“You fucked with the wrong family,” I spit in his ear, then twist violently, snapping his neck and watching as his weight takes him down the stairs limply. Relief floods me instantly.
It’s finally over.
That truth settles in the empty space as if I’d opened a window. I can breathe easier. There are no other surprises or corners to look around. The last real threat is gone, and all that’s left is the miniscule problem downstairs. I rest against the wall, pulling out my phone and calling my dad, needing to know that they’re safe. It rings only half a time before the line clicks.
“Did you get Ian?”
Dad grunts a subtle ‘mhm.’
“Yes, he’s been handled, as well as his friend that was waiting in the parking lot.”
My heart beats a little harder. There was someone else? Is there more? I had almost completely forgotten about Michael, the other traitor that left with Satori when he ran from the Attic. Did they recruit more?
“What—”
“You can thank your mother for that one,” he interrupts. I stand completely unmoving as my mind flips through thepossibilities of what else could happen. “As far as anyone else is concerned, he tried to mug her when she was walking to the car.”
“How the fuck did they find out we’re here?” I run my hand through my hair, already stepping up the stairs, desperate to get back to Ashia and Emma.
“Well, you see, son, Ian was very cooperative in his final moments—which is how we knew about his friend.” Dad clears his throat. “Tony’s officerdidsee Satori in the railyard, and when you and your men went to investigate yesterday, they swiped a phone from one of the HEMTs.”
Dread fills me and creates a new urgency in my movements.
“They saw the picture I sent earlier… Whose phone did they take?” I seethe. It’s part of our protocol that cell phones stay on our person at all times to have accurate locations…and for situations just like this. It’s an innocent mistake that could’ve cost us everything.
“Don’t worry about that right now, son. Let Zeke handle it.”
“I need to know if there’s more of them,” I demand.
“Alex is already on his way to the location Ian disclosed. Before his last breath, he swore there wasn’t anyone else, but we’re smart enough to check anyway.” I take a deep breath through my nose and stop just before the fourth-floor door, knowing I need to get it together before I return to them. “Your men and I will handle the rest. Get back to Ashia, take care of your family, and for God’s sake, don’t leave that room again until you hear from me.”
Chapter 42
Ashia
‘All That You Want’ – sØd ven
Every breath I take is as deep as I can make it, desperate to inhale more of this intoxicating baby smell. Each hit sends a calming wave through my body, as if nothing could ever be wrong again. I can’t take my eyes off of her. As I study her cute little features, I’m constantly deciding who that one characteristic mimics. I think she has my nose, but she definitely has Damien’s eyebrows, even being as blonde as they are. She also clearly got her hair from him, despite how dark his is. I was shocked to see the pale blonde fuzz, but at least all of that heartburn makes sense now. It’ll most likely darken as she gets older, but a part of me hopes it doesn’t.
She’s so beautiful and sweet, completely untouched by the horrors of this world. I’m determined to shield her from it forever. A part of me thought I would taint her with my past, that all of my dark thoughts and memories would seek her out to find a new host, but I haven’t even thought of them. I haven’t thoughtof anything else. It’s all so quiet, now. All that matters is the love that we have for her. My demons can’t touch her. I’ll never let them break free. Even as her itty-bitty hand twitches against the scar on my chest, the bad feelings are gone. It just reminds me of the journey we had to go through to have her, and my position on it hasn’t changed.
I wouldn’t change a single thing about our story. Our connection was always meant to survive, no matter what was thrown at us, and it’s led us here…to this perfect little girl. The love we share was always meant to bloom into something we couldn’t contain with just ourselves. We had to share it with the perfect little combination of us both, and now my heart is just overflowing with it.
“Which outfit do you want for her once she gets a bath?” Serena whispers as she scrounges through our bags.
“Will any of them fit? She’s so small...”
“They’ll be a little big, but they’ll help keep her warm.” Serena shrugs and starts laying the outfits down on the countertop. She tries to be discreet, sneaking little glances at Emma every few seconds like she’ll reach out for her the moment she breaks her concentration.
“It’s killing you, isn’t it?”
“Yes!” she whines and pouts, turning toward us and dramatically flailing her hands. “She’s just so tiny and adorable—just like a little gummy bear…” I’m shocked when she actually tears up. “Themomentsomeone else can hold her, I get first dibs, right?”
“You practically saved us from a horrible experience here. Of course, you get dibs.” I smile at her, both loving and hating that she has to wipe a tear from her cheek. “Are you really crying?”
“I can’t help it…” She smiles at me with a quivering bottom lip. “You just look so happy…” I hold her gaze, feeling more grateful for her than I ever have before. It could be because I’m ragingwith hormones, but I’m pretty sure it’s just because I’m thinking of the past several hours, and how hard she fought for us. We may have our ups and downs, but just as I would do for her, she’s ready and willing to go to war when I need her. My best friendactuallyloves me as much as I do her, and that only makes me feel even more gushy.
“I am really happy.”
