I can by holding her hand and letting her know I'm there for her.
Once we arrive at the police station, we’re put in separate rooms just like we expected to be. With my nervous energy, it’s impossible to sit at the table, so I pace around the room. I hate being away from Willow and knowing she's nervous and scared and that there's nothing I can do about it.
It seems like an eternity before Detective Greer steps into the room. He goes through the whole spiel of who he is and why we're here before sitting down at the table. Only then, do I sit down even though I still have way too much nervous energy to be sitting still.
"How did you and Willow meet?"
"On an online dating website."
"Were you aware that her uncle was a politician?"
"Not until she told me after we were married."