Out of the Ashes (Sons of Templar MC #3)(101)

Sid stepped forward. “You might become more obedient once our daughter is under this roof,” he murmured. “Or she might find herself without a mother altogether,” he threatened softly, squeezing my chin between his thumb and forefinger. He looked at me a second longer, doing a quick sweep of my body. I flinched at the hunger that lay beneath his eyes.

“Get yourself cleaned up,” he ordered, stepping back. “I expect you ready in half an hour. Someone will be up to fetch you.” He spun on his heel and made for the door. He stopped with his hand on the knob. “It’s good to have you home, Abby,” he said over his shoulder. “I’ll make sure this time you don’t ever leave me again.”

With that firm promise he was gone.





“What’ve we got?” Bull barked at Wire, whose eyes were glued to multiple computer screens.

Bull didn’t know what half the shit on them even said, but he knew he was searching for evidence on Mia and Lexie. On who they really were.

Wire didn’t move his eyes from the screen. “Would have a hell of a lot more if I didn’t have the Incredible Hulk threatening to green up and wreck all my shit every five seconds,” he replied blandly.

Bull clenched his fists, restraining the urge to thump the wiry little f*cker.

He felt someone clap him on the shoulder.

“Come on, brother, let him work,” Cade muttered firmly.

Bull gave the screens one more look before turning to leave the room.

“We know anything more?” he grunted at his friend after they left the dark room, emerging in the hallway that led off to the rooms and the living area.

Cade shook his head. “Went over to Mia’s—place is trashed.” He gave Bull an uneasy look before continuing. “Signs of a struggle, ‘specially in her bedroom,” he went on carefully.

Bull couldn’t do it. Couldn’t restrain his monster anymore, so he turned and plowed his fist through the wall. When he had calmed slightly, he turned back to Cade.

“We got the pigs in on this?” he asked as if he hadn’t just decorated the clubhouse’s walls with the blood from knuckles.

They walked toward the bar, moving into Church. “Yep, Bill and his deputies are over there now,” he answered, moving to a bottle of whisky and two glasses.

“They know it all?” Bull asked, pacing the room.

“As much as we do, which is f*ck all,” Cade handed him the glass.

Bull took it. He had no other choice. He needed something to stop him from crawling out of his own skin.

“Know armed guys broke into Mia’s, shot Kill, tried to take Lexie. Got Mia,” Cade sat at the head of the table. Bull remained standing as he continued.

“They’re working through their databases, trying to find out who they really are, but Wire’s got more of a chance of getting there first. Got her pic up on missing persons, all that shit.” Cade paused. “You sure you want them in on this, brother?

“Fuckin’ sure,” Bull clipped.

“But...”

Bull narrowed his eyes at his friend. “When Gwen was taken, did you not want as many f*ckin’ eyes as possible looking for her?” He didn’t wait for a response. “Went down the road of shutting out the law—you know how that went down, brother,” he finished, trying his best not to let his demons in, but it was no use. They were there. Taunting him, presenting him with images of a broken lifeless body. The same one he saw in his dreams. But this time the face changed. It was Mia’s beautiful face that was lifeless and battered. A soft knock at the door barely penetrated the cloud of rage threatening to overwhelm him.

“Baby, not now,” Cade called softly.

Bull directed his gaze to Gwen, who was standing in the doorway, a grim look on her face.

“I’ve got something that might help.” Her eyes were on Bull.

Bull stepped forward, and before he even knew it he was clutching Gwen’s shoulders.

She looked up at him softly. “We’ll get her back,” she promised, sensing his desperation.

He felt Cade’s heat at his back. “Know your hurting, brother—know exactly how you feel. But gonna have to ask you to get your hands off my wife,” he requested in a hard tone.

Bull looked down at his hands, which he was sure were biting into Gwen’s shoulders. He quickly let go, stepping aside so Cade could pull her into his side, his hand resting on the swell of her bump.

“What you got, baby?” he asked quietly.

She looked to Cade a moment, then focused on Bull. “It isn’t much. Hardly anything, actually. More of an inkling,” she explained. “I don’t think the club has anything to do with Mia being taken,” she began, telling them something they already knew. Bull stiffened anyway, knowing Cade wouldn’t have told her this, which meant she knew something.

“Babe?” Cade questioned urgently.

“It was more something Mia said in passing, something I knew we couldn’t probe her too hard about. About Lexie’s dad,” she explained softly.

Bull’s fists clenched. He f*ckin’ knew there was more to the story than Mia was letting on. He had meant to get down to the details later, when her grief wasn’t so fresh, when they had time. When he had time to hunt down the motherf*cker. Now his time had run out.