Stolen - The Devereaux Case Files Book 4

Chapter 15

By the time Reed and Ayah had finished packing, they had spent close to ten minutes in the room alone together. Before they left, he handed his wife a catering staff uniform and waited patiently until she had donned it before daring to open the bedroom door to peek outside. He caught sight of Larris hovering outside the door to the servants staircase, signaling them across, looking agitated. Although Reed knew they were in a rush, he didn't want them getting caught by Larris's whispering and frantic gesturing. They crossed the hall quickly, gently pushing Ayah through the door out of sight, before Reed joined them. "Can you please calm down." He asked with a sigh.

"Reggie's shown up on his own for the wedding. Abe heard him say that he's left Faith to deal with the kids at the hotel." Larris quickly explained the situation. They made their way down the stairway as casually as they could, trying not to look in a rush or out of place amongst the other catering staff gathered for the wedding. It seemed that Blake had turned the whole thing into a three ringed circus, but it suited their needs.

"Oh Reed please, please can we go now? I want Olivia back with me." Ayah instantly turned to Reed in the hope that they could retrieve her daughter from her captives. She knew that Faith would never let anything happen to her daughter, but just the separation, so soon in their lives, was making her irrational. She didn't care about anything other than her daughter.

"Alright. Even if there is a guard, I'm sure we can handle him." Reed smiled at her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they reached the kitchen, trying to comfort her. It wouldn't be easy and it might not be smart but he had the same burning need to rescue his child as Ayah did. It was only cold logic that had kept him from doing so until then.

"Can we take Faith and her kids away as well? You know she'd leave him if she only had the support." She reminded him of how much Faith knew she risked by staying with Reggie. If she had only had a secure, safe place to go to, where she knew the kids would be safe, she would have left him years ago. Ayah was sure of it. Reed could only agree. He didn't want anyone to have to live the way Faith lived. And if the only way for her to get away form that life was for him to rescue her, then so be it.

"We can ask her. If she wants to stay with her husband, then we can't argue with that, okay? So don't be upset if she chooses to stay." He wanted her to be prepared for what might yet come. Faith had stuck by Reggie through an awful lot so far and no matter how she suffered or what her kids had gone through, she hadn't once ever shown signs of wanting to leave her husband. If she chose not to escape when he gave her a chance, then that was her business and he didn't want Ayah getting hurt by it.

"We were right worried about you missy, what trouble have you been getting yourself into now?" Larris only ventured to speak so casually once they reached the catering van they had stolen for their escape. He was smiling at Ayah, remembering his stint undercover as her brother all that time ago. Reed decided to let them have a normal, casual conversation instead of dwelling on the bad things. He watched his wife curiously as she shrugged and smiled shyly.

"Nothing I could control this time." She claimed lightly, as if she thought that before she could have. He wasn't sure he agreed.

"Your problem is that you're so damned irresistible." Reed chipped in cheerily, laughing when Larris rolled his eyes and complained.

"Get a room." He groaned in disapproval. The suggestion was appealing but not appropriate at that point in the day. Once they had Olivia safe, once Blake was behind bars and couldn't hurt Ayah again, then it might be possible. But not until then. So he sat back and listened with a smile as the van took off and Ayah leaned into him.

"Got a girlfriend yet?" Ayah asked Larris excitedly.

"Maybe." Larris answered enigmatically, trying not to squirm in his seat. He couldn't help but think back to the girl from the club, who he had already seen twice since that night. She might be his girlfriend but neither of them had made it official yet. And he wasn't used to having anyone care about him the way Ayah did, almost as if he was a brother to her after all. He was quite honestly embarrassed by the attention. Reed thought it was good for Ayah so, even though he would normally have cut in and saved Larris from the torment, he sat there and smiled to himself, relieved to have his wife back with him. So close he could reach out and touch her.