I turned the knob and let the icy cold water pound into me. Part of me hoped the cold water would calm me down, but if anything, it solidified the anger and pain that had been building during the last few weeks. The mental image of two pink lines assaulted my mind, and I punched the tile wall, ignoring the sharp pain that shot up my arm. I let out a yell, hoping the scream would provide some kind of release, but just like with everything else since she’d left, there was nothing to catch me, steady my emotions, even me out. The scream continued, echoing off the tile, until my throat was sore. I closed my eyes under the now warm water as if that would somehow help me, my breath coming in and out in shaky gasps. I should really clean up because the only thing left to do now was to carry on.We’d find her one way or another, then she would never be free of us again.
“Sacha?” The quiet voice broke the whirl of my thoughts. I peeked through the long, wet hair that was obscuring my face to find Bodhi standing by the door, watching me carefully. I didn’t sense any fear in him, which was interesting. How had he become the steady one during all of this? During all of this, Bodhi had somehow become not only Oliver’s rock, but my own. “Vas and Oli are cleaning up the body. Oli asked me to come in here and make sure you didn’t destroy the showers because he doesn’t want to find a new warehouse.”
A half smile tugged at my lips, the comment breaking through some of my melancholy. “Tell Oliver he can fuck off. If this place survived him chasing down you and Nic, it can deal with my anger.”
“Those are two very different things,” Bodhi pointed out, running a hand through his short honey-brown hair as his dark brown eyes studied me. “We will find her.”
“It’s been almost a month,” I said gruffly, squeezing my eyes shut. “Rhodes and the others haven’t found anything either. The stalker could have her, and we have no way of knowing.”
“I don’t think they have her,” Bodhi replied with conviction as he approached, stopping right in front of me. The splashing droplets from the shower had to be hitting him, but he didn’t seem to mind. “I think she did what she always does. Nicholette took matters into her own hands without talking with us, and now she’s doing what’s necessary.”
“And the baby?” I asked as he reached up to push my wet hair out of my face. His fingers trembled for a minute before he could hide the reaction.
“I don’t know,” he answered honestly, his voice slightly shaky. “I don’t know how I feel about it or if Nic would even keep it, to be honest. It’s not exactly like we are all… prime parent material. I don’t know if I can handle that even with the whole group of us there to take it on together.”
“Guess we will find out when we find her again,” I told him gently, feeling calmer now that he was close to me. Bodhi might be more confident in Nic’s safety than the rest of us, but he rivaled Oliver with his uncertainty when it came to the pregnancy. Being the one who was more settled gave me back some of my control. I couldn’t keep my shit together for myself, but I could tighten those reins now that I’d seen these little signs that Bodhi might need something from me.
I reached down, my fingers playing along the bottom of his shirt, enjoying the way his breath caught when my fingers brushed along his bare skin. “Join me?”
Bodhi nodded, a happy smile curling his lips as I pulled his shirt off. He threw his pants and boots toward the door so they didn’t get soaked even more. Not waiting for me to take the lead, he wrapped his arms around me and pressed his lips to mine. I groaned, loving the sweet taste of him on my lips as I squeezed him. Strong fingers dug into my hips as he teasingly flicked his tongue along mine, taunting me to take control from him, a challenge I couldn’t ignore.
Grabbing his face, I smiled against his lips when he whimpered, completely giving in to me as I backed him against the wall. I broke away and peppered kisses down his neck, loving the way he panted and cursed my name. He was so responsive to everything, so irresistible, but just as I started to go lower, there was a pounding on the door that made both of us freeze.
“Hate to interrupt, but Vas got an urgent message on our voicemail. We have a new client, top priority.” Which meant that we had to go to a meeting tonight.Fuck.“No meeting requested, but Vas wants to get on it ASAP. He said we would understand once he shares the details.”
So much for shower sex.Both of us cleaned up and hurriedly got dressed, though I didn’t miss the longing glances he kept shooting my way. Everything was falling apart except my new relationship with him, and those traces of his desire made me smile more easily than anything had in weeks. We hadn’t been able to spend much time together alone, not with all of us spiraling in Nic's absence, but he was always there, and it felt nice to have someone I could lean on.
As he slipped on his second boot, I reached for him, pulling him tight against me. I gently brushed my lips across his, wanting to claim one more soft moment for myself before I had to let that fire reignite within me. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Bodhi asked breathlessly, and pure male satisfaction filled me.Iwas the one who’d made him react that way.
“For being you.”
He swallowed hard, cupping my face in his hands as he rocked up on his toes to firmly kiss me. “Same back at you. Now, let’s get to work. Maybe it will distract us for a little bit.” Bodhi grinned, snagging my hand and leading the way to the torture space where Vas and Oliver had finished cleaning up.
“What are the job details?” I asked, all business, as we joined them.
My brother looked over at me, his dark brown eyes cool, calculating, probably trying to gauge how I’d react. Whatever he saw there must have satisfied him because, with a slight nod, Vas’ hard face smoothed of all expression before he started talking.
“Listen for yourself.”
He pushed a button on his cellphone, and a chill ran down my spine when Maeve’s voice filled the line.
“Morozov, I have information for you. My contacts have said there is movement in Millfield, but they don’t have any details yet. It looks like it’s related to the trafficking ring Warren was involved in.” There was the shuffle of papers in the background, then she cleared her throat. “There are rumors of members disappearing, more men than the ones I know you’ve questioned. One of my people was taken. I’ll send Sacha the details. Find them. And Nicholette.”
Click.
You could have heard a pin drop in the silence that followed the end of that voicemail. Next to me, Bodhi swallowed hard, and Oliver’s face was practically gray as he slowly sat down on the bloody chair nearby.
When she’d said Nicholette’s name, Maeve’s cold voice had actuallycracked. I hadn’t thought the woman was capable of any emotion that wasn’t geared toward manipulating others into what she wanted, but it appeared the bitch could experience pain. There was no other reason to explain the raw way she’d sounded; she was, undeniably, affected by her ex-lover’s disappearance. I supposed it shouldn’t have been any kind of surprise considering how she’d reacted weeks ago.
The moment we realized what had happened, I had gone to pay Maeve a visit. Maeve’s shock was clear, and when we mentioned the pregnancy, she had almost fainted. An uneasy alliance had formed that night; we would share information when it came to tracking down Nicholette because, at the end of the day, we all wanted her safe. It definitely wasn’t how I saw things going, but I wouldn’t complain about the Madame of Ashview being an ally, at least for this.
“I never thought I’d hear that old bitch’s walls crack.” Oliver broke the silent tension, and even Vas’ lips twitched in a mostly suppressed smile.
Bodhi looked over at me, brow furrowed. “She didn’t name a price.”
“Something I also noted,” Vas added. Both men looked at me as I walked over and snagged my phone off the counter. I had placed it there earlier, so it wouldn’t get covered in blood. Unlocking it, I opened the secured email app we used for jobs and saw Maeve’s email there. I felt my brows rising in surprise as I skimmed its contents, then I forwarded it to Oliver.