Only shock.
And something else.
Understanding.
Havoc glances at me, and something passes between us. Silent. Familiar. The old language of men who have survived too much together.
Then he looks back at Ruby, and steps back out of the room, leaving us space.
Ruby’s eyes flick back to me.
I lower my head until my forehead brushes hers.
“It’s over. You hear me?” I murmur.
She nods, small and shaky.
Outside, boots crunch gravel. Low voices. Zip ties. Men learning too late what it means to be caught by Saints.
I pull her closer.
My voice drops, rough with truth.
“I’m sorry,” I say.
Ruby blinks up at me. “For what?”
“For this getting close to you,” I answer.
Her throat tightens. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“No,” I agree. “But it still came near you.”
My chest aches.
“I’m glad they were here. Because now maybe I can move on. Slowly.”
I close my eyes for a second.
“Yeah,” I say.
Because that’s the truth of it.
The Saints came.
The trap closed.
And the woman in my arms is still breathing.
Ruby tilts her face up to mine, eyes still wet, still shaken, but clear.
“I want to have you forever.”
The words hit deep.
Forever is a dangerous word in my world.
Men like me don’t trust it easy.
