Page 138 of The Defiant Curse

“Mom.”

Gene continued.

“We ask a lot of her. As a wife, as a mother, and as someone who flawlessly plans weddings, and parties, and as someone who shows up for her kids, ALL OF THEM. How about we cut her a fucking break, don’t bother her, and let her find herself? You didn’t see what she had to do. I did. I saw how it broke her, but she did it for the Marine who died, and the one who lost his girlfriend. She did it for the people of this country, and the family she carries. Let her have this and let him have it. She’s a fucking prisoner, and Ethan is going to make sure she survives all of this.”

Ivan was aware.

“But Ethan didn’t have to escape, either.”

He stops that.

“That’s his wife. The two of them built this family from the bottom up. He knows that each one of us is hurting her. So, of course, he wants to be with her to help her. If he didn’t go, we’d all think he was a shit husband. Maybe instead of dumping it all on the Raven, we join the flock and help her?”

They said nothing.

He pointed at Ivan.

“You’re out of control, Napoleon. You’re control freaking way too much, and it’s affecting her well-being. You’ve locked her down so hard she can’t breathe. She can’t be herself. She’s in a cage, Ivan, and that bird is slowly dying from that.”

Once he said it, they were all quiet.

As if he hadn’t said enough, he kept going to prove his goddamn point.

“When there’s a problem, who solves it?” Gene asked.

They all knew.

Her.

“When someone’s sad or needs Cupid, who carries it?” he asked.

And again, they all knew.

Her.

“It’s time we give her some space, and for her to want to go to these lengths should tell you all you need to know. For him to leave and get Raphael to lie says it all. She’d rather get hurt and die than keep doing this, and he’d rather get hurt and die than see her suffer. So, respectfully, back the fuck off of my husband and wife, or I’m firing you!”

With that, Gene lumbered out of the room to go to bed and get some sleep.

As he left, no one said anything, but when he wasn’t in earshot anymore, Chris went there.

“He’s right. She told me she can’t hold up anymore. We’re too much,” he admitted. “We’re suffocating her. She isn’t sure she wants to do this anymore, and Ethan saw that. He’s trying to be proactive. I support his choice, and that’s why I helped her slip away, and had he asked me, I would have helped him too. There’s a hierarchy in this family, Ivan. Between all of us, her partners, Ethan is just below her in it. This was his responsibility, and he’s doing what needed to be done. If he calls, Callen and I will be going, and so will Gene—without security on our asses! We’re making a stand on this one, so back off.”

Jesus Christ.

Ivan rubbed his temples.

From where he stood, Callen didn’t like any of this, especially the part where his wife walked away forever because they got a little too comfortable with her carrying all of the weight of the family for them.

“Ethan had a fight with her, and he wants to fix it,” Callen admitted. “We need to give them time to work through this. I’d hope if I hurt her, the people I call family would give me that same leeway. I’d hope Raphael would help me get to her.”

The man nodded.

“I absolutely would,” he reassured. “I’m doing this for mom, NOT Ethan, contrary to what everyone believes. While he’s my best friend, she’s my MOM.”

Well, then, he was a good man, because he’d done the job when they hadn’t.

Chris leaned against his other partner and reassured him.