to stop him, but Holden was done licking his wounds. He’d been a coward for far too long. Now Faith’s life was in danger and he had to wonder if that was his fault. Had he done everything he’d promised Paul, would Faith be missing?
Fuck, no, she wouldn’t be.
If he hadn’t been such a dumbass, he would’ve checked his ego and made things right with Charleigh, even if right only meant taking care of Faith.
Holden’s eyes came open when his phone shrilled.
Kennedy’s name flashed on the screen.
“Charleigh okay?” Holden asked by way of greeting.
“Holden,” Charleigh breathed.
“Leigh-Leigh, are you—”
“Please find her.”
“I will,” he promised. “We have a lead.”
“I know McKenna’s looking at security tapes from a hotel. I saw her.”
“Saw who?”
“Faith.” The word came out as a whispered sob. “That PI was carrying her.”
Christ Jesus. Why had Micky allowed Charleigh to see that?
“Charleigh, you don’t need to see that. Let Nixon and the guys handle everything. You need to relax. You have a—”
“No. I need to help. Nixon’s not here and McKenna wanted me to ID the guy. He was carrying Faith, but she wasn’t moving. Do you think… oh, god…what if…”
“Stop, baby, don’t do that. I’m gonna go get Faith and bring her home to you, and when I do, she’s gonna be just fine.”
That was a lie. Faith wasn’t going to be okay—she was going to be emotionally traumatized. The poor girl had probably been drugged as well.
“My parents are here,” she moaned and Holden almost cracked a smile.
Charleigh had never had a good, loving relationship with her parents; they were both too domineering for that, her mother especially. The woman always had something to say about appearances and keeping the family in good standing with their country club friends. Holden had found it exhausting but he’d kept his mouth shut because Charleigh loved them.
No longer the dutiful boyfriend who felt the need to make a good impression on the people whom he thought would one day be his in-laws, he felt no such responsibility. He also had nothing to lose.
“I’ll talk to Chasin, he can run interference. Kennedy’s level-headed and she can help.”
“I think Kennedy’s not so level-headed when it comes to my mother,” Charleigh whispered.
That meant Zoe Axelson was behaving badly. Holden gritted his teeth in an effort not to say something that would make the situation worse. Once his jaw started to ache, he unclenched and said, “You do not take on their bullshit, Leigh-Leigh. Use Chasin as a buffer—you know he’ll do anything you ask. Right now, all you need to do is relax so you can recover. I’ll bring Faith to you as soon as I can. But fair warning, when I get there I will not stand for anyone—and that includes your mother—bossing you around and making things worse. I get I’m not her favorite person, but for now, all of that shit will be set aside for Faith.”
“Please, just bring her home.”
“I will, Leigh-Leigh, that’s a promise.”
He heard her suck in a breath and a fresh sob tore through her.
“I’m so scared.”
“Know you are, honey. But you’re surrounded by good, strong people. Use them. Let them keep you solid until I get there.”
“Okay, Holden.”
“Gonna let you go so I can get on the road.” There was a long pause, and as much as Holden didn’t want to rush her, he needed to talk to Jameson and Rhode and make a plan. “Leigh-Leigh?”
“Be safe, Holden. I’ll be waiting.”
His eyelids drifted closed and his heart burned. But before he could respond to her plea, Charleigh was gone.
God, how many times had she whispered those exact words to him before he’d left on an exercise?
Too many to count. But it never got old. It meant she cared, she loved him, and wanted her man to come home to her. And every time he did, she was always waiting.
12
Holden’s hands shook with pent-up aggression.
“Almost,” Jameson muttered from his seat behind the wheel.
They were parked behind the Glen Hotel on the western side of Charlottesville. After a two-and-a-half-hour drive, almost wasn’t good enough. Faith had been away from Charleigh for going on ten hours.
Holden was fresh out of patience, and each minute he had to sit in the car and wait for Nixon’s call felt like he was enduring the worst torture. Faith was so close, yet they couldn’t rush the building. They planned on grabbing the girl without disrupting the hotel guests nor did they want to put Faith in anymore danger than she already was.
Jonny