Meeting Danger (Danger #1) (28 page)

Butch came closer until he hovered over her. “Camden Taylor. Lives in Shavertown, Pennsylvania.” His tone was sinister, pure evil. “Didn’t take me long at all.”

Fear pounded in Autumn’s chest. How Butch had found Camden wasn’t important. All that mattered was what he’d do. He might not kill Camden himself, but he’d make sure it happened, not only to protect his heroin operation but to save face. After all, the undercover cop had infiltrated their club and then escaped from him once they’d discovered his identity. To make matters worse, the cop had taken his woman. That alone was reason enough to kill him.

Butch pushed off the bed with a grin. “You have fun now.”

As the front door slammed, Autumn tugged at her handcuffs. Her gaze flew to the nightstand. She’d seen lotion in that drawer. Could she use it to slide her hands from the cuffs?

As the brothers’ motorcycles roared off, she jerked open the drawer. She grabbed the small container of lotion and squirted some onto her cuffed wrist. Furiously she smeared the cream over her chafed skin.

Pausing to say a quick prayer that this would work, she took in a deep breath and slid the cuff down. The metal glided easily to the top of her thumb but then stopped moving. Gritting her teeth, Autumn pushed harder, moving her thumb first one way and then the other. It wouldn’t budge.

Tears of frustration slid down her face. This wasn’t going to work; she’d need to come up with a different plan.

• • •

A few hours later, Butch stalked into the bedroom and unlocked Autumn’s cuffs. “Get into the kitchen and make us something to eat.”

“Can I use the bathroom first?”

When Butch gave a grunt of assent, she hurried into the bathroom and closed the door. The last time she’d been allowed to use the bathroom, she’d been too stunned by the beating to take advantage of the situation. But this time, she was determined to use her time to search, even if it was fruitless.

As silently as she could, she opened the cabinet under the sink and then searched the drawers, confirming what she already suspected. There was nothing here that she could use as a weapon—no scissors or tools, nothing sharp.

She bit down on her lip as she sat on the toilet to empty her bladder. The knives in the kitchen would be her only shot. But would she be able to do it? Would she be able to stab Butch in order to get away?

She quickly dismissed the idea. Even with a knife, Butch would overpower her, and the brothers would come running to help.

Her only choice was to run.

When she opened the bathroom door, Butch grabbed her arm. As he marched her through the clubhouse to the kitchen, the local brothers didn’t even look up from their beers. In the kitchen, Deck, Viking, and Trey had a rowdy game of cards going at the kitchen table.

Butch took a seat beside Viking. “Hurry up, Autumn. Make us something.”

Viking gathered up the cards and shuffled them, dealing Butch in on the next hand.

Autumn moved to the cabinet and took out a pot. She peeked through the kitchen’s window, eyeing the woods behind the clubhouse as she filled the pot with water. Any chance of escaping would be through there.

As she carried the pot to the stove, she noticed a supply room next to the kitchen, through which was an exterior door. It would take just a few seconds to move into the supply room, turn that lock, and slip out. But she’d need to wait for the right time.

Her opportunity came forty-five minutes later when Butch and the brothers were eating. She’d just given Butch a second helping, and he sat laughing at something Viking was saying.

Knowing it was as good a distraction as she was going to get, Autumn quickly slipped into the supply room. As she opened the door, the hinges squeaked in protest.

For a horrifying second, she stood frozen in terror. Then her adrenaline surged and she took off.

She’d made it about a hundred feet into the woods behind the clubhouse before she heard crashing through the undergrowth behind her. Butch shouted out her name in fury.

Autumn ran harder, slapping aside small branches blocking her path. Footsteps pounded behind her, gaining quickly, and her panic rose. When she made the mistake of glancing over her shoulder, she stumbled. Just as she’d righted herself, a tattooed arm snaked around her waist and she was yanked against a massive chest.

“What the fuck you doing, girl?”

“Please, Deck, let me go!” Autumn pleaded. When he didn’t release her, she kicked hard, making contact with his shin.

“Quit it!”

Deck turned her around and Autumn caught sight of Butch. The look of rage on his face sent fresh terror exploding through her. She struggled as hard as she could, but Deck’s grip didn’t loosen.

