Trial by Fire by BA Tortuga

the money in unmarked bills, and we’ll call back in twelve hours to do a trade.”
    “What’s unmarked bills?” the kid asked.
    He had no fucking idea, but he knew it was a thing. “Means they didn’t put trackers in, stupid. Take a picture of the baby so’s you can send it. You gotta drive off, though, ’kay? Head toward Sulphur Springs.”
    “Am I supposed to stay with the baby or drive off?” Shiloh looked so fucking confused.
    Kade rolled his eyes. “Norman goes to the ranch. When he texts, I’ll take your truck and make the call. I got one of them travel phones at the Wal-Mart just for that.”
    Norman nodded. “You take care of the brat. If we did this right, we’ll be rid of her and rich by tomorrow morning.”
    “I can do that.” Shiloh rocked the baby, humming a little like he was happy as a pig in shit. Freak.
    With his fucking luck, the goddamn kid would fall in love with the baby and refuse to give her back. Shit, they did this, the stupid shit would have enough money that any girl’d let him dip his wick and fill her belly.
    The baby gurgled happily, and Norman rolled his eyes. Time to get a move on. “I’ll holler when I’m there.”
    “Good deal. We just got to keep it together and we’ll be rich by morning, right?” Kade grinned, looking cheerful for the first time in days.
    “That’s it, boys. We’re about to make a whole bunch of money.”

Chapter Twelve
     
     
    “ WHERE the bloody hell have you been?” Lachlan stormed out to meet Holden at the back of the house. He’d seen the arsehole ride in and turn out his horse in the small paddock they’d created as a makeshift place for the horses.
    “Huntin’. Any news?”
    “Any news? Your fucking phone has been off for hours, you idiot. You had people worried you were gone just like Chloe! Fuck, Lofty, your mum thought someone had shot you!” Frustration boiled over now that Lachlan had a safe target for it, and he planted his hands against Holden’s chest and shoved.
    “My phone is in my fucking pocket and hasn’t rang once, you asshat!” Holden was like an itty jack-in-the-box and popped right up, fists slamming into his chest.
    “Then you weren’t getting signal or the damnable thing was out of juice, and that’s even worse. You can’t be out of touch right now. What if they called you with the ransom demand?” Lachlan got some of his own back by bopping Holden in the chin this time.
    “Don’t you try to make me feel bad, you asshole! I was looking for her! What were you doing, you fuck? Sitting here on your ass being worthless?” Holden looked like he was going to fall down from worry and exhaustion, and Lachlan almost stopped when the blow to his nose made him see stars.
    Pure rage took over then, and he roared, leaping at Holden and slamming him down with a full-on rugby tackle. Holden weathered the hit as well as he could, but Lachlan outweighed, outreached, and outright beat the little fucker in sheer fury. Holden’s head bounced off the ground, splashing some from last night’s rain.
    “Motherfucker!” Holden caught him with a fist right in his left kidney, making him howl with the sharp rabbit punches.
    Lachlan grabbed Holden’s arms, dragged them up over his head. “I swear to God, I will peg you right in the chest and leave you to drown in your own juices.”
    “Fuck you. Fuck you, man.” Holden fought like a brumby feeling a bridle for the first time.
    “Stop it! Just stop.” At this point, the fury was leaching away into worry. He didn’t want to hurt Holden. He was just sick of the stress and the lack of any real progress. Not to mention that the idea of something happening to Holden had sent him into an unreasonable panic. He already cared about the little fuck too much.
    “I didn’t fucking turn it off. There were a bunch of us, searching.”
    “You’re the one I was worried about, damn it.” He didn’t know any of the others, and they weren’t Chloe’s guardians.
    Holden looked at