On the Edge (17 page)

“Bring them home.”

“I going to do my damndest.” He kisses me quickly on the lips before leaving.

Hunter pulls the address up on the screen in front of him. It’s a warehouse, and it looks like a light is shining from a window, but it’s hard to really tell because it’s not completely dark outside. As we stare at the screen, a car pull up and Sal gets out and walks into the building.

I can’t just sit here and watch
. Making up my mind that I need to be there, I grab my gun, tuck it in my waistband, and text Cole for his location. He replies that they are meeting up with more men before hitting the warehouse. That’s what I needed to hear.

I run to the garage, and after grabbing a random set of keys off the rack, I hit the remote to see which vehicle I’m going to be driving. The headlights on the Jeep flash, so I hop in, start the car, and back out of the garage. I’m not going to sit at home when I can help get my family back.

I park a block away from the location and check my gun. Seeing that it’s fully loaded, I place the safety on as I tuck it back in the waistband of my jeans. I walk down the sidewalk towards the building that possibly holds Juliana and Seth.

My hands are sweating, my heart is racing, and I’m having a hard time catching my breath. I have no clue what I’m doing or why I thought it was a smart idea for me to come to the warehouse. If I’m honest, now that I’m actually standing here, I am scared out of my wits. One thing I
do
know for certain, I want Julie and Seth back home.

The guys won’t be here for another twenty minutes or so, but I decide to be brave. I walk up to the grey steel door and turn the knob but it’s locked, so I bang on the door. Yep, I’m that crazy bitch now.

After a couple of knocks, the door opens and the man standing in front of me looks all kinds of nasty and mean. He scares me, but I can’t let the fear show right now.

“Whaddya want? I think you must be in the wrong place, girl,” he spits out.

“I need to speak to Sal,” I say with a confidence I don’t really feel.

“Sal, huh? And who are you?” the goon asks.

“Tell him Kat is here to see him.”

The door slams in my face and I keep a constant lookout, not wanting my guys to show up and catch me just yet. I pace back and forth, and after an eternity passes, the door opens.

“Girl! Sal said he’ll see you,” the gruff voice barks at me.

The dank and dreary interior doesn’t hold much hope for me and leaves me wondering just what I’ve gotten myself into. Crates and boxes are stacked around the room and small groups of men bustle around the building. The guy leads me to an office in the back. He opens the door and steps to the side, motioning for me to go on through. Sal and some guy are sitting in there. The smirk on Sal’s face is nothing but pure evil.

“Ah, the beautiful Kat, come to visit me,” he says, his voice so sickeningly sweet it sends shivers down my spine. “Come in, have a seat.”

“I’d rather stand.” I look around the room as the ugly man shuts the door behind me. Other than a few chairs, a desk, and a series of screens on the wall, the small office is, for the most part, empty.

“Please, sit. I think it will help you find this conversation more comfortable,” he says with a sneer on his face. He turns the monitors on, and a sudden chill overtakes my body. One shows Seth sitting in a room and playing with a toy. He doesn’t appear to have any marks on him and seems to be happy. At his age, he may not really realize anything is wrong. That’s what I hope, anyway.

It’s the second one that makes my heart stop and my body go cold. Nausea crawls up my throat and I choke the bile back at the sight of a battered Juliana curled up on the floor. Both of her cheeks are bruised, her lip is split, and her eyes are purpled and swollen shut, and these are just the visible signs of the physical abuse she has endured. When my knees wobble and then give out, I slump into the chair behind me.

“What have you done to her?” I ask, almost devoid of any real emotion. I’m trying not to reach behind me, pull out the gun still tucked in my waistband, and shoot Sal right then and there. It would not be wise or helpful in anyway if I were to do that. I’m thankful these idiots didn’t think to search me. Typical of men to underestimate a young girl like me.

“One of my men roughed her up a little when she wouldn’t give us the information we needed,” Sal says sounding rather too pleased with himself.

“She doesn’t have any information, you idiot. Her dad doesn’t tell her anything about the business,” I say with contempt. I have concluded Sal is a hotheaded moron and is not very smart when it comes to the family business. “I mean seriously, did you think she would know anything?”

“Well, I had hoped she had information. I wasn’t entirely convinced that she was telling the truth. I had my guy help me out. That’s when I realized she was ignorant.”

“You–” My phone ringing stops me. I pull my phone out of my bra and silence it when I realize its Hunter. I don’t have time to talk to him. He must realize what I have done because he immediately sends a text.

Hunter: Cole just pulled up out front of your location.

I need to think quickly, so I do the only thing I can. I text Cole. I’ll be in trouble with Bruce, Cole, and Drew when this is over, but right now, I have no choice.

“Girl, put that fucking phone away,” Sal snarls at me.

I tuck my phone back into my bra. “I silenced it and sent a text telling everyone I was okay. They’re looking for me since I took off without them knowing,” I explain to Sal.

“Ah, I see we have company,” Sal states, looking at the guys on another monitor. “Did you let your boyfriend know you were inside before he did something stupid? Oh, you must have. Look at him. He’s fighting mad,” Sal states gleefully.

Cole punches the guy closest to him in the face. My body tenses when he staggers back a little. I will have to remember to do something nice for him since it’s all my fault. My phone starts vibrating against my chest, and I know who it is by the fact that I see him with his phone to his ear outside.

I shift uncomfortably as my phone continues to vibrate. “Is your boyfriend trying to call you?” Sal asks me. I just shake my head in acknowledgment. “Go ahead, answer it,” he says.

I pull my phone out of my bra and up to my ear.

“Hello.”

