Chloe: Are you okay? No one’s telling us anything
I take a deep breath and type.
I’m safe. I need to see you all. Can you meet at Caffeine & Co near downtown in an hour? I’ll explain everything.
Their responses are immediate—they’ll all be there.
Hunter wraps his arms around me from behind, his breath warm against my ear. “You sure about this? It might be dangerous.”
“They’re my friends. I can’t keep hiding from them.” I turn to face him. “I need something normal right now.”
He nods reluctantly. “Marcus will go with you.”
“One of your security team?” I ask.
Hunter’s jaw tightens. “Marcus is a former special forces soldier. He’s good. He’ll keep his distance but stay close enough.”
An hour later, I’m sitting at a corner table in the café. Marcus, a broad-shouldered man with watchful eyes, positions himself three tables away, his gaze continuously scanning the room.
When my friends burst through the door, their faces a mixture of relief and concern, something inside me breaks, and I start crying. Grace reaches me first, wrapping me in a fierce hug.
“Where have you been?” she whispers. “And where’s Liv?”
Daisy and Chloe join the hug, creating a protective circle around me. When we finally separate, tears streak all our faces.
“What happened at that masquerade ball?” Chloe asks, gripping my hand across the table. “One minute you were there, the next you vanished—Olivia too.”
I take a deep breath, my hands trembling around my coffee cup. My friends watch me with worried expressions, waiting for answers. Where do I even begin?
“At the masquerade ball,” I start, my voice lower than I intended, “Olivia and I were—” I pause, the memory flashing vividly. “We were drugged and kidnapped.”
Daisy gasps, her hand flying to her mouth. Chloe’s eyes widen in shock, and Grace reaches for my arm.
“By whom?” Grace asks, her voice tight.
“A man named Jax King. He’s...” I choose my words carefully, “Hunter’s enemy. They have some kind of business rivalry that turned dangerous.”
“Oh my god,” Chloe whispers.
I fidget with my napkin. “Hunter had been searching for us since that night. He finally found me at a warehouse by the coast, but—” My voice cracks. “By then, Jax had moved Liv somewhere else. He still has her.”
“But you’re safe now?” Daisy asks, her eyes darting to Marcus, clearly noticing his protective stance.
“Yes. Hunter rescued me about a week ago. I was...” I swallow hard. “I was held captive for almost two weeks.”
Grace’s grip on my arm tightens. “And Hunter is still looking for Liv?”
“Every resource he has is focused on finding her. We had a lead in Montana, but—” I stop, not wanting to share about Ari being captured too. “It didn’t pan out. Jax is always one step ahead.”
“Why would someone do this?” Chloe asks, tears welling in her eyes.
“To hurt Hunter,” I say simply. “Jax wanted to take something Hunter cared about.”
I don’t tell them about my father’s murder or that Hunter knew all along. I don’t mention the Vipers organization or the blood and violence of the past weeks. They don’t need that burden. They just need to know enough to understand why I’ve disappeared and why Olivia is still missing.
I fidget with my coffee cup, the steam rising between us. They need to know the whole truth.
“There’s more,” I say, my voice barely audible over the café chatter. “And I need you all to just... listen. Don’t judge me until I’ve finished.”
