I pull her tight. “Give me the gun, babe.” I say quietly and for the first time since I gave it to her, she releases it to me. I retell the entire story and gasps from Bella continue to roll out of her mouth. Apparently, she didn’t see this coming either.

“We need to find him. Now.” I growl staring at my brothers.

Pops starts barking orders. “Buzz get on that laptop of yours and start searching. He couldn’t have gone too far. Dagger, Rhys, Tug and Becs make sure everything’s ready to go. The rest of us stay here with the girls.” Everyone leaves quickly to start their tasks.

Angel looks a bit shaken up still, but her color is coming back to her face along with some serious black and blue marks she’s going to be facing. The marks send fury through me and all I want to do is find the fucker and end him. And I will end him.

“What am I supposed to do?” Bella asks from the couch.

“When Buzz gets done, he’s gonna take you back to your place. You need to appear as if everything is just fine. If the cops pull you aside, you say you saw nothing and you heard nothing. You stick to that shit no matter what. You need to pack enough to be gone for two weeks.”

“No. I can’t leave for two weeks.” She begins to argue, but Angel cuts in.

“Bella. I’m sorry, but this is how it is. I need the guys to protect you right now. I don’t know what the hell is wrong with Jace, but he knows how much you mean to me. He will come after you. You’re coming with us.”

Her face lights up. “Like to the clubhouse?” Angel nods. “I’m in.” Bella smiles and Angel tries returning it, but to no avail.

“Here ya go.” Buzz hands me some sheets of paper. “Everything on Jace Andrew Blankenship. Down to his last time using his credit card. According to this, it was about thirty minutes ago about an hour away.”

I walk over to Angel. “I’ve gotta go with the guys right now.” I hand her back the gun. “He comes here, you shoot. Breaker will stay here with you and Buzz will be back soon.” I look at the three girls. “You all do what they say, got it?” I make sure to linger on Princess, who concedes.

“Yeah.” I hear in unison.

“Baby. It’s gonna be okay. I’m gonna take care of this so he won’t do this again. Alright?”

“Be careful.” She says quietly. I pull her up from the couch and crash my lips to hers, partially for me and partially to let every bit of feeling I have for this woman pour through. I love her plain and simple.

“Always.” I look at Princess. “Take care of my girl.”

“You got it.” She grins and cocks her gun.

I nod to Pops knowing my sister will protect Casey with everything she has.

“Let’s go.” He says and we all file out. Unfortunately, I can’t fucking ride yet, so I’m stuck in the damn cage with Tug. Not exactly the best place for me, but my adrenaline is pumping so fucking hard, I don’t think about it. I focus on finding the fucker and ending him. For good.

It’s been over six hours and still nothing from any of them. I keep pacing unable to stop. I know I’m wearing the carpet thin, but my nerves are so shot. And I don’t care. I need to move. Bella’s already packed her things and is ready to go back with us to the club. She’s even contacted her professors and helped me contact mine about our ‘family emergency.’ I seem to be having a lot of those lately.

Cops came by when Bella came back in the door. Harlow knew they would come and gave us a cover story she made us repeat several times. We were all listening to loud music and didn’t hear a thing. It helped that when Bella walked in we had the music blaring. We even added a bunch of questions about what had happened. One of the female officers eyed my face, but I shrugged it off saying that Harlow and I got into a bit of a fight over a guy. Somehow they bought it and left us alone.

Harlow’s tried several times to get me to eat, but I want nothing to do with it. My stomach is in knots and just the thought of food makes me want to throw up. She also insisted that she check me over for injuries, even though I knew I didn’t have anything but a few bumps and bruises. It could have been so much worse.

It baffles me that Jace thought we had more than we do. I’ve never given him the impression otherwise. Or at least I never tried to and I was always straight with him. He never once gave me any indication that he had this other side to him. He was always so damn caring towards me especially after I lost Mia, never once even raising his voice. A twinge of sadness creeps through me as the loss of the Jace I thought I knew envelops me. Why did he change? What the hell happened? So many questions and ones that I will probably never get any answers to.

I turn to Buzz, who’s been eyeing Bella since they got back from her apartment, never letting her out of his sight for more than a few minutes. “Anything?”

“Nope. This shit takes time. You gotta settle down. They’re fine.” He says way too calmly.

“Easy for you to say.” I pace… And pace. My mind clouds with so much shit it may just explode. I can’t lose him, I just got him back.

“I’m about two seconds away from sitting on you.” Harlow calls from the couch. I don’t stop, but gladly take the irritation her words make me feel.

“How can you just sit there like this isn’t bothering you?”

She waves her hand. “It’s not. The guys know what they’re doing and they’re not stupid. And it’s one guy… Piece of cake.”

I huff at her and nibble on my fingernails that are now raw and on the verge of bleeding. How did everything go to shit so fast? What the hell changed?

Buzz’s cell rings and I stop dead in my tracks, eyes glued to him and ears peeled to the one sided conversation.

“Yeah.”

“Got it.”

“Yep. Cops came by. Took care of it. There are three still in the building, but have left us alone.”

“Alright.”

He shuts off the phone and looks at me, not saying anything for a moment.

“What!” I yell, needing something from him.

“Apparently your boy is smart. He went to his folks’ house about thirty minutes from here where there is a huge party going on. Boys are sitting outside… waiting.”

“First, he’s not my boy.” I say through clenched teeth. “Second, is everyone ok?”

“Everyone’s fine. Action hasn’t started yet.” He smiles and Bella sighs. I turn and she is staring at Buzz like he is the be-all-and-end-all, but when he looks she snaps her head away.

Whatever, I don’t have time for their dramatics right now. “So we wait.” I say finally plopping down on the couch for the first time.

“We wait.” Harlow says. “So you and my brother finally get shit sorted?” I look over at Buzz not really wanting to talk about this in front of him. Breaker is outside the door guarding it. He must have sensed my hesitation because without a word he gets up and goes out the door for the first time since he got here.

“Yes. No. I don’t know.” I blow out after he shuts the door.

“Okay… That was fucking clear. Spit it out.” Bella starts laughing looking over at Harlow who spoke. I get the distinct impression they will be ganging up on me really soon.

“What?” I ask.

“I like her.” Bella points to Harlow. “A lot.” Harlow smiles.

“I don’t get that much, most want nothing to do with me.” Harlow shakes her head turning her glaring eyes back to me. “Spill.”

I sigh, lean back on the couch and put my arm over my eyes. That’s such a loaded question and every word I say will be evaluated and she will read what she wants to into each of my words. “He wants me to move in with him, but I told him no.”

“Why?”

“I don’t think he’s come to terms fully about Mia and what I did. I think it’ll blow up eventually. I agree, now more than ever, that I need to be home, but I need my own place. I need to know that when this whole thing goes south, I have my own space to get away.”