I huff a laugh and walk over to the bed, sitting down and placing elbows on my knees and my face in my palms. Chantelle must have followed me; the bed dips beside me and she leans into my side.
“What can I do?” she asks, her breath dancing along my neck making me shiver.
I shake my head and lie back. “Liam and Oren are bringing a man in to…talkto.”
Chantelle raises one brow at my choice of words.
“Hazel is working cameras. We can do nothing until we get those things out of the way.”
Chantelle places the cat on the floor, then swings her leg over mine so she is straddling my hips. My hands automatically rest on her thighs.
“How are you so calm?” she asks.
Her brows pinch together and she looks away from me, toying with the buttons on my shirt. I tuck a loose piece of white hair behind her ear, brushing my thumb along her cheek.
“I have to be,” I admit. “With Malia gone, it is likely those around us will begin to fall apart. Donovan can barely take a step without getting his sister’s approval. Breckin has always harbored some love for her. Liam will undoubtedly rip apart the world we know to find her, with Lion next to him as they take jabs at each other. I can fall apart when she comes home, but until then I need to remain calm and put together for everyone else.”
“She’s your daughter, Nate,” Chantelle says. “No one will blame you for losing control.”
“I am the son of a tyrant, but I am not one myself,” I sigh. “Not to those who matter, at least, and they do not deserve my wrath when they themselves are suffering. I am not just a father, but a leader. I have to keep my empire on its feet so I can give it to Malia when she returns.”
There is a knock on my bedroom door and Chantelle moves to shift off of me, but I hold her still.
“Dad,” Donovan calls from the door.
“Come in.”
I sit up, keeping my grip firm on Chantelle so she does not move even though one of my children is coming in. She is no secret to them and if I want to keep her around they will have to get used to it, though Donovan is not the one I have to worry about scaring anyone off.
“Jesus Christ,” he says when he steps into the room and sees my Little Bird sitting on my lap.
“What is it?” I snap at my son.
“No luck,” he says. “One of the podunk towns closest to the cabin had street cams we would see her on, but the other one didn’t. I imagine that’s the route they took.”
As luck would have it, it seems.
“I want the word out to those we trust to keep their ears to the ground. Any information on anything that could be about Malia or Tawny, I want to know about it. If someone gives me something useful they will be rewarded.”
Donovan nods.
“Uncle Elijah called. He and Lion should be here within the next few hours. They have some things to sort out before they leave New York. Lion’s losing his shit and Uncle Elijah is trying to delegate responsibility before they come here.”
Elijah Castello, my brother, my closest friend. Ex-leader to a syndicate in New York. Blood could not have made us closer and the same is said about his son and my daughter. All born from fire and brimstone, soaked in sin and blood, but each loyal to our very core.
“Thank you, Donnie,” I say in dismissal.
He lingers for a moment, and I look at him with a raised eyebrow.
“What?”
“We’ll get her back, Dad,” my son says, dropping his gaze to the ground. “But I need you to know something.”
I grunt, encouraging him to hurry up with whatever it is he has to say.
“Haze is pregnant.”
Hazel and my son have had a thing going on for years, so I knew it was bound to happen. What I do not know is why he thinks he needs to bring it up at this moment, when there are far more important things going on.