Corbin (The Theriot Family)

There was that at least. “I’ll be there with reinforcements as fast as I can. Are you armed?”

“Always.”

I hung up and returned to the kitchen just as Remington slammed his fist down on the counter so hard I was afraid he might’ve broken his hand.

“Beau’s gone,” I told him and Henri. “There’s blood on his kitchen floor.” The words came out in a robotic voice. My insides were vibrating, my stomach churning. Henri wrapped his arm through mine.

“That was Elandra.” Remington’s voice was filled with rage. “She has Beau, and she said the only way we’ll see him again is if we pledge allegiance to her and turnover our business interests.”

“No way in hell,” I said, still not sounding like myself.

“Come on.” Remington put an arm around my shoulder. “Let’s get to the shop and figure out everything we can.”

“If she really is working out of the swamp, chances are she’s taken Beau there.”

Remington nodded in agreement and turned to his man. “Henri, call my father. Let him know what’s going on. Stay here. I’ll let the guards know to be on high alert. I don’t know who she’s going to come for next.”

I didn’t want to put Henri at risk. “If you need to stay here with him…”

Remington looked torn, but ultimately, he shook his head. “It’s time to bring this to a head and get your man back.”

Scared as I was, I couldn’t help but smile at the fact Remington acknowledged that Beau was mine.

Twenty-Nine

Beau

When I regained consciousness, I was lying on something hard. For a moment I thought it was the mattress from my prison bunk. I sat up, panicked, thinking I’d been dreaming that I’d gotten out.

Pain exploded in my head, and I felt something sticky against my neck. I touched my head gently and discovered a good-sized lump and blood matting my hair.

I had to breathe very slowly as I fought the urge to empty my stomach. Where was I? It wasn’t prison. The room I was in wasn’t a cell. It looked like a bedroom in a cheap-ass… shack. Was I in bayou country? For a moment I wondered if I was dreaming about being back home. For years after my grandmother had come for me and Travis, I’d had nightmares about being trapped in the middle of a swamp.

Slowly, I remembered what had actually happened. Or at least part of it. I’d left Corbin with Remington and gone back to my shop. I’d been in my apartment. I vaguely remembered showering and then… nothing. Apparently I’d been hit over the head, and now I was… somewhere.

I listened carefully as I slowly shifted position to study the room better. I was definitely in the swamp. The buzz of insects and the lap of water was unmistakable. How long had I been here?

There wasn’t anyone else in the room with me, and I wasn’t restrained, which was odd. Were my captors relying on my head injury to keep me there? Surely there was someone else at the cabin, someone armed.

I studied my surroundings. There was a window in my room. If I could open it without anyone hearing, I could escape.

For most people, escaping into the swamp, especially in the dark, would be a faster death sentence than waiting to see what my captors had planned, but for someone who’d grown up like I had, it would give me a chance to get through this alive. I must have been taken by Elandra, another of the Landrys, or Guidry. None of them would let me live long. The fact that I was alive now likely meant they hoped to use me as bait to lure the Theriots to their turf.

I had to take a chance while I could. I moved cautiously, being mindful of my head and trying not to make any noise. I heard someone moving around, so I picked up a lamp I could use as a club. A few moments later, a TV or radio came on, and I heard a creak like the springs of an old chair or couch.

The noise was the cover I needed. I continued across the room and after some careful work, I was able to push the window up. It would be a tight fit, but I was determined.

As soon as my feet hit the ground outside, I assessed the area, listening and letting my eyes adjust to the darkness. This would be easier if I had a flashlight, but while whoever was in the other room hadn’t bothered to tie me up, they had emptied my pockets. I still had the advantage of knowing how to move through the terrain. Guidry had grown up out here too, but he’d relied on other people too much to have the skills I did.

I was hoping to be far away before anyone realized I was gone, but my luck didn’t hold. I heard the sound of an ATV coming down the path that ran in front of the cabin. I hid and watched as it stopped by the porch. The driver’s hair was long and dark, but it was only once I could see the outline of their body in the weak light coming from the porch that I was sure it was a woman. I’d never met Elandra Landry, but the chance of another woman being involved in my capture was extremely slim.