So the instructions for the prospects were to go out and put their ear to the ground, to try and find out from whatever source they could, a list of all the places Eagle could be hiding right now. He couldn’t have gone far. He had to be hiding somewhere accessible since he’d come to my cabin. If he had Mercy with him right now, chances were that he was planning some kind of revenge on us, which he would be able to do only if he was still in our territory.
The guys left on their bikes to go collect information. Bolt and I were still being cold with each other, but at least the others had warmed to the idea. Nobody actually trusted Mercy, not even Drax, but I didn’t give a shit about that. I just needed us to work together so I could bring her back here.
Like Drax said, we’d find out the truth once we found her.
I was talking to Spike about one of our shipments coming in that would need to be put on hold. We didn’t know what kind of vengeance Eagle was planning for us, so we had to be careful about our precious cargo.
When we heard the roar of engines outside, everyone was instantly on high alert. Guns were drawn, and we moved away from windows. All the girls were ordered to go down to the basement, crowd in with Crash if they had to. Mary-Beth and Sophie were made in charge of them.
Then we could hear voices outside in the parking lot. Someone was shouting my name.
“Get out here!” I heard distinctly.
With my weapon drawn, I went up to one of the windows and looked out.
It was Duke. He was standing at the head of a group of his men. They were all on bikes.
“At ease!” I shouted at my MC and then walked out of the clubhouse.
Duke swung off his bike and came toward me. The rest of the Granite Apostles remained behind him.
“What are you guys doing here?” I asked.
“I made up my mind. We are at your service,” he replied, extending a hand.
I wasn’t expecting this. I wasn’t even thinking about them anymore. I’d written them off as a lost cause, but now, seeing their numbers and strength, it was pretty obvious that we’d be lucky to have them on our side.
I shook Duke’s hand and he whistled happily.
“I haven’t had a good fight in a decade,” he said.
* * *
As predicted, Mary-Beth dragged Drax back up to the bedroom so he could rest. He left me in charge because I was his VP and he trusted me and my judgement. The others respected the decision even though I knew Bolt still had his doubts about Mercy.
Sophie found me in Drax’s office. I’d found a map of Teasers and was looking over it to figure out anything I may have missed. The strippers down in the basement were being interviewed by the others individually to see if any of them knew anything and were willing to talk.
“You alright?” Sophie asked, walking in when she’d knocked once on the door.
“Why the fuck wouldn’t I be?” I said, without looking up from the map.
“Oh…I don’t know. Maybe because you’re worried about this girl you like.”
I had no choice but to slowly look up at her now, meeting her gaze. There was a soft smile grazing Sophie’s lips.
“You’re right, I don’t want Mercy to come to any harm.”
“And you want her back here safe and sound.”
“Her grandmother’s sick, she needs help and care. Crash needs her help too,” I said.
Sophie nodded her head.
“Yeah, but those are not the only reasons you want her back here, right? You want her to be safe and unharmed because you care.”
“What do you want, Sophie?” I snapped at her. The smile didn’t leave her face. She was used to our tempers running high. She knew how to handle us. She was an expert at this!
“Why did you pick her? I mean I know she was the one who called it…she figured out Eagle was the one who got Crash hooked on heroin. She is observant and all that. But you could have just treated her like all the other girls here. Just like a stripper with some information to sell.”
I glared at Sophie because I didn’t have an answer to her question.
The smile on her face became wider.
“I think it’s because you genuinely like her, Ghost.”
“I need to get back to work.”
“Once you have her back, safe and sound, you should do something about it.”
“You’re interrupting my work!” I growled.
Sophie sighed and shook her head.
“And when I say do something about it, I don’t mean fuck her. I mean, you can fuck her, but you’ll only feel like shit once she leaves again.”
“I need to find her first,” I snapped.
She nodded and went back toward the door.
“It’s nice to see you guys being brought down to your knees. Nice to be reminded that you are all real human men,” she said with a chuckle and then she was gone.
I stared at the map on the desk for a few moments in silence. Was that what was happening? Mercy was bringing me to my knees?
The last time I saw her, she was in my jeans and shirt, her golden silky hair damp and tied up messily in a bun. I wished I could see her now.
* * *
Too much time had gone by without any progress. I was no closer to finding Mercy than I’d been four hours ago when I first found out that she was missing. I was pacing around Drax’s office, hands behind my back, weapon lying unused on the desk. I needed to do something.
I’d already made phone calls to all my contacts. They said they would get back to me if they heard anything. The prospects were out looking for information too. Checking holdings
