Because the third option? The one where Johnny knowingly let her get taken again in pursuit of his brand of justice?
I’ll kill him myself.
The EMTs burst in, swarming Sean. Nik backs off, stepping away with blood still on his hands.
I move beside him at the door.
“Let’s go,” I say. “We’ve got a small window, and I’m not wasting it.”
Nik nods and takes off.
I take one last look at Sean—pale, still, bleeding. I whisper a prayer I don’t believe in that he’ll be okay.
Then I follow Nik.
He’s already on the phone with Volk. I’m calling every name I’ve ever collected, every ghost in the dark that might know where she went.
We already lost her once.
And I swear, I won’t let it happen again.
Epilogue
Aro
I wake to the taste of blood in my mouth and the sharp bite of zip ties around my wrists. My arms are numb, secured to the arms of what feels like a cold steel chair. My legs, too. Ankles bound, body aching.
The air is thick and damp. It smells like mold and rust. As if time passed through here and forgot to leave. My head throbs, deep and pulsing, like it’s echoing someone else’s heartbeat.
I will my eyes to open. Blinking against the dark, I see concrete walls. One flickering light overhead. A single drain in the center of the stained floor.
I try to remember what happened.
The wedding. Sean. The gunshot.
Everything comes rushing back in jagged flashes—his blood, his body falling, the sting of something pressed to my face, then blackness.
I turn my neck slowly and carefully, trying not to aggravate my head.
And I freeze.
Johnny’s next to me. Also tied to a chair. Head lolled to the side, a bruise already blooming along his jaw. His dress shirt is torn, blood crusted near his temple.
What the hell?
I stare at him, heart pounding in my throat.
He wasn’t with me. He wasn’t anywhere near the dressingroom when I was taken. So how? Did they grab him later? Did he come after me and get caught?
I don’t know, and it terrifies me more than I want to admit. Because if Johnny’s here… ifJohnnygot caught… then this is worse than I thought. So much worse.
I test the zip ties again. They bite into my skin, but I don't stop. Pain is good. Pain means I’m still alive. Still in this fight.
“Johnny,” I rasp.
Nothing.
“Johnny, wake up.”