Butch came forward and grabbed hold of her hair. Too terrified to speak as he dragged her toward the garage behind the clubhouse, she stumbled to keep up with him.

He opened the garage door and shoved her inside, then gripped her throat and backed her against a wall. He squeezed so hard that she saw stars. She sucked in a breath and clawed at his fingers, trying in vain to get him to release her.

This was it, the end of her life. But it was even worse than she’d feared. Butch wasn’t just going to kill her—he was going to kill Camden too.

One of the brothers stepped into the garage, but she was too busy fighting for her life to tell who it was.

“Butch! Come on, man!”
Viking.

Black spots dotted Autumn’s vision. Butch’s grip eased and she was finally able to gasp in another tiny breath.

“Let’s talk about this, Butch,” Viking said, clapping a hand on Butch’s shoulder.

Cursing, Butch released Autumn completely. When she sank onto her knees and clutched at her throat, he jerked his head toward a grimy chair next to a workbench cluttered with tools.

“Tie her to it.”

After scrounging around in one of the toolboxes on the workbench, Deck came forward with a length of rope. He secured her hands behind her, then whispered something to Butch and they left the garage.

As Viking turned to leave, Autumn called out, “Help me, Viking.”

He turned to look back at her, shaking his head. “Why’d you do it? You shouldn’t have gone against Butch like that.”

She choked back a sob, unable to say a word, and Viking let out a long sigh before leaving to follow Butch.

Trey had been standing silent in the corner, but now he moved toward her. The look in his eyes terrified her, reminding her too much of how Butch looked before he demanded sex.

“No!” Autumn shrieked. She screamed even louder when he continued to approach. “No!”

Viking stuck his head back inside the garage door. “Inside, Trey. We’re having a meeting.”

Autumn squeezed her eyes shut, shaking violently as Trey followed Viking out of the garage. Viking had stopped him, but he’d only delayed the inevitable.

Would Butch let the brothers rape her before they killed her? Her heart jackhammered her chest as she tried to take in air, horrified at the thought.

• • •

When the garage door creaked open a short while later, Autumn stopped pulling at the rope around her wrists and jerked her head up. She blinked hard, certain she was imagining the face before her.

“Angel.”

Camden lowered his gun and quickly moved toward her. He knelt down, lightly tracing the cuts and bruises on her face before swearing under his breath. He pulled his pocketknife from his jeans pocket and began working at the rope that bound her.

“Let’s get you out of here. There’s going to be a raid on this place any minute.”

Still unable to believe he was here, Autumn looked toward the garage door, terrified they might be caught. The rope around her raw wrists pulled painfully as Camden sawed at it.

A figure moved into the doorway, and Autumn’s heart stopped at the sight of Butch standing there, holding a gun.

“Camden!”

Camden scrambled in front of her and raised his own gun. “Drop it, Cobb!”

Butch’s lips twisted into a smirk. When he shook his head and aimed the gun at Camden, Autumn’s gut clenched painfully.

“Drop it!” Camden shouted again.

Autumn squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn’t do this, couldn’t watch Butch shoot Camden.

As the gun went off, she screamed in horror. Seconds later, she was shocked to hear Camden speaking to her through the ringing in her ears.

“Autumn . . .” His hand brushed her cheek.

She blinked her eyes open, amazed to see that he wasn’t on the floor. He wasn’t bloody and didn’t seem injured. But how was that possible?

Her gaze flew back to the door and the body lying sprawled in front of it on the cement floor. Butch was the one who’d been shot. He lay there, unmoving, a dark circle blooming slowly across his back.

Autumn blinked hard as her gaze returned to Camden’s. The shot she’d heard hadn’t been from his gun, so what had happened?

Grayson stepped inside the doorway with his pistol pointed at Butch. When he was satisfied Butch was no longer a threat, he lowered his gun and grabbed hold of his radio.

“Threat neutralized in the garage.”

Camden kissed Autumn’s lips before he resumed sawing at the ropes. Once her hands were free, he pulled her onto her feet.

Grayson stepped closer. “She okay? I can request more medics.”

