Damon exhales, leaning back in his chair. “I’m surprised at how much I want to be a part of those girls’ lives.” His voice is rougher than usual, like admitting it costs him something.
“Yeah,” Zane says, his voice quieter than before. “I know the feeling.”
I swallow hard. I hadn't let myself think too hard about it, but it’s true. I was planning to leave, and now I can’t imagine walking away from them. Any of them.
“I second that,” I say. “For the girls, but Mia, too.”
The air shifts between us, something unspoken settling into place. No judgment. No competition. Just three men willing to do whatever it takes to bring their family home. We all want the same thing.
Damon’s phone buzzes, slicing through the quiet. He checks the screen. “It’s my buddy. Let’s see what he has to say.”
All thoughts of the future fade. Right now, all that matters is getting Mia and the girls back.
CHAPTER 24
MIA
I’ve learneda lot from Asher, Zane, and Damon. How to spot an exit without looking. How to measure the weight of a gun in someone’s waistband. How to breathe through fear without letting it show.
Jason thinks he’s the only one in control here. But I’m watching. Taking inventory. The number of men outside, how often they switch shifts. The way the cabin creaks when the wind blows, where the floorboards are loose. I watch Jason, too—how he moves, when he’s distracted, the moments when he’s careless. Because therearemoments. And I only need one.
The girls are watching, too.
They play their parts so well—scared little girls who need their mother, who needhim. Emma clings to my side, eyes wide and trembling, while Ella lets him pour her a glass of milk with shaky hands. Jason eats it up. He’s always loved control, and nothing feeds that ego more than feeling needed.
But he doesn’t see the way Emma studies the doors, how she shifts her weight like she’s measuring the best way to run. He doesn’t catch Ella’s fleeting glances at the men outside, quietly tracking their movements, counting them just like Zane taught her.
They’re learning. They’re waiting.
So am I.
I tuck Emma under my arm, stroking her hair, feeling the rapid rise and fall of her little chest as she breathes. Her fingers fist my shirt, clinging to me like I’m the only solid thing in her world. Jason watches us from across the room, leaning back in his chair like a king surveying his kingdom.
“You see, Mia, isn’t this nice? I can give you everything those men never can. Fucking them must have been nice, though. You were always a naughty girl.”
My face throbs. “Jason, please. Not in front of the kids.”
Ella drops her spoon into the bowl of soup, flinching when Jason turns his body towards her.
“I’m sorry,” she says in a small voice.
He softens.Fucking bastard. Helikesthis. Likes that he thinks they’re weak, that they’re bending to him.
“That’s okay, sweetheart,” he says, reaching across the table to ruffle her hair. She stiffens but doesn’t pull away.
I grip Emma tighter, feeling the way her little body coils like a spring, ready to bolt. She keeps her face buried in my side, but her eyes flick toward the window. She’s been tracking the guards. Studying the way they rotate shifts. The way one of them always lights a cigarette near the back porch, disappearing into the trees for a few minutes.
Ella lets Jason finish smoothing down her hair, then turns back to her soup. The moment his attention drifts, she casually shifts her chair back an inch. Testing the floorboards. Checking for creaks.
A test run.
Emma’s hand tightens around my shirt. Her small fingers trace patterns on the fabric in quick, subtle movements.
Two outside. One left, one smoking.
She doesn’t even realize she’s doing it, mimicking the way Zane used to sketch routes in the dirt with his knife. I squeeze her gently, letting her know I understand.
Jason stands by the window, peering out into the tree line like he expects someone to materialize from the shadows. His fingers drum against his thigh impatiently. I don’t know what he’s looking for. Maybe his guards checking in, maybe just the satisfaction of knowing no one is coming for me.
