Kyle’s lips thinned, and I realized he was forcing back a smile. He wasn’t the only one either. The rest of them looked both amused and impressed. “It’s dangerous, Charlie.” Oliver’s voice was low and smooth. “Not much could take down Ryder. We have no idea what we’re walking into.”
I was already on my feet. “Only one way to find out.” I turned then, and without looking back or locking eyes with the many curious faces around us, I strode through the hall and out the door.
I didn’t have to check, I could feel the boy’s energy behind me, and I felt more than safe having them at my back. I knew I should have told Jayden what was up, he’d be pissed at us ditching him, but he’d be safer here at the Hive.
Kyle strode faster to fall in line beside me. “What’s the plan?”
I gave it two seconds’ thought. “Say we got an emergency call, drive out of here in the van, sirens blazing. Start driving to Seattle, asking questions wherever we stop. Interview the pilot, rough up the Seattle Hive. Do whatever we have to.”
Kyle shook his head a few times, his eyes drooping down as his entire body tensed. “I should have stayed back with him,” he said as we turned the corner and opened the door leading to the garage.
I shrugged. “I shouldn’t have given my virginity to Seth Peters. Can’t live life in the past.” I tended to lean on inappropriate humor and sarcasm to avoid serious emotions and get through stressful times.
Oliver, Markus, and Jared all chuckled. Not Sam though, he was immune to all of Charlie’s charm. As we reached the Humvee, I grabbed the keys and moved to open the driver’s side door. Kyle placed a hand on the glass, barring me from opening it.
“Nice try. Get in back and hide.” He pulled the keys from my hand as all of the guys piled in.
Dammit. Bossy-ass ash. Still, Ryder was gone and we were the only ones looking for him. I would obey for now because I didn’t want them to waste any more time. I lay in the back and piled some thermal blankets over myself. The engine roared to life and then we were hauling ass. It was much rougher back here with no seatbelt. I felt one of the guys drop a heavy hand on my side, which definitely helped to keep me in place. A few minutes later Kyle called back to me.
“Okay, Charlie, you can sit up.”
Whew! I sat up gasping for fresh air and took in the rigid postures of the five massive ash enforcers. I wasn’t sure right then, but I thought it was Sam who had held me in place. Which was unexpected but nice from the reticent ash.
All of the boys looked tense and ready for anything. I forced myself to focus, my mind going through all of the places Ryder could be. If he had been taken by humans, he could be anywhere, but if he had been taken by our kind, his locations were limited.
A cell phone rang somewhere in the car. Kyle fumbled to get it out and glanced down.
“It’s Ryder!” He put it on speaker. “Where are you?” His voice was sharp and tense.
“Having pepperoni pizza,” Ryder said coolly, but he sounded out of breath and his voice was raspy.
What the actual fuck? If he was out having pizza, I was going to kill him myself. But I saw the color drain from Kyle’s face through the rearview mirror, and all of the guys shared a look.
“Where at?” Kyle said casually.
“That place we went for my sixteenth birthday.”
How long had Kyle and Ryder known each other and why were they speaking in code?
“Kyle, bring my lucky jacket. Don’t leave it behind,” Ryder insisted.
Kyle met my eyes through the rearview and nodded. “It’s with me now.” Then he hung up and tossed the phone out the open window.
“Phones,” he barked, and everyone pulled out their phones and tossed them out the window. Oh my God. Five smartphones. That was three grand gone, just like that. I climbed over the back seat, my ass hitting Markus’s pretty man bun, and shoved myself in between Kyle’s driver seat and Oliver’s shotgun.
“What the hell is going on?” I quipped. I didn’t have a phone to toss out the window and I didn’t know what had just happened.
Kyle gave it to me straight. “Pepperoni pizza is our code word for if some shit goes down and phones are tapped. Never had to use it. Ryder hates pepperoni, he would never eat it.”
I shouldn’t have let myself get distracted, but seriously, who hates pepperoni pizza? I needed to get to know more about this man, because pepperoni was right up there with bacon in my book. It might be a deal breaker if he didn’t like bacon.
“So, we’re going to a pizza place and the phones were tapped?”
Kyle took a hard left. “No, we’re going to a fishing lake, and the phones were tapped, and you’re the lucky jacket.”