His eyes widened as realization dawned. “Right, then. Tell me what to do to help.”

And there it was. Our common thread. And the guy whom I’d disliked for as long as I’d wanted Dovey, well, he kinda became less of an asshole. I was holding out on if I liked him or not. No need to rush.

We ditched school and went to save the one girl both of us loved.

IT SEEMED LIKE the longest day of my life by the time we reached her house in Ratcliffe. Heather-Lynn met us at the door, carrying her yipping dog.

“You’re too late,” were the first words out of her mouth.

My body clenched. Shit. What had happened? It had been less than twenty-four hours since I’d seen her.

“Where is she?” I asked as Spider stood beside me, inhaling the cig he’d lit as soon as he got out.

Heather-Lynn glanced over her shoulder—looking for Sarah? She stepped out onto the old porch, closing the screen door gently.

“Alexander sent her off to Vegas to meet that man. She’s supposed to stay until her debt is paid.”

The porch spun and I gripped the railing of the porch. My entire body shuddered at the thought of her lying under someone else.

No, no, no. I was not letting it happen. I was never letting anyone hurt her again.

She studied her watch. “Her flight’s already left. She’s supposed to be there at three and—oh, wait a minute, let me go get the paper.” I fumed and tapped my foot as she rambled back into the house, coming back in a minute with a crumpled piece of notepaper. “Here’s her information. If there’s any way you can—”

But I was gone, running straight for the Porsche. Spider followed.

I called back out the window to Heather-Lynn. “Tell me where to find Barisnsky.”

She pursued her lips. “I’m not sure I should—”

“Dammit, Heather-Lynn. Do you want me to get her back or not? Spill.”

She beamed at me. “Big Daddy’s Pawn, on 54th and Central.”

We pulled out from the street, and I had her at seventy before we reached the first red light.

Spider read through the note aloud, and I memorized the flight number and hotel deets. Shit, shit, shit. There was no time to lose. She was going to beat me there no matter if I left within the hour. I tossed Spider my phone and wallet. “Call every airline at Dallas Fort Worth and get me a one way ticket out to Vegas in the next…” I checked my watch, “two hours.” I still had Barinsky to deal with.

Hopefully, that gave me time.

While he called, I went through my plan and what I was going to say to that bastard.

But then Spider blew it all up…

“No flights out this morning. Your best shot looks like a seven o’clock flight with Delta.”

Too late. By the time I arrived, she’d be with her date.

“Fuck,” I yelled, slamming the steering wheel with my palm.

Then…

“Call Dovey. Tell her I’m coming, to not go to that hotel room,” I barked at Spider.

He dialed but got nada.

“Try again,” I said for the fifth time. He kept at it, his digits doing the work. My eyes darted over to him every so often, willing him to reach her.

“She’s got it turned off for the flight,” he said, staring out at the passing scenery. Dude seemed calm, but I knew he wasn’t. His hands shook.

What if her date did things to her she couldn’t come back from?

What if…

I sped the car up, weaving in and out of traffic.

Finally, we spun into Big Daddy’s Pawn, a run-down place that was no store at all. That much was obvious from the high dollar cars in the parking lot and the barbed wire than rimmed the property.

I threw her in park and jumped out.

“Slow down,” Spider called. “You’re going in there half-cocked. What’s the plan?”

He lit a cig. Could he not go five minutes?

“The plan is this: everything I say, you nod and look serious.”

He sucked in a long drag. “Even if you get him to call off his dogs, you’re never gonna make Vegas.”

Dude was a downer. I tightened my lips, not giving up, not when I’d gone through so much to finally realize that I was worth love.

Yeah, we were going into the unknown, into the den of a major player, but nothing was stopping me. I had to because she was depending on me—although she didn’t know it yet. And I know that I’m just a young guy without much experience with bad dudes, and yeah, I’m fucking scared, but I love her, and I’d do whatever it took to make sure Barinsky would never bother her again.

We knocked on the rusty metal door, and a mean-looking guy with red hair opened it, eyes hard.

I told him who I was, causing those ginger eyebrows to hit the roof.

Yep, money talks. Being a Hudson meant something in this town, even in this shithole of a neighborhood.

He opened the door for us and we went in.

“I didn’t come to Vegas for the shows.”

–Dovey

I ARRIVED ON time, got my bags, and caught a cab bound for the Bellagio Hotel on Las Vegas Boulevard. The weather cooperated. It was one of those cloudless days, the sky a perfect blue. A far cry from the cold I’d left in Dallas.

I didn’t enjoy any of it.

I’d never been anywhere outside of Texas my entire life. When you’re poor, traveling is never on your list of priorities. So, I got lost a bit in the scenery, or rather the spectacle that created this city smack dab in the middle of a desert. Neon billboards flashed everywhere, in front of small and large casinos, restaurants, and shops. I doubted I’d do any of those things, but the deluge was a welcomed sensory overload. I sat back against the vinyl seats, missing Sarah and Heather-Lynn. I even missed the dog.