“What the fuck, Katarina?” Cole yells. Oh yes, I’m in trouble if he’s using my full name.

“I was in the neighborhood,” I deadpan, hoping to calm him down. I don’t think it worked.

“You were in the neighborhood? Are you fucking insane?”

“Fuck you, asshole. I was tired of sitting at the house, just waiting,” I yell back. I hang up the phone and tuck it back in my bra.

Sal watched me with a heated, lustful look in his eyes again.

Not happening douche!

“Let’s get this over with, Sal. What do you want for Julie and Seth?” I ask.

“What I originally wanted is changing. I initially wanted the location of a gun shipment. But now, I think I may keep you instead,” he says.

“Fuck that, asshole. You won’t get either one. You think any of the Knights are just going to hand the shit over?”

“Something tells me Cole will do anything I ask if he thinks I have you.”

“You’re crazy. Like seriously insane. Does your uncle know that you’re messing around like this? I mean, he’s the real head of your family empire, right? How would he feel, knowing you’re screwing up like this?”

“Shut up, bitch. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

His anger lets me know that I’ve hit a nerve. I also realize Sal may not be all there. Something is a little off in his eyes .They’re blank yet crazy at the same time. I shiver because I may be in more danger than I first thought. Sal is a loose, unpredictable cannon.

“Ah, Sal is the family fuck up, isn’t he?” I ask, toying with danger. I can’t seem to help myself, at this point. I may not be sure that Julie and Seth are in this building, but something tells me, if not, it will be easy to learn their location from here. “Maybe I should call your uncle and let him know you’re in the business of kidnapping small children and beating up teenage girls.”

“You’re not doing anything,” Sal says. I can tell I’m angering him and I should probably stop egging him on, but I can’t seem to stop myself.

“Ah, he doesn’t know what you have done, does he?”

“You have a smart mouth. I don’t know how Cole puts up with you.”

“He’s a man and can handle the challenge,” I taunt Sal. I really should stop.

I have to figure out my next move but am clueless as to what I’m doing. I didn’t really think this through when I ran from the house earlier. I just want my family back home where they belong. Now that I know Seth is okay, I’m breathing a little easier but my concern for Julie has only heightened. I’m hoping and praying that the only thing they have done to her is beat her, because is be enough for her to deal with. I can’t help but wonder if she’s been raped? I can’t even begin to fathom what that would do to her.

“You know this situation has no outcome with you on top. The Knights aren’t going to hand over anything, and you’ll never have me willingly.” I speak calmly while trying to keep him focused on talking to me. He moves around the desk, sits on the edge and reaches out to run his hand down my jawline. I jerk away from his touch hard enough to shake my chair. The few brief seconds make me fight bile down. “You could never handle a woman like me,” I finally say.

“I could handle you just fine and you would love what I do to your body.”

Those words make me want to throw up again, but I school my face, making sure that no trace of what I’m feeling comes across.

My phone is vibrating in my shirt and I know it’s Cole trying to get in touch with me but I’m not sure what step to take answer Cole or deal with Sal. I finally reach for my phone hitting the send button. “What?” I bark out.

Cole yells at me to get my ass outside or he is coming in for me.

“Fine,” I say as I hang up. I’m running out of time, so I have to make a move.

“Cole’s getting ready to storm this place,” I say, looking at Sal still sitting on the edge of his desk. “You should let a few guys in with him and let’s try to negotiate.” I don’t know what else to say to Sal at this point.

“Why?” he asks. “What makes you think I want this to end peacefully?” The madness in his eyes tells me he’s crazy enough to do anything.

“Please do this for me?” I put my acting skills to use in this moment. “That girl in there is my best friend and sister, and that little boy has my heart. If you think you have no shot with me now, hurt them and find out what happens.”

Sal opens the door and yells for Joe. The big ugly that originally greeted me comes to the doorway. “Take Kat to the front and allow no more than five guys to come back and talk to me.”

I follow “Ugly Joe,” as I have now coined him in my mind, to the door. When he throws the door open, my guys stop their pacing and look at us. The angry looks don’t surprise me, even the glares directed straight at me. What Cole needs to learn is that I now have a family outside of Drew, and no way could I just sit around and do nothing.

“Bruce.” He looks the calmest so I call him to me. Pete stays at Bruce’s side, just in case. “Sal is willing to let a few of you to come in so we can negotiate Julie and Seth’s release.”

“You’re getting the fuck out of here and going home!” Cole yells at me.

“What the fuck, Kat? Have you lost your mind?” Drew yells at me too.

I’m being yelled at from all sides. I look at Bruce who clearly has mixed emotions about my being here.

“I’m not leaving. You guys can come in, and we’ll sit down and talk with Sal,” I state firmly, letting them know I’m not arguing about this.

“Let’s go, boys. Getting Julie and Seth back is what’s important,” Bruce says, stepping inside. I walk beside Bruce and the other three guys fall in behind us.

“Julie looks bad,” I say softly.

“You saw them?” he asks.

“Just video, but Seth’s fine. Julie’s been roughed up, and I hope that’s all that’s happened to her.”

Bruce nods his head and then loses himself in his own thoughts. I can’t even begin to fathom what it would feel like as a parent to have two children kidnapped.

Drew jerks me back to Cole’s side and moves up to walk beside Bruce.

“I want to beat your ass so you can’t sit for a week.” Cole’s voice is low and gravely.

My body melts as his words pour over me, rolling through my mind. Images of him spanking my bare ass make me grow damp. I pause briefly but his grip on my arm causes me to stumble. His gaze penetrates through me and I know that he can see how turned on I am.