My jaw tense, I looked my sister up and down, frowning and wishing I could just keep her locked up here, safe and sound away from any danger. I didn’t want this, fuck, I didn’t want to do this, but what Violet wanted won out. Always. “We’re going to get Margaret.”
“What?” Her mouth fell open, the slightest upturn of a smile on that gobsmacked face. “We are?”
I nodded. She’d been out all day, almost twelve hours, in which Connor, Christian and I had planned, checked things over and plotted things out - it was happening, and soon. Maybe our only shot.
Connor had been… strange, when we spoke. Admonishing, pissed, but ready to do this shit. He was about as over this as I was and seemed willing to do whatever it took to get his niece to safety; he’d been working on his own shit to get her. He had Amaryllis already, something I had to be grateful for, tucked away in a location he wouldn’t share with anyone. Margaret would join her there, protected, hidden, until there was nothing to be worried about anymore.
“You, me and Connor. We have a plan.”
“Theo… Connor?” She clambered from the bed and strode closer to me. I welcomed her into my arms despite my tension, releasing a sigh into her hair, kissing the top of her head. “Thank you,” she said. “Thank you so much. But… is it safe to contact Connor? To see him again?”
She was right. The things my father had said about him had me suspicious, but when I’d contacted him, using a line Christian set up, he’d sounded so relieved, I didn’t have it in me to not believe him.
I found his relief fucking annoying though, because where was this energy with Vi all those months ago? I hated it. Didn’t believe him. But saw no other way. He had resources I didn’t. And Christian saw no reason to distrust him, so here we were, on the back end of an awkward conversation where he told me he’d had to pay off the police in New York to stop searching for us, and how much of a ball ache us running off had been.
I let him complain at me, for Violet, for my sisters and their safety.
“I think he’s as safe as we can hope for,” I assured Vi. “We’ll keep our backs up. When she’s away from Rafe, we’ll leave her with him. You have to do everything I say, though.” I stroked Violet’s face. “Your safety is more important than hers.”
She winced but nodded into my chest before letting go to get changed, drifting over to the small dresser in the corner. I watched her dither over what to wear — we still didn’t have much choice anyway — before pulling on some black leggings and a hoodie. Her hair went up in a ponytail, and then she whirled back on me, looking ready for action. “I’m good to go.” There was a glimmer of excitement in her eyes, almost manic with it as she tensed up and braced. She was always so unsettled, swapping between energies at the drop of a hat. I hoped to get her settled one day.
“Slow your roll, pretty girl,” I said with a chuckle, yanking her into me again and tugging on that ponytail so she had to look up at me. “We’re waiting for Christian to plan us a route, and we need to eat.”
“I don’t want to eat; I want to get our sister.”
“We’re hours away, love, calm down.”
She huffed, her anxiety still rolling off her like a heat. Despite all I’d done to her to release it, it still simmered, needing to boil over. I had hoped the next time we ventured from this cabin it would be to maim and kill another of those prickhead guards, but we might see Rafael now. Dad, even. I worried. Who knew what we’d have to walk into?
It was too close to being too much. And she vibrated with it, likely thinking the same thing. She didn’t know the plan yet, I’d tell her while we ate. But she had to sense how close we were coming to her demons.
I took her hand and guided her to the kitchen, forcing her to sit at the counter where I’d already plated up some toast and eggs. She frowned at the plate, aware I was a shit cook, but picked up her fork and dove in.
“You’re not getting near,” I told her, waiting for her to have a mouthful before dropping the bomb. Connor and I had spoken at length, Christian helping too. We had it all set out. She would be with us, as that was safer than leaving her somewhere alone, but uninvolved. Tucked in the car with a weapon, far enough away from the action that she couldn’t be spotted.
This was the exact kind of situation that made me want her to learn how to drive, at least enough to escape.
“What do you mean?” she asked after chewing and swallowing, staring at me tentatively.
“Connor and I are going in to get her. You’ll be near, but… not too near. We can’t risk you being seen. Or…”
“You think if I see Rafe I might, what? Snap? Burst into tears and slice a blade across my neck?” That new rage in her was trying to bubble up and out again. She was so much more volatile that she used to be. That placid, meek little sister I’d had for eighteen years had been replaced with this fiery angel before me — I loved it.
I frowned, though, resisting the urge to rub my temples or yank on her ponytail again. She was being antagonistic, unusual for her, but since Damon… Since she’d unleashed herself on him, there’d been a shift. It wasn’t an unwelcome one, but it was different.
That meek, quiet version of my sister was falling further and further away. I think she’d always been who she was turning into, that this bolder, more commanding woman had lain in wait beneath her skin. But now she could be free with it. There was no one to suppress her, to tell her no. Again I wondered what she’d be like if raised the same as me, as Charlie. Would she be ruthless and cutthroat like him, or like me? Done with glee or with resignation?
I certainly wasn’t going to stop her finding out.
“I think you’re still healing, and this won’t be a controlled environment. This won’t be your revenge,” I said to her, choosing my words with care. “This is about saving our sister. Connor and I can keep our emotions out of it.”
“And I can’t?” She frowned.
“We don’t know.” I rested my hands on her shoulders, brushing them up and down her warm skin to soothe her, and just to touch her. Nothing was bad when we were touching. “We don’t know if it’ll overwhelm you and things will go sideways. Let’s get Margaret, then we’ll go back for him. For all of them.”
“Okay, Theo,” she acquiesced, leaning over the table to plant a kiss on my lips. Relief trickled through me, and I kissed her back. We stayed like that for a while, kissing, touching, finishing off our food, feeding each other, just existing in our small bubble. Then it was time to go. Bags slung over our shoulders, we headed to the car.
I wasn’t sure if we’d ever return to this place, but I wanted to. We’d healed here together, got to spend time just living as a couple. Like we could be normal without the shitshow that was our lives and connections… but here, we could. I fucking hoped we’d be back here before we knew it, ready to bed down and live. I knew it wasn’t possible, that Violet wouldn’t be settled until she’d killed every single one of those assholes, but maybe one day. Something in my gut told me to say goodbye to this place, but I didn’t look back as I pulled away and headed down the narrow drive.
