Hammer (Regulators MC 2)

“If they so much as shift their little pinky in another direction, I wanna know immediately,” Ice grinds out through gritted teeth.

“Ten-four, bos—Wait, what the fuck? No! FUCK NO!”

My hands grip the dashboard so hard they are white from the strain, and I hear the vinyl crack under the pressure. “What is it, Screech?”

“I lost the fuckin’ feed! Something or someone is jamming it, blocking me out.”

“You can’t hack another source, man?” Coal asks.

“I’m searching traffic light camera feeds now, but it doesn’t look good, brother. I can’t find them where they’re supposed to be at the rate they are traveling. And nothing is coming up in the vicinity, either. I hate to say this, but I think we just lost ’em.”

Picking up the phone, I call the only other people who know about Desirae’s situation and what the fuck we are possibly dealing with.

“Tank,” he answers immediately.

“Hammer here. Tell me you’ve got something more than the last time we touched base.”

I hear the muffled sounds of him moving locations. His voice is low, his tone sharp. “Tell me the panic I hear in your voice isn’t because something happened to Des.”

“No time for a pissing match. Share your intel.”

“Gotta ride,” I hear him say to someone else. “We already have. You guys are the big dogs with the legal connections.”

“I don’t give a shit what kind of connections need to be used. Someone found her and came into my fucking house to get her. Tell me who the fuck it is so we can get to her.”

“We shared all we have. Hang tight,” he snaps, moving through an office or some sort of building. “Check Des’s bank account. Did she move any money? Anyone touch anything?” I hear Tank order someone else. He still doesn’t speak to me as I hear the mumbled sounds of another man speaking. “Ah, fuckin’ shit.”

“What? Dammit, don’t leave me hanging.” My anxiety amps up, and I have this need to snap someone in two. Right now, Hellion or not, Tank will suffice to ease my temper.

“Des apparently logged into her online account not long ago. If anyone was watching for a paper trail of her location and hacked in, they could narrow down where she was.”

“I’ve got a man I can get on that. Anything else?”

“Nope, we can be there in a day.”

“No!” I answer immediately. Desirae is mine, and my boys will be the ones to save her, dammit. “You stay put in case they head your way. We have a connection who can help in Chicago, too.” I know I should let the Hellions come, but there are things we can get away with that they can’t, and I can’t let them in on who we really are. More than anything, as the man who has come to want this woman, care for this woman, and possibly be in love with this woman, I do not want her to leave the first chance she can with Tank and the Hellions. I trust my team and know we will get her home safely.

Besides, if by some chance they have gotten her out of Florida and are heading north, it will be handy to have their help to close in on these assholes.

“Stay in touch,” he orders.

I want to punch him in the face. He isn’t a bad dude—none of the Hellions are—but right now, I’m helpless and want to hurt everyone in my path.

I will find her. She will be okay. And every motherfucker who touched her will pay.

~Desirae~

“Desirae,” a feminine voice whispers in the darkness. I can’t decipher where it came from as it echoes around me. “Over here, Desirae. Come talk to me.”

Tears fill my eyes, and my heart stops. It can’t be. The person who said that is dead. Does this mean I’m dead now, too, if I can hear my sister’s voice again?

I look all around me, but I don’t see her anywhere. As a matter of fact, I can’t see anything at all.

“Where are you, Suzie Sunshine?” I yell to the black void that surrounds me.

Then, as if someone slowly turns on a dimmer light, the black recedes, and I see my little sister sitting on a wooden park bench a few yards from me. Grass appears under her feet and spreads like wildfire until I look down to see I’m now standing on grass, as well. The darkness and void of life disappear; the sky turns a beautiful shade of blue; and the sun shines down on my precious Suzie, making her glow almost ethereally.

So many thoughts race through my mind. Am I dead? Is this Heaven? Or was Suzie’s death just a dream, and I’m finally waking up from a perpetual nightmare?

Then I realize it doesn’t matter what is going on or why my little sister is sitting there, smiling at me, because it is Suzie. My Suzie. No matter the circumstances, this moment is a dream come true, a chance to see my sister again.