“Promise.”
Her look of strong-as-steel determination galvanized something in him. He probably shouldn’t have promised this one thing. It could break them apart before they even got started, if this ended badly.
“Call your friend. See if there’s anything we can do to find them now!”
“Them?” How could she possibly know there was more than one female here?
“Goldie said, ‘you have to help us.’ That has to mean those low lives snatched more than just my sister. That girl,” she pointed toward the trees, “may have been one of the last people to see my sister alive. Who knows what we’ll find at the next rest stop?”
Ronnie jumped off the table. “We’re getting my sister back and I’m going to kill every one of those sons of bitches.” And with that she headed towards the motorcycle.
Oz smiled. Both he and his cat swelled with pride. This woman had had a rough night, but through the tears, fears, grief, and sadness it looked like she’d found her strength. Seeing that girl’s broken body really did something to the both of them. He couldn’t let those lions get away with this.
No matter what.
Chapter One Hundred Three
“‘The secret of getting ahead is getting started.’ You know who said that?” Router spouted instead of a hello.
“Mark Twain.”
“Strong, silent, and smart.” Router feigned being cold. “Brrr, giving me the chills just thinking about it.”
“Router,” Oz said warningly.
“He used to be silent,” Router mumbled under her breath, then continued, “Yeah, I’ve been watching, and I found some things. All those small towns they’ve been driving through, girls as young as thirteen have come up missing. One here and there. The police listed them as runaways. I’m not so sure.”
“They were shifters near their first turn,” Oz stated factually.
“Can’t be a hundred percent, but yeah, it looks that way,” Router said.
“Damn it,” Oz said more to himself and it came out like a hiss.
“Exactly.”
“Hotel. Ronnie’s tired and I need to regroup.”
“Sure. I’ll send it to you, and I’ll reroute that kitten to you.”
“I’m going to send you a pic. I need to know who it belongs to.”
“Gotcha. Send it over,” Router said.
Oz didn’t bother to say goodbye. He swiped the phone and sent the picture of the imprint on Ronnie’s face. Within a minute, a beep let him know he’d received a text message. He opened it to find a map to a motel about forty-five minutes away.
“Ronnie,” he called out.
She stopped pacing near the motorcycle. “Anything?”
“Well, Router’s checking on a few things. We should hear something soon, but it’s almost dawn.”
“You must be tired.” Ronnie grabbed his hands and squeezed them. “I appreciate everything you’ve done.”
The depth of misery in her eyes decimated his heart. His cat nudged him.
Hold.
This time he agreed with his cat and pulled Ronnie into his arms. He took in her scent and both he and his cat found contentment. She was home.
With her head against his chest she said, “We need to call the police.”
What? He didn’t understand. When he offered to call the police before, she was categorically against it. Now, for this dead girl… Ronnie didn’t flinch.
She looked up at him without tears, but a great deal of determination etched on her face. Then she pointed toward the trees. “For her.”
“We will. Once we’re outta here.”
She spoke softly, more like to herself. “That could be Golden at the next rest-stop. Dead.”
“Don’t think like that,” Oz responded quickly.
“How can I not?” She wiped away the flowing tears. “I’m sorry. Honestly, I’m not a weepy person. But that’s all I’ve done around you. I just need to find her.”
“I know. Com’on.” Oz held out his hand, and she slid her fingers into his.
In this moment, he wished he was actually the wizard the club had dubbed him. There were very few vehicles out on the road. The misting had stopped, and the roads were only a little damp now. There weren’t any signs of rain, snow, or even flurries in this part of Texas.
They arrived at the motel to find a long-legged man dressed in all leather, kicked back on his motorcycle. The young prospect looked like a real biker badass. Things were about to get really interesting.
“Bout damned time.” The prospect peeled his long legs from his bike. “Router said you’d be here five minutes ago. Boy, she’s gonna be pissed when I rub it in that she was wrong.” He slapped hands with Oz, then put his hands on his hips as he looked Ronnie over. “And who is this?”
A small growl filled the air. Oz didn’t like the way the young tiger looked at his woman. He slid in front of the man, blocking his view.
She doesn’t know about us. Lock that shit down and be nice.
The young man inhaled with his eyes closed. You sure about that? She smells a little like a tiger.
“Is he okay?” Ronnie whispered from behind Oz.
Oz slightly turned his head, stating, “Yes, he’s a little weird, but we keep him around, anyway.” He turned back. “You done?”
The prospect tilted his head and winked.
“Ronnie this is…” Oz looked at the young tiger and decided on, “Kit. Kit, Ronnie. He’s here to help us find your sister.” She didn’t need to know that they called him Kitty or why.
“Oh,” Ronnie stepped around an unmoving Oz and extended her hand. “Hi. I appreciate you coming out.”
Kit reached out, but another warning growl cut through the air, and he lifted both hands.
Ronnie looked between the two men as she lowered her arm. “Did you just freaking growl?”
Oz didn’t answer, and Kit smiled.
“Any chance I can get to kick some li—bad guy's butt, I’m all in,” Kit said.
“So, you’re a fighter?”
“One of the best.” Kit preened.
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s not get him started. Look, let me go get us some rooms.”
“Already covered.” Kit held out a non-descript, dirty credit card sized plastic key. “You know Texans can’t drive in this kind of weather. This place is booked solid.”
Kit walked toward a set of
