She needed a choice.
What she was asking for wasn’t permission to be reckless. It wasn’t bravado or some bullshit need to prove she was tough. She wanted tools. Knowledge. The ability to move instead of freeze. Not because someone else told her to, but becauseshedecided to.
That was different.
And if I kept treating her like something fragile that had to be guarded instead of someone who could be trained, I’d just be building another cage around her. A quieter one. One that felt like safety until it didn’t.
I wouldn’t do that to her.
Not ever.
So when I said I’d stay with her while she learned, I meant it differently than I ever had before.
Not in front of her.
Beside her.
A sound echoed from the clubhouse. Cap calling for church.
Amanda flinched so hard she stumbled. I caught her hip with one hand, steadying her.
Her eyes darted toward the building. Too many voices. Too many footsteps. Too many closed spaces.
“Hey,” I murmured, thumb brushing her side. “Look at me.”
She did.
“You sit next to me. Nothing happens to you.”
Her lips parted like she wanted to argue but couldn’t find the strength. She just nodded.
We started back toward the building. Ranger fell in step behind us, silent. Smoke kept brushing his body against Amanda’s leg, checking in every few steps.
When we hit the porch, she hesitated. I pressed my hand to her spine, not pushing. Just reminding her she wasn’t walking in alone.
She straightened her shoulders and walked inside.
But halfway across the common room, she froze again. Not fear this time, but recognition.
Ariel was standing near the kitchen doorway talking to Brutus, her expression worried. The moment she saw Amanda, she hurried over and wrapped her arms around her sister.
“Amanda,” Ariel breathed. “You scared the hell out of us.”
Amanda hugged her back, tight. “I know. I’m sorry. Cap shouldn’t have let you come back here. You should’ve stayed at the safe house.”
Ariel pulled back, eyes sharp. “Yeah, well, Cap didn’t ask. He wanted me where the boys could watch me. Especially after you—” She stopped herself. “I’m just glad you’re here.”
Amanda’s eyes flicked to me, then back to her sister. “I didn’t mean for any of this?—”
Ariel squeezed her hand. “I know. None of this is your fault.”
Brutus called Ariel back into the kitchen. She went reluctantly, glancing over her shoulder at Amanda like she didn’t trust the air around her.
When the door swung shut behind Ariel, Amanda sagged slightly.
“She shouldn’t have to worry about me like that,” she whispered.
“She’s your sister,” I said. “Worrying is in the damn job description.”