“I’m okay,” Autumn whispered.

Camden ran a finger gently down her cheek. “Let’s have you checked out.”

“No. I-I’m all right.” She gazed up into his tawny eyes, swallowing down the intense emotions that threatened to consume her. “How did you find me?”

“We found Wade. He gave us this address.” When Autumn stared at him in confusion, he explained. “He had an old girlfriend he was in touch with. We tracked him through her.”

She shuddered. “You were right about him.”

Camden pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. “Everything’s all right now, angel. You’re safe.”

Wheeling, West Virginia

A few hours later, after Autumn had been checked out and Camden had completed his initial reports, they were snuggled together in the hotel room Camden had rented for them. In a rush of words, she tried to communicate all that had happened since they’d been apart.

When she was done, she whispered, “I’m so sorry for what I said to you.”

Camden squeezed her closer. “It’s me who’s sorry. I shouldn’t have kept anything from you.”

“I thought . . . I was afraid I’d never see you again.”

He shook his head before he smiled. “Sorry, but you can’t get rid of me that easily.”

Her thoughts turned to Wade and she whispered, “I don’t want my brother arrested.” When Camden didn’t answer, she pulled back. “I mean it. I don’t want him put in jail for what he did. Promise me.”

Camden sighed. “I’ll see what I can do.” He kissed her again. “Everything’s all right now. Butch is dead; he’ll never hurt you again.” He put a hand on either side of her face and gazed into her eyes. “I was so afraid I’d lost you. I love you, Autumn Mason.”

Tears pricked at her eyes as she gave him a small smile. “I love you too.”

“I know how important being independent is to you. You can be as independent as you like.” He grinned. “As long as it’s with me.”

Tears slipped from her eyes. She nodded and snuggled up to him once again.

• • •

As morning sunlight peeked through the hotel room’s curtains, Camden tightened his hold on Autumn. Waking up like this was exactly what he hoped to do for the rest of his life.

Last night he hadn’t mentioned marriage to her, but that was fine. They could take things slowly. The only thing that mattered was that she felt the same way he did.

As she blinked her eyes open, he stroked a hand down her face. “Morning.”

“Morning,” she whispered.

“I’ve decided something.”

“What?”

“I’m going to quit the task force.”

Autumn pressed a hand against the mattress and slowly sat up, brushing a strand of hair away from her face. “Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“But why? Is it because of Caleb?”

“No.”

Even if Caleb hadn’t died on his watch, this would have happened anyway eventually. Camden was done with assignments that kept him away from home months at a time. He never wanted to be apart from Autumn again.

“I’m going to focus on the software work. We can stay in Pennsylvania, or we can move to DC if you’d rather. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Camden stopped speaking and inhaled a breath at the surprised look that came over her face. He was doing it again—getting ahead of himself. The very last thing he wanted to do was overwhelm her.

But a smile broke out across her face a second later. “I don’t care where we live either.” Her smile dimmed. “But I do want to get a college degree. Eventually.”

“Of course,” Camden said. “Have you given any thought to what you want to study?”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure. A few months ago, I would have said culinary school, but now—”

“Now you can read,” he said with a smile. “Opens up a lot of possibilities, doesn’t it?”

Her smile brightened and she gave him a nod.

As they lay there together, Camden wondered about his parents and grandparents. Had they felt half as excited about their future? Both couples had great marriages, and he and Autumn were going to have exactly the same. He could feel it.

“I love you.”

Autumn answered by putting her head against his chest. Camden circled an arm around her and held her tightly until his phone began to ring.

“One second, angel.”

He picked up the phone, expecting it to be Grayson, but it was an officer from Shavertown calling about the break-in the other night.

“I’ve finished my report on Thomas Cooper’s vehicle, Mr. Taylor, and wanted to give you a call.”

“Has your forensics team found anything?”

“We have. Blood and a button.”

Camden sat up straighter. Wells’s autopsy report had mentioned a button missing from his shirt. “What color and size is the button?”

“Bright blue. About five millimeters in diameter.”

Camden squeezed his eyes shut. This was it—what was going to clear Brian. He knew it with every fiber of his being. “That evidence is the key to a man’s innocence.”