A crackle, then Zoe's voice comes through, clear and calm: "Eyes reporting. Package is secure. Nanny did the nine p.m. check-in. He's asleep."
An immense weight immediately lifts off my chest, knowing Hale is safe and asleep far away from all of this.
"Once Keira's off the boat, Zoe grabs Hale from the hotel," Dom adds. "They rendezvous at the marina and head straight to the safe house in Connecticut. By the time you're done with Calder, your family will be waiting for you."
My family.
The words still sound so foreign, so unique. Something so sacred I know I have to protect with everything I have.
"The timeline is a bit tight," I say. "If anything shifts?—"
"It won't. It needs to be tight because we want the element of surprise." Aaron grips my shoulder. "We've run ops like this before. Trust the plan. Trust us."
I nod. "You know I do."
The plan is solid. Every variable accounted for.
So why can't I shake the feeling that we're missing something?
I straighten, rolling the tension out of my shoulders. "Let's do this."
There's a weighted pause in the room, as if we're all holding our breath.
Then Dominik's voice breaks the silence. "After tonight, you get your happily ever after, Tristan. And you deserve every bit of it."
Something I never allowed myself to want, but am so desperately ready to have. I'm going to love them, protect them, give them everything I couldn't before.
For the rest of my life.
And forever after that.
FIFTY-THREE
TRISTAN
When I get back to the main deck, the crowd has swelled, and the music pulses loudly through the speakers. The alcohol and drugs are fully flowing now, and quite a few people are putting on a show in small corners around the room.
Keira is exactly where I left her, but Calder is nowhere in sight. She's standing in front of Marchetti, spine rigid, wearing a smile so tight it looks painful. He's leaning into her space, and I want to snap his neck right off his head in this room full of people.
That would be a great way to start this night.
Calder finally walks in from the opposite side, seeming to be in conversation with a group of men I haven't seen before. His posture has loosened a bit. He looks almost relaxed.
Maybe the weird feeling eating at my insides has nothing to with him and everything to do with what's about to happen.
I know we have enough backup and experience to pull this off, but Keira's here—and I can't stand the thought of a single thing going wrong.
"Ghost to Queen." I angle my head down, lips barely moving. "Back in position."
Cat's response comes immediately. "Don't know who that is, but copy. Ninety minutes to lockdown."
The time drags on like never before.
I track Keira as she moves through the crowd, always keeping Calder in her peripheral, always anticipating his needs before he voices them. She's done this a thousand times. The performance is seamless. But I know her well enough now to see the cracks as obvious as day.
Last time, Red. This is the very last time.
Something about the security detail bothers me.
