Gauge, page 19
“I’ve got blood over here.”
Gauge rushed over to him. “How much?”
Roc put his hand out to keep Gauge from getting closer. “It’s not pooled. Looks like it’s spatter.”
“What the fuck?” Gauge asked, trying to get a closer look without moving in.
“Grass is smashed over here, too.” Roc looked up with a grim expression. “Someone fell. If it was her, she either coughed blood while she was down or flung it away from an injury. The droplets aren’t indicative of just dripping from a wound.” He shook his head.
“There wasn’t much blood in the car. A couple of streaks on the airbag.”
“Maybe she got hurt getting out of the car,” Heather said.
“Or maybe someone saw a blond woman driving Xan’s car and assumed it was her,” Roc said. His lips pressed into a flat line.
“Oh, fuck,” Gauge breathed. He fisted his hair and a dark possibility took root. “Fuck,” he yelled.
Bear got in his face. “You gotta keep it together, man.”
An SUV pulled up beside Gauge’s truck. Luc and three other guys got out and jogged over.
“He used a card to rent an SUV. Got the VIN. My men are trying to track it, but I figured you guys might be able to do it faster since you don’t have to hack into any systems,” Luc said.
“Shit. I need a computer. I gotta go back to the shop,” Gauge said and turned to run to his truck.
“Brody’s place is closer,” Bear said.
“Right.” Gauge just needed a computer with Internet access.
“I have one in my vehicle that’s already connected,” Luc said. “Dominick was just on it.”
Gauge ran for the G-Wagen.
“Backseat,” Luc said, coming up behind him. He rattled off the password to unlock it as Gauge opened the back door.
Within minutes, Gauge accessed the feds global GPS monitoring system and entered the vehicle’s details.
Bear came up to stand beside Luc. “I messaged McMillian to let him know we’re accessing that data.”
Whatever. Gauge wasn’t waiting on a formal invitation. “Got it. Looks like it’s not moving. Sitting at Toad Suck.”
“What the hell is Toad Suck?” Luc asked, blinking at him.
“A festival,” Bear answered without looking at him. “But it’s over.”
“Not downtown.” Gauge turned the screen toward Bear. “At the old park off Highway 60.”
He tossed the laptop down and pushed his way through Bear and Luc. His men were standing off the side, keeping a lookout. “Let’s go.”
Gauge rushed to his truck as Bear yelled at Roc where they were headed. Rather than hopping into his own vehicle, Bear slid into the passenger’s side of Gauge’s.
“Take Highway 89. It’ll be faster.”
“I know.”
He peeled out as Roc and Heather got into their vehicle and Luc and his team loaded up into his.
Bear tapped something on his cell before Brody’s voice came through the speaker. Their team lead relayed the latest news without hesitation.
“Roc said they probably grabbed Viola because she was mistaken for Xan, which isn’t a stretch considering she was in her car,” Gauge said as he sped down the road.
“Shit,” Bear said.
“They don’t look anything alike,” Brody said, probably trying to keep Gauge from completely freaking the fuck out. Too late.
“Their hair is similar. Simple mix-up if they only caught a glimpse of her through a car window and they were already on the lookout,” Gauge said.
“If that’s true, someone was watching for her,” Bear said. “That means either Giuseppe’s done his homework—”
“Or The Shadow has,” Brody growled.
“You can’t leave in your truck,” Bear said. “Even if your family splits up into separate vehicles, we have to assume they know the makes and models of all of them.”
“Scott’s gonna be pissed if he can’t drive his own truck, but you’re right,” Brody said.
“I’ll call Mason and have him send a company car over,” Shelby yelled. Brody must have had his phone on speaker as well.
“Is Blade or Anna right there?” Bear asked Brody.
“No, they’re in the living room with Xan, Scott, and Xander.”
“Get one of them to monitor the movement of the vehicle.” Bear rattled off the make, model, and VIN.
“On it.”
