“Let him go, Draegan!” Harley hollered.
Mac somehow managed to worm his way between the two men before they started throwing punches and exchanging threats.
Bane seemed unmoved until he looked at Serena but as soon as he looked at her, she just knew. Draegan was right. Bane was holding out on them.
“Please tell them whatever it is you know.” It was difficult to stay neutral when someone’s life was on the line. “Markie is…well he’s….”
“He’s just Markie,” Mac said, seemingly explaining it best. “He matters to everyone here, Bane.”
“In other words, he’s irreplaceable,” Draegan said, clarifying.
“We’re all irreplaceable,” Bane pointed out. “I know he’s important to you.”
“To all of us,” Serena whispered, thinking it might make a difference if Bane understood he was a staple in her life, too.
“I get that he’s important to you.” He leveled a stare at Serena. “To all of you.” He turned to the McCalls. “I’ve worked with Markie. He’s a standup guy. Believe me when I tell you, I’m doing everything I can to help.”
“Then help,” Allister bit out.
“What are the Feds doing now?” Harley asked.
Bane frowned. “As much as they can do.”
“Bullshit,” Allister grumbled. “They’re waiting like we are.”
The room fell eerily quiet. Serena hated to play the card she held but she didn’t have a lot of options. If Bane had shown his hand from the start, perhaps Markie would’ve already been returned to Trouble. “Think about your sister. If you’ve said it once, you’ve said it twenty times. If Trouble had been around when your sister needed a safe haven, perhaps she would’ve been alive today.
“And maybe she would’ve been. Maybe all she needed was someone to stand up for her. Someone who was willing to go to bat for her, no matter what.”
“What are you saying?” Bane looked offended.
Serena was on sacred ground now. She and Bane had spent hours talking about his sister. She hated to bring up his dead sibling’s past but at the moment, she wanted him to remember how it felt to have a loved one in danger. “Put yourself in their shoes. Put yourself in mine. We all love Markie. We’re concerned for his well-being. We know he’s being abused. The pictures tell the horrifying story as it unfolds and that’s apparently part of what gets this guy off—terrorizing us with the fear of what will come next.”
“So what are you saying, Serena?” Bane’s tone held a tight edge.
“I think we’re doing exactly what this guy wants us to do. We’re waiting. We’re playing by his rules.”
“She has a point,” Allister said.
Serena gave Bane a loving smile. She hadn’t meant to step on his toes but emotions and tensions were high. Bane didn’t want to screw this up—she believed that—but at the same time, he hadn’t been particularly helpful. He’d called in favors, provided some information, and advised the McCalls to wait for further instructions. They weren’t the kind of men who stood back and waited.
“This isn’t the end for Markie,” Ban
e assured her.
Draegan’s gaze shifted between them before he barked, “So what? Now you can read his mind?”
“About like she can read yours,” Bane grated out.
Serena removed her sweater from the back of a chair and draped it around her shoulders. “That’s my cue. There’s too much attitude and testosterone in the room.”
“Not to mention secrets,” Draegan bit out, backing away from Bane then.
“You want to talk about secrets?” Bane grunted. “Let’s talk about why Markie was targeted, why he was lured away from Trouble instead of one of the women. Better still, let’s ask the more difficult questions here—why Markie instead of you or maybe one of your brothers?”
Harley and Allister looked puzzled. Mac seemed unmoved.
“What’s he talking about?” Allister’s gaze bounced between Draegan and Mac.