Destroy For Her - R.B. Hilliard Page 0,36

Sledge while Ink went to find coffee.

While Sledge filled Steele in on the details of what happened with Aimee, Ax rested his head on the back of the chair and closed his eyes. He still couldn’t believe Emma was gone. His phone buzzed against his side, and he dug it from his pocket. Sage was calling again. He hesitated to answer it. Sage wasn’t responsible for Emma’s death. She had nothing to do with it, but if he’d stayed with Emma instead of dumping her off at her house and then jumping into bed with Sage, she would still be alive. He should have handled things better. His thumb hit the button, and the call went to voicemail.

A nurse finally arrived for Sledge.

Ax was almost asleep when Steele moved next to him, into Sledge’s seat. Peeling open an eye, he squinted at Steele. “What?”

Steele told him that Martin had called. He found something on Carlos and wanted Steele to call him back. Ax thought he should call him back right then, but Steele wanted to wait until they were back at The Cave. Ax asked him what he thought about the two incidents happening so close together, and Steele agreed that it was likely not a coincidence. He then told Steele what Buck had said about being cut out of the loop and advised him to hold a meeting. Steele agreed.

A short time later, Sledge reappeared. Ax could tell by the look on his face that something was wrong. Sledge told the room that Aimee was in stable condition and doing well.

“Did she say who got the drop on her?” Buck asked.

Sledge’s eyes cut to where Ax and Steele were sitting, his frown deepening. “We need to talk.”

“Fuck,” Ax muttered. Worry flared inside him as he followed Steele and Sledge out the door and into an empty hallway.

Sledge cut straight to it, “Aimee said that three men were waiting in the garage when she got home. Two of them had guns. They held her down while the third motherfucker beat the shit out of her. When she was on the verge of passing out, he gave her a message. He said that he’s here for his wife and to tell Ax that he’s going to kill him for sticking his filthy cock in her.”

_______________

Sage was worried. Alex called earlier and said he was stopping by his place for a quick shower and a change of clothes before heading back to The Cave. They were supposed to talk. He never showed, and he wasn’t answering his phone. Steele was nowhere to be found. In fact, other than Montana and Zoe, the house was empty. She thought about calling LuLu, but after their whirlwind dress shopping spree, followed by a trip to Icings for prune muffins—which were actually kind of good—LuLu dropped her back at The Cave and said she was going home for a nap.

Petal was in the kitchen with Zoe making cookies. Sage left them to it and slipped downstairs to call Alex. His voicemail picked up, and she left her third message of the day. She was considering what to do next when the bedroom door flew open and in he stalked.

“I just called you!” she exclaimed.

“Upstairs, now,” he ordered.

He sounded angry. “Are you okay? Where have you been?”

He didn’t answer. He didn’t even look at her. He just turned on his heel and walked out the door.

Icy fear gripped her heart as she followed him up the stairs and into Steele’s office. Steele was sitting behind his desk. Alex leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. She tried to catch his eye, but he wouldn’t look at her.

Swallowing the feeling of panic, she asked, “Will someone please tell me what’s wrong?”

Steele plucked a pen from his desk. He clicked it a few times before saying, “Three men were waiting for Aimee when she arrived home tonight. Two held her at gunpoint while the third beat the shit out of her. Before knocking her unconscious, he gave her a message to give to Ax. He said to tell him that he was here for his wife and that he was going to kill him for sticking his filthy cock in her. Do you happen to know what he’s talking about?”

Sage’s stomach lurched. Oh, God, Carlos was here . . . and they knew. This wasn’t how they were supposed to find out. She thought of Aimee and how scared she must have been. Even though