Falling Up

55. Enemies

"You told me you would keep her safe!"

Noah slammed his fist down on the table in front of him, frustrated at being locked up in this safe house and even more frustrated that Riley wasn't here with him.

Tyrus got up from the chair in front of Noah and began pacing around the room. His tie and jacket had long been discarded on the back of the chair and his normally clean-shaven face was dark with stubble and neglect. It was a sign that he had long forgone the daily hygiene habits that he normally kept up.

"I'm sorry Noah. Vincent paid off some of my men." Tyrus ran a hand through his dishevelled hair. "I should have done the background checks myself. Those dirty rotten pieces of shit are going to get what's coming to them," he mumbled under his breath.

It had been days since Vincent had taken his sister Riley and even longer since Jason was taken captive. It was only natural to think that he was next, which is why Tyrus moved him to a safe house as soon as word was out that Riley had been taken. To make it even worse, Tyrus's brother Kain had disappeared along with her. The surveillance cameras running on campus caught the whole thing, which involved Riley and Kain freely walking into the truck that took them away.

An older woman entered the room, interrupting what was yet another fight between himself and Tyrus. She held a folder in her hand. "We have a location."

"Finally," said Noah as he got up off his seat, taking a look at the photos from the folder Tyrus spread across the table. He was eager to punch that son of a bitch Vincent in the face.

Once he had confirmed the contents of the folder, Tyrus grabbed his gun, which was sitting casually on the table. "Get the squad ready. We move in straight away."

When Noah moved in the direction of the front door, Tyrus put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from progressing further.

"You'll have to sit this one out, Noah."

"Like hell I am. That's my brother and sister that son of a bitch has. If you think I'm just going to sit around twiddling my thumbs, then you have another thing coming."

"I'm serious, Noah. This is police business."

"You know I can fight Tyrus. You can try to stop me, but I've seen the location." Noah pointed towards the folder on the table. "I'm going either way."

Tyrus huffed out a sign of annoyance and defeat. "Fine. But you follow my lead and do as I say."

Noah nodded, and they both headed to the door, passing the guards positioned just inside the door as the door shut behind them. They moved forward swiftly, getting in the back of an unmarked truck filled to the brim with surveillance equipment before Noah took a seat, watching as Tyrus commanded the vehicle of people. It wasn't long before more officers entered the truck. An elite team of officers with the word SWAT written over their uniform.

"We'll move in swiftly," said Tyrus, pointing to a board which displayed surveillance photos of the location they were heading to. "Teams two and four head up the rear. Teams one and three are with me. We'll enter head on. Expect heavy gunfire. We're not leaving without the hostages. Am I understood?"

A chorus of "Yes, sir!" echoed through the truck.

Noah sat with nerves on one of the seats lining up the back of the truck and impatiently tapped his foot against the steel floor. It had been days since they had taken Riley and he hadn't slept a wink since it happened. When he first received the phone call, he almost puked on the floor. His stomach felt sick with anxiety and fear, which was similar to how he was feeling now.

Multiple thoughts ran through his head. What if she was injured? What if he raped her again? What if she was dead? He tried to scrub the thoughts from his mind as the truck set off on to the highway.