He ended the call and grabbed the dashboard when Gauge took a hard right onto Highway 60.
“You got a rifle in here?”
“Yeah, behind the seat. There’s a shotgun, too, and several rounds of ammo.”
He moved the seat forward, so Bear could better access the weapons. He got them both loaded by the time they reached Park Road.
“There it is,” Gauge said. The SUV was parked partly on the grass with the tailgate lifted.
Screeching to a halt, Gauge grabbed the shotgun. He jumped out of the truck with it aimed at the vehicle as he forged ahead.
“Easy,” Bear whispered heatedly.
Fuck that. Ignoring the warning, he whipped around the opened back end, ready to fire. “She’s not here.”
A scream rent the air that sent a chill down his spine. “Viola.” He whipped around to the field on the other side and saw movement in the grass.
He rushed in that direction near the trees at the end of the meadow. He heard Bear running behind him. After several feet, the bodies stood up.
“It’s her,” Gauge said to Bear. Neither figure had noticed anyone else approaching, which meant they were focused on a battle of their own.
Bear grabbed his arm, stopping him. “I’m going to veer to the south and get into the cover of the trees. Take a shot if you get one.”
Gauge nodded, and they separated. Not that he needed Bear’s permission to kill that motherfucker.
Metal glinted in the distance as the two of them stood still, and he silently cursed. The man had pulled a gun on her. Gauge was coming in closer on Viola’s side, so he didn’t have a clean shot. With Bear coming in from the other direction, hopefully, he’d be able to take it. Thank God, his team lead had the rifle.
They dropped to the ground again, and Gauge redoubled his efforts. The closer he got, the more he could see the struggle. She wasn’t putting up much of a fight. The man lifted his hand, and Gauge roared out her name.
The man jerked his head around, his eyes going wide as Gauge reached him. He scrambled to get up, but Gauge whipped him with the butt of the shotgun since he was still too close to Viola for him to take a shot.
He howled in pain and kicked out to try to knock Gauge’s feet out from under him.
Gauge stumbled slightly, but not enough to drop. “Get up,” he said, standing back.
Instead of doing what he was told, the man draped himself against Viola. His hand dug in the grass, probably looking for the gun he’d dropped either when he’d wrestled with Viola or when Gauge had hit him.
“Should’ve died the last time I shot you,” the man said then whipped his arm around, his palm firmly on the grip of his handgun, and Gauge dove to the ground, shooting the attacker’s knee.
The man screamed and sat up, reaching for his blown kneecap. He was now far enough away from Viola that Gauge could take a kill shot. He wasted no time cocking the gun and firing.
As the man slumped to the ground, Gauge dropped the gun and crawled the few paces to Viola’s supine body.
“Baby?” He gently rubbed her head. When he got no response, he checked for a pulse. His own heart stopped until he felt hers beat. He leaned down and put his cheek to her mouth. She was breathing, too. “Oh, thank God.” He ran his hands all over her, feeling for broken bones. Where she wasn’t covered in blood, early bruises were forming.
“How is she?” Bear asked, dropping beside him.
“Alive. We need to get her to the hospital.”
Roc jogged out of the trees on the opposite end. He must’ve taken up a spot across from Bear to cover another angle.
“What about the police? Won’t they come, too?” Heather asked as she came to a stop beside her boyfriend.
“We’ll take care of the body,” Luc said, already putting on rubber gloves as one of his guys rolled out a tarp.
Gauge didn’t give a shit if the police knew or not that this man had taken Viola hostage and tried to kill her. McMillian would just get the feds to take over the investigation and make any connection to the Bang Shift disappear.
Roc glared at Luc, but if Gauge wasn’t mistaken there was a hint of respect in his teammate’s eyes.
Lifting her gently, Gauge took Viola into his arms.
“Put her in the back of my ride,” Roc said. It wasn’t only closer, but he’d have more room in that large SUV.
“I’ll drive your truck back. Keys are still in it,” Bear said.
