“Of course I should. I love you.”
Her words wash over me, knowing that she is every bit as determined to protect me as I am her. “I know you do, Shay.”
I hear Lock’s voice raise and know it’s time to get this shit over. “I gotta go, but I’ll be at the hospital in a little while.”
“I have to tell you something,” She says before I can hang up.
“I really gotta go.” I hate to rush her, but I need to get Marcus in the ground so I can get my ass to the hospital.
“It was Red. He was the one who took me,” She says in a voice so full of pain it tears into me.
“I know, baby,” I reply, anger at Red’s betrayal churning in my stomach. “He’ll pay for it; I promise you.”
Before she can say anything else, I hear a woman’s voice in the background. “The nurse just came in.”
“Get off here and let her do her job. I’ll be there in a little while, okay.”
“Okay, Bowie.” She says before whispering. “I love you.”
“Love you too.”
I wait until the phone goes dead before putting it back in my pocket and heading back downstairs. Lock’s still asking questions, and Marcus still isn’t giving him the answers he wants. Nothing’s changed, and I know nothing will.
“I told you, I don’t know where she is at,” Marcus says between sobs.
“And I told you that I didn’t believe your lying ass,” Lock growls out as he sends his fist into the man’s kidney.
Curling into a ball, he finally starts to talk. “Heather couldn’t be my wife. She knew she could never be as perfect as Gwendolyn, so she ran away.”
“You’re fuckin’ crazy as hell.” I can’t believe my woman spent ten years with this man.
“No, I’m not.” He screams, shaking his head manically.
Lock leans down and shouts, “Where the fuck did she go?”
“I don’t know; I don’t know,” He chants, shaking his head back and forth. “I never looked.”
“Bull shit,” Lock says, sending an elbow into the man chest. “You looked for Laura, so I know you looked for Heather too.”
“She was never good enough to be Gwendolyn, so I didn’t care if she was gone,” He says, pleading with Lock to believe him. “I swear I have no idea where she is.”
Hearing the tone of his voice, I know this is over. Marcus is not gonna tell Lock anything, even if he knew something and I doubt he does. “He’s done, and you know it.”
He nods then looks down to the man on the floor one last time. “I’m gonna find Heather, even if it takes the rest of my damn life.”
Lock turns to me, looking defeated. “Do what you gotta do.”
Stepping between him and Marcus, I start asking my questions. “Is anyone else looking for Shay?”
His eyes narrow and he nearly spits out his words. “Her name is Laura.”
I nearly laugh, wanting to ask him why he called her Gwendolyn for years. Knowing it’s not worth my time to dig into his fucked up brain, I ignore his words. Placing my boot on his bloodied knee, the same one I shot when I first walked in, I ask my question again. “Did you hire anyone else to look for Shay?”
“Yes, but they didn’t find anything,” He whimpers out, trying to move his leg.
“How did you find out she was here?”
Still trying to pull away, he answers. “I received a call from a man named Alexander. He knew where she was and for the right amount of money, he was willing to tell me.”
“How did you know Cash?”
Confusion clouds his eyes as he asks, “Cash?”
The fact that this man doesn’t know my father is obvious. “Alexander, how the fuck did you get involved with Alexander?” I growl out, wanting this shit to be over.
“I’ve never met him. I asked him how he knew to contact me, and he refused to answer.”
My eyes move to Lock. “There had to be someone else involved. No fuckin’ way Cash just stumbled across this shit.”
Before Lock can give his opinion, Marcus answers. “When I first arrived in town, I met with that red head and the woman that’s upstairs. They were working with him.”
Red and Domino have been in this since the beginning, but I already figured that out on my own. Still, he may know something I don’t. “What did they say to you? Did they tell you how they knew you were Shay’s husband?”
”The man said that his wife told him all about me and threatened to kill me if I double-crossed him.”
The thought of Lila being in on this shit sends a fresh wave of anger through me. Having Lila betray her is gonna kill Shay. “Did he say anything else?”