Changing Affection

Chapter Seventeen

Ezra stared out of the guest bedroom window. The sun had set a long time ago and all Ezra could even think about was if Aubrey was safe. He needed to know. He needed to know if she was safe for him to relax. His hands clenched together at the thought that Jearon had touched her and could be touching her now. If he laid a fingernail on Aubrey, Ezra was going to make sure that Jearon paid for it with his life. If he hurt her in any way, he was going to make sure that he felt his wrath. 

A knock sounded at the door, bringing him out of his thoughts. Ezra turned around and stared at the person standing by the door. "What do you need, Mr. Hallquist?"

"Come downstairs," he roughly told Ezra. "I need you to meet some people." He didn't wait for Ezra to start following him before he turned around and disappeared from the doorway. 

Ezra sighed and followed Mr. Hallquist down the stairs and found him in the kitchen. Ten men crowded around the small kitchen table, making it look much smaller than it actually was. All were wearing black, and their faces were like stone. They were all roughly around the same age as Mr. Hallquist. Ezra leaned against the kitchen counter as Mr. Hallquist introduced each of them. 

Ezra didn't care to learn any of their names. He wouldn't remember them. He'd remember their faces. He was supposed to disappear after saving Aubrey. He didn't need to fill his head up with useless names. There were names that he was already familiar with, but he wasn't going to let Mr. Hallquist know that. 

Asher May had large, broad shoulders and was very muscular making his shirt hug his body. His dark black hair had streaks of silver in it, showing his age. His hair hung over his eyes almost shielding his eyes from Ezra. When he welcomed Ezra, his voice was very deep and grave. Ezra had to guess that Asher was the bronze for Mr. Hallquist. 

Aden Warren – a small man – stood up when welcoming Ezra. He smiled politely and held out his hand for a handshake. Ezra made sure to keep his face neutral as he shook his hand. He had worked with Aden before in different missions. Jearon didn't know about him. Aden's hair was buzzed close to his head making the thick-rimmed glasses he wore look bigger. His green eyes looked almost bug-like under his glasses. Ezra knew that Aden Warren was the tech for the group. 

Mr. Hallquist brought the next man along named Rylan Giles because of his advanced knowledge of guns. Ezra's personal selection of guns had been bought from Rylan. Rylan pulled out a large bag and opened it up, showing Ezra the different sizes and styles of guns, he had brought for this mission. He was tall but bony. Ezra had always wondered how he was able to resist the recoil of a gun without any meat on his bones. His black hair was kept neatly out of his brown eyes. 

Finally, there was Marcus House. He resembled Asher in a way that had always made Ezra feel that they were related somehow. Ezra never bothered to ask. He never planned to make any of these men his friends. Mr. Hallquist confirmed his suspicion that they were somehow related by telling him that they were cousins. Ezra would have guessed that they were twins by the way they copied each other's style. Marcus was more of a hot head than his cousin Asher. Ezra knew how many men this man had killed and was silently thankful that they had him on their side. 

After all the introductions were over, Mr. Hallquist told Ezra to go get the floor plans of the warehouse and lay them on the table. Earlier that day, Ezra had taken a long piece of paper and drawn up the way the warehouse was laid out the best he could. Ezra smoothed it out on the table in front of everyone and backed away so they could all look at the paper. 

"Ezra is the only one that has ever been in that warehouse," Mr. Hallquist started. That wasn't exactly true. Asher and Marcus had both been in the warehouse, but they didn't let Mr. Hallquist know. "The only way for us to get my daughter back is if we do exactly what he tells us. He knows the layout. I'm trusting him to get my daughter." He looked over at Ezra and gave him a silent threat. "I have no doubt that he would go against any of us."

Ezra locked eyes with Mr. Hallquist and gave a sharp nod that he understood. He was starting to get tired of his attitude toward him. He understood why, but he's been more than compliant about getting Aubrey back. He's proven how he feels about her, but Mr. Hallquist's attitude never left. 

Asher was the one who spoke up. He looked over at Ezra with curious eyes. "I get it that you're out of the gang now, huh?" Asher smiled slightly. "Got a target on your back now?"

Ezra shrugged. "Call it a target if you want, but I won't let Mr. Hallquist down. I also need to make sure that Aubrey is safe."

"Why would you care?" Asher spoke up. He leaned back against his chair, his eyes shown with knowing curiosity. "You kidnapped her."

"Yes," Ezra controlled himself from grinding his teeth. "I did kidnap her, but from Jearon's orders. I –"

"He apparently loves my daughter," Mr. Hallquist interrupted. He gave Ezra a disapproving look before turning back to the men around the table. "I have to trust, Ezra. I have no choice. I want my daughter back and the only way to make sure that she's in one piece is if I trust Ezra."

Rylan nodded and leaned forward. "If you trust him, then we will. What's the plan?"

Mr. Hallquist looked over at Ezra and motioned him forward to tell them what he was planning.