Gauge walked as quickly as he could without jostling her too much. Once he got her in the vehicle, Roc and Heather were already in front, waiting.
They sped to the hospital as Gauge whispered words to her. She hadn’t woken up yet, and that scared the shit out of him. He’d almost lost her, but they weren’t out of the woods, yet.
His hand trembled as he stroked her cheek. “Come back to me, please.”
The thought of her not glowing in the sunlight ever again totally wrecked him. He couldn’t lose her. Not again. When she woke up, he was going to let her know just how important she was.
He was never letting her go again.
Chapter Twenty-Four
The ringing in Viola’s ears had stopped, but she was in way too much pain to be dead. Her head ached, her ribs throbbed, and taking a breath felt like a thousand knifes digging into her chest. Luckily, it didn’t require too much brain power to remember what had gotten her in this state. Who had caused it. She just didn’t know why that awful man was keeping her alive.
Keeping her eyes closed, she took in her surroundings, using her other senses. No grass pricked her spine. Whatever she lay on was much softer than the ground. Although her ears weren’t ringing anymore, a rhythmic beating sounded in the background. Steeling herself against the pain, she softly sniffed, and the pungent scent of disinfectants burned her already sore lungs.
With watering eyes, she chanced a peek, but when her eyes focused, she saw a familiar head of hair and gasped. What was Gauge doing here?
She groaned from the sudden pain.
“Vi,” Gauge breathed, taking her hand into his. He sounded relieved, his voice filled with choking emotion.
“Hurts,” she said.
He reached over and punched something beside her hand. She instantly knew what he was doing. She’d activated his pain pump while he’d been in the hospital.
So, she was in the hospital. Somehow, someway, Gauge had saved her from certain death. “Guess it’s your turn,” she said, but her words felt slurred. “To take care of me.”
“Rest, baby. Whatever it is, we’ll talk about it later. We have all the time in the world. Just know you’re safe now. I won’t let anyone get to you.”
She had so many questions. There were things she needed to tell him, too, but a wave of comfort blanketed her. This time when darkness claimed her, there was no avenging angel calling out to her from beyond. He was sitting right beside her.
When she opened her eyes again, she could’ve sworn only seconds had passed, but the room looked lighter and more people were in here.
“Hey,” Maya said softly, leaning in.
“How long have I been here?”
“Since yesterday afternoon.”
She pushed the button to lift the bed into a seated position. “Some man ran me off the road, and he’s after—”
“We know what happened,” Bear said, inching closer. “Save your energy. The sitrep can wait.”
“Xan,” Viola breathed. She was still hurting, but not as bad as when she’d woken up the last time.
“She’s safe. Brody took her and the kids to the safe house McMillian arranged,” Hunter said.
“Thank God. Who was it?”
“Giuseppe Costa. The same man who shot me,” Gauge said. The others stood around the room, but he still sat at her side. She wondered if he’d been there all night.
“What happened to him?”
“I killed him. Luc got rid of the body.”
Viola frowned, not liking the idea of a man who’d claimed he was now a mafia boss of two former syndicates having any involvement. He couldn’t be trusted.
Reading her thoughts, Gauge said, “If he fucks us over, he’s done for. Hell, Roc will take him out if he so much as blinks in our direction again.”
“Knock, knock,” Shelby said, walking in.
“Hi.”
“Look at you sitting up.” She leaned over and gave her a one-arm hug.
“Always been an overachiever,” she said, her voice thinner than she would’ve liked.
Shelby chuckled as she stood up. “You have a visitor.”
Viola glanced around the room, which was filled with her coworkers. Her friends. “Yeah, I can see that.”
Gauge squeezed her hand, and Viola looked at him. Where he’d looked calm a few seconds ago, now his brow was furrowed.
“Well, this gentleman is outside with Mason.”
As if on cue, the door opened, and Jedrek walked in with a bouquet of flowers. No one in the room looked surprised to see him. Gauge was the only one who’d reacted to the man’s presence, and Viola was probably the only one who saw the tic in his jaw.
