Ryker’s lips firmed. “I don’t like this, but throwing her off even just a little would be good for Talia. Even that would keep the baby alive and in Madison’s care.”
Denver hated that those words actually made sense. “I’ve never been good at keeping her out of my head,” he admitted. She’d treated him differently, as if there was a puzzle he needed to solve. Now he saw the whole picture, and he wanted to put his head through a wall.
“You were just a kid last time you tried,” Heath countered.
“Yeah.” He wasn’t a kid any longer, but he sure as shit felt like one. Denver set the laptop aside and looked at Cobb’s satellite phone. He was unsettled, and he wanted nothing more than to climb into bed with Noni and snuggle her close. Considering Anya was in there, he’d probably get punched by Heath if he tried. Yet he had todosomething.
His brothers waited patiently for him to decide. Covering him. Just being with him. Yeah. They had created themselves, and they’d formed a brotherhood. Madison couldn’t destroy that. Shaking out his hands, he reached for the phone and dialed the number.
“Denver,” Dr. Madison said smoothly. “How is my special boy?”
He stretched out his legs and let the fire lull him. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?” His chest hurt when he started talking. He was trying to out-manipulate a master, and he wasn’t that good. Nobody was.
“Your IQ is in the genius range, and you needed to figure it out yourself,” she said. “I’m rather disappointed you didn’t.”
He couldn’t find it in himself to care if he disappointed her. That was good, right? He tried to focus on his role. “Why are you up?” he asked wearily. Wherever she was, it was at least midnight. “It’s late.”
She chuckled. “I have work to do. Why are you up?”
“Can’t sleep,” he said somewhat honestly. “Finding out I have a mother who didn’t give a crap about me makes it hard to close my eyes.”
“The crass language is beneath you,” Madison said. “I cared, and I still do. That’s why I want you to come home.”
The words slithered around him. A dream that wasn’t true. She didn’t care about him and she never would, no matter how much he wished she did. His chest ached. He had to protect his brothers. They were his family. Period. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the sofa while his brothers remained silent. “Who was my father?”
“An MI6 soldier who died on a mission,” she said easily. “Good man, thoughtful lover.”
Denver heaved, and he swallowed down bile. “Did you love him?”
“No.”
Okay then. This woman had always frightened him—mainly because he felt a connection to her. Now he knew why. In his darkest hours, he’d tried to figure her out with no luck. If he could do so now, maybe he could finally be free of her. “Are you capable of love?” Vulnerability washed through him like a cold bath.
“Of course. In my way.” Ice clinked in a glass across the line. “You, out of all of my creations, are the one I did personally. You come from me.” She swallowed something. Probably a very expensive Scotch. “You don’t belong out in the world alone.”
He wasn’t alone. After all this time, how could she not realize that fact? Her words chilled him. She’d never understand, would she? “Let Noni have her baby, and I’ll come in.” He meant every word. If she’d give up the baby without a shot fired, then he’d gladly sacrifice himself. “It’s simple.”
“You’re speaking much more freely,” Madison said thoughtfully.
He blanched.
“Is it because of Noni? Are you in love?” Madison asked in her doctor voice.
He shuddered at the tone. “You think I’m capable of love?” She kind of knew him, right? Was he capable of love? Considering not only his lineage but his life? Yeah. There was a real honesty to the question.
She was silent for a moment. “No. Not really. You’re incapable of being with people long term. You’ll destroy any woman or child in your life because you won’t be accessible to them. Then you’ll leave them.” She sighed. “I understand you and want to work with you.”
He swallowed over a lump in his throat. The doctor had studied him since birth, and she had a pretty good grasp on him. But did she really see everything? There was no way to reach her. No way to reason with her. Worse yet, she was probably right. The idea made his entire torso hurt, and for a crappy second he felt eight years old again. Vulnerable and lost.
He was beyond fucked up.Lovewas just a pretty word for him. Reality was dark. But he couldn’t let Madison win. He wouldn’t.
As he thought the problem through, Heath’s laptop dinged. Heath stiffened and then spun it around, his mouth gaping.
Denver read quickly. Holy shit. There she was—somewhere in the south. Heath had finally found Sheriff Cobb on traffic cams and a couple of ATM cameras located between Snowville and Boise. They knew where Cobb and Madison were located.
He had to clear his throat to sound normal. “I want that baby safe.”
“Babies, babies, babies,” Madison muttered. “I am happy to give this child, this ordinary child, back to her mother. All I want is you.”
