Grabbing one of the long neck bottles, I tossed back a heavy swallow. “My life is far less exciting than yours.” Fucking Mammoth. He was probably laughing right now knowing Rael would sucker some dumbass to join him in his game.
Rael snickered, picking up a knife and playing with the blade, twisting it around in his hand. “I like the way these feel in my palm. I wouldn’t say it’s my weapon of choice but I don’t mind throwing one on occasion.”
Yeah, sure. “Right.”
“Care for a wager?”
“No.” I gave him a look. “I’m not throwing knives.”
Rael pouted like a little kid. “You don’t know what you’re missing. Come on.”
I shook my head, folding my arms across my chest.
“Fuck, bro. Just try it.”
What was this? Peer pressure? Annoyed, I picked up a blade, hurtled it through the air, and shocked the shit out of me and Rael when it hit dead center of the board. A perfect fucking bullseye.
“Shit,” Rael laughed. “You’re a natural.”
Unable to resist, I smiled. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Try another. Prove its not beginner’s luck.”
Despite my earlier apprehension, I decided to throw again after Rael retrieved the knife and handed it over. The blade landed in the center again. Nearly perfect.
“Impressive, bro.”
Yeah, it kind of was. I threw six more times and my aim was the same. Almost all were in the center. “Fine. This isn’t that bad.”
He huffed out a breath. “Admit it. I’m fun to be around.”
“I wouldn’t go that far.”
We each smirked at one another.
My phone chirped with an incoming text a few minutes later.
Xenon: You there?
Me: Yeah. What’s up?
Xenon: Monitor is back up but blurry.
Me: OK
Xenon: Looks like trouble. Better check it out.
Me: Shit. OMW.
“Xenon says the monitor is working but it’s blurry. Looks like something is up.”
Rael cursed. “Let’s roll out.”
I chugged the last of the beer and ran from the bar, hopping on my bike. We broke every law speeding through Highway 95 to get back to Tonopah. I didn’t notice much at first when we turned onto Sasha’s street. It wasn’t until we were almost at the apartment that I noticed the front door was busted in. Place had been completely ransacked. Furniture was overturned. Drawers dumped. Pictures pulled off the walls and broken. Glass and debris were all over the floor.
“Son of a bitch!” Rael shouted.
The alarm was blaring a shrill wail as I stepped inside and punched in the code, plunging the apartment into silence. We moved from room to room but no one was there. In the back bedroom, the one that belonged to Sasha, four words were written in black spray paint on the wall: I’m coming for you.
“Fuck,” I roared, kicking at a wastebasket as it tossed more paper and junk onto the carpet.
“She’s not here. It’s all good,” he reminded me.
Not good enough, though. My woman wasn’t safe. Not really. She was a target and Chamuco was making sure I knew it.
Both of our phones began ringing at the same time.
Rael answered but I didn’t hear what he was saying because Grim was on my line.
“What you need, pres?”
“Bodie, you’ve got to find Sasha.”
My blood ran cold at his words. “What?”
“She’s not here.”
A bellow of rage left my chest.
“I don’t know where she went but one of the prospects said she drove out of here about an hour ago alone and seemed to be in a rush.”
“I’ll find her,” I snarled into the phone and hit end, hanging up before Grim could say anything else.
Rael ticked his head in my direction. “Xenon is trying to find out what happened.”
“Text Shadow and tell him to come fix the fuckin’ door.” The prospect was pretty good with repairs. We used his skills often.
“Yeah. I’m on it.” Rael probably didn’t like that I gave him an order but I didn’t care.
Jaw locked in anger, I spun on my heel and headed out the door, determined to locate Sasha.
If Chamuco had her, there would be hell to pay.
My Reaper agreed, taking hold of my body, and rushing to the surface of my skin. I embraced his presence and the rage that fueled my need for destruction.
“Let’s go,” I growled, stomping from the apartment in time to hear a familiar voice scream.
Sasha!
There was no sign of the cat.
I had walked the entire neighborhood with Rev and Olivia and we didn’t see him anywhere. The kids called his name over and over but he never showed up.
“He’s got the prettiest purr, Sasha,” Olivia cried, burying her head in my stomach.
My shirt was soaked with her tears. “I’m sure he does, honey.”
“And he always catches mice,” Rev added.
“He’s the best catcher too,” she agreed with a sniffle.
“Maybe he’s out hunting,” I suggested.
Rev shrugged like he considered the idea.
Olivia adamantly shook her head. “Nope. Buttons doesn’t hunt like that since his accident.”
Rev rolled his eyes. “You don’t know that.”
“Yeah, I do. He just plays with the mice. I know. I saw him playing with a mouse last week.”
“Was it dead?” Rev was staring her down, his little brows bunched up in frustration.
“Well, no. I don’t remember.”
“He wasn’t hunting because it was already dead.”
Olivia shook her finger at him. “You don’t know, okay? You weren’t there, Rev.”
He opened his mouth to retort when I held up my hands. It was obvious they were both tired and stressed. I ushered them back into the house, knowing the cat was either lost or wasn’t ready to come home. An uneasy feeling tickled my spine and I turned around, staring out at the twilight and shadows. No one was there but I had the distinct impression we weren’t alone.
The door was shut and locked fast as I told the kids to take a bath. While they were busy getting ready for bed, I walked around and made sure all of the windows and doors were locked and secure. That odd sensation was back and I pulled my phone from my pocket, ready to dial Bodie when there was a thud outside on the front
