“Because there is no world where we don’t.”
The conviction hits something hollow inside me.
But it’s not enough when all I can see is Lily in the dark.
Lily with no shoes.
Lily terrified.
Lily alone.
I suck in a jagged breath, then another, pushing the world back into focus.
Liam clears his throat. “We need to think like them. If they moved her fast, if they needed somewhere quiet, somewhere they know, somewhere off-grid—”
There’s a heavy beat of silence as we try to follow his train of thought.
“The old mental facility in Liverpool,” Owen fills in, voice low. “Where they took Cora, it’s a reach, but if this is all tied to the same monster—”
“It’s not a reach. It’s perfect. Why the hell didn’t we think about that before?” My voice slices the air, cutting him off before he can finish. I push to my feet too fast, the world spinning for a second as blood rushes to my ears. “If they’ve used it before, they’ll use it again.”
Jonathan steps toward me. “Matt—”
“We’re wasting time.” I shove past him, momentum burning through me. “Get the others to meet us there. Tell them to bring all the guns and manpower they can. We’re going now.”
“You need to slow down,” he says, following. “Think strategically—”
“I’m not slowing down.” I whirl on him, fury and terror twisting so tight I can’t separate them. “It’s a four-hour drive and every minute we stand here is another minute she’s scared or hurt or—”
My throat locks up. A brutal, suffocating clamp.
“I’m not losing her again,” I choke, breath stuttering. “Ican’t.” My chest burns with the mere idea of it. “I’m not like you, I won’t survive that. A life without her isn’t one I can live through.”
Jonathan’s expression softens for a fraction of a second—pity, sympathy, and something that makes my skin crawl. I don’t need gentle. I need momentum. Blood. Answers. Action.
Liam clears his throat, stepping in before the moment can crack me open any further. “I’ll ring Aidan,” he says, already pulling out his phone. “Get him to pass it on to Ciaran and Brennan. Tell them to head for Liverpool.”
His eyes meet mine, steady and certain. No pity, just intent and a silent promise to do whatever it takes.
“We’ll find her, Matt.”
I nod, barely hearing him over the roar of my pulse. My hands won’t stop shaking and my mind won’t stop racing.
But I put one foot in front of the other and move.
Because four hours or forty, nothing is stopping me from getting to her.
We pile into the SUV. Doors slam, the engine roars to life. Someone—Liam, maybe Jonathan—starts talking about tactics, layout maps, entry routes, how we’ll sweep the facility without alerting whoever’s inside.
But it’s all static, meaningless white noise.
All I hear is Lily.
Her laugh.
The way my name sounds on her lips.
Every torturous little moan and gasp I’ve ever dragged out of her.