“We’ll give you some time,” Bear said before reaching over and giving her foot a gentle squeeze. Everyone filed out of the room before Gauge stood. Viola didn’t like the idea of him leaving her, but there were some things she needed to talk to Jedrek about. This was a conversation that was long overdue. No way did she want an audience for it.
Seeing the panic in her eyes, Gauge bent over, kissed her softly on the mouth, and whispered, “I’ll be right outside.”
She licked her lips and watched him leave before turning her attention to the last man standing before her.
Jedrek’s gaze still focused on the door as if he’d watched Gauge leave, too. When he turned to her, he gave her a crooked smile. “How are you feeling, pet?”
He walked to the window and put the beautiful arrangement of flowers beside it before stepping up to her. He gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek and sat in Gauge’s chair.
“Like someone ran me off the road and beat me up. You?”
The breath he expelled could almost be considered a laugh.
“You didn’t have to come,” she said softly.
“Yes, I did,” he said as if he really had no other choice. “Besides, Mason needed to sign some paperwork. He’s selling his share of the club.”
“Oh, really? Shelby didn’t say anything.”
“I doubt he’s told her.” He shrugged. “We didn’t just get into it for the money. It’s a lifestyle that no longer suits him. Of course, I think this is his way of getting out of doing the club’s taxes.”
She scrunched her nose. “Can you blame him? He’s not an accountant.”
He eased back into the chair and propped his ankle over his knee. “Don’t suppose you know any accountants looking for work?” He winked, knowing she was a forensic accountant for the FBI.
“Oh, if I could hear my dad now, he’d tell me to take the job and run.”
“From what you’ve told me, he was a smart man.”
“He was stubborn,” she murmured, thinking back to the day Gauge had broken up with her. She’d had no idea her father had found out about them or had anything to do with the demise of their young relationship. She’d been a zombie for months. Her father had seen her several times during that period of her life, and not once had he let on that he’d interfered. She’d taken her shocked anger out on Gauge, but that wasn’t where the fault had laid. She wished he’d have come to her, but the truth was, he’d been young, too. Her father had been an important figure and could’ve easily crushed his career. There was no reason for him to think her father wouldn’t have done the same thing to her.
“You’re deep in thought,” Jedrek said.
“Sorry. Just thinking about my father…and Gauge.”
“Ahh.” He nodded slowly. “I met my competition earlier. He seems to care about you a lot.”
Viola felt sick at the idea of hurting Jedrek, but she needed to set him straight. “There’s no competition.”
Jedrek stared at her for several seconds, but she refused to look away. Finally, he said, “No, I guess there’s not.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Don’t be.” He smiled. “Just know, if he ever does anything to hurt you, I’ll gut him.”
She laughed.
He didn’t.
She gave him a small smile. “You deserve someone who can give you what you need. She’s out there somewhere.”
Standing, he said, “My dear, I’m not sure she hasn’t already slipped through my fingers.” He brushed his lips against her forehead and left.
Viola released the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding as she shut her eyes. When she heard the door open again, she didn’t open them right away.
“Everything okay?” Gauge asked. She heard him sit on the bed right beside her before she looked at him.
“Breaking someone’s heart sucks.”
Gauge fought a smile. She opened her mouth to chastise him for gloating, but then his gaze turned sad. “I know. Especially when you love her so much you’d do anything to protect her. Even if that very thing tears you both to pieces.”
She sighed. “I don’t blame you.”
He took her hand into his. “You don’t have to. I blame myself. Handling it the way I did is my only regret in life. If I’d have just talked to you first, maybe I could’ve saved you from your miserable marriage. Strike that. I know I would’ve. You’d have never married that asshole.”
He was probably right, but there was no point in going down that road. “I know I should be mad at my dad, and maybe if he was still alive, I would be. He stuck his nose into something he had no right doing, but getting angry with him isn’t going to help anything.”
