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I wake up alone, the sheets cold beside me. I sit up as I try to orient myself. The clock on my nightstand reads 2:57 AM. Oscar and Z must have slipped out sometime after I fell asleep, probably to meet up with Alex and Talon for one last rundown of the plan.

Anxiety coils beneath my skin, a constant, low-level hum that won't let me settle. I swing my legs over the side of the bed, feeling the chill of the hardwood against my bare feet. The oversized t-shirt I’m wearing offers little protection against the cool air. I pull it down over my thighs and pad down the hallway, the apartment silent around me.

I bypass the living room and head straight for the kitchen. I pull open the freezer and grab a pint of lavender honey ice cream that Talon keeps stocked for me. The first few bites melt quickly on my tongue. My mind is racing, a chaotic whirl as I lean against the counter, the spoon poised between my lips.

Ice cream has always made me feel better, a temporary balm for the unease knotting my stomach. But tonight, even its soothing sweetness can't distract me from the enormity of what's coming. The auction. Luca. The Collector. It's all so close and the stakes are high.

Worry gnaws at the edges of my thoughts. What if something goes wrong? What if Alex's carefully constructed plans crumble? What if we spend all that money and don’t find Luca? Or if we do, the brother I knew is gone. Changed by whatever horrors The Collector has inflicted on him?

Strong arms slip around my waist, drawing me toward them.

“Couldn’t sleep?” Talon asks, resting his chin on my shoulder.

“Drowning my worries in ice cream,” I admit, feeling the tension in my muscles start to unwind under his touch. “It’s not working.”

“Mind some company?”

I pass him the spoon, relaxing against the solid warmth of his chest. His presence is calming, like tomorrow won’t crush us after all.

“Are the others still up?” I ask, watching as he takes a bite.

“They’re making sure everything is in place. Putting plans C and D together in case things go sideways.”

“And you?”

“Making sure you’re okay,” he says, a teasing edge to his voice. “And stealing your ice cream.”

I try to smile, but it’s forced, brittle. Talon reads me too well for it to go unnoticed.

“It’ll be okay, princess” he tells me. “We have a plan, and we have you. Those two things pretty much guarantee success.” He sets the ice cream down and spins me to face him, his expression shifting from lighthearted to serious. “We’re going to get him back. You know that, right?”

I nod, but the fear hasn’t left me. “I just…I don’t know what I’d do if we lost him again. If after all of this, he’s still not safe.”

Talon cups my face. “We’ll figure it out. Together. We’ve been through worse than this.”

His certainty is a buoy, and I cling to it. “But what if?—”

Talon’s lips brush against mine, silencing my doubt. The kiss is tender, reassuring, the promise that whatever happens tomorrow, I won’t be facing it alone. When he finally pulls back, my head is swimming for reasons that have nothing to do with fear.

“But what if it isn’t?” I finish weakly.

“It will be,” he insists, his grin returning. “When have you known me to lie?”

“I mean, you did lie about the auction.”

“That was necessary, princess.”

“Still a lie. A pretty shitty one. You don’t have a poker face when it comes to lying.”

His chuckle vibrates through me. As we stand there, tangled together in the kitchen, I begin to believe him.

“You should get some sleep. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring once the auction is over.”

"I'm not tired," I insist, though we both know it's not entirely true.

“Want to be?” Talon sets the ice cream aside and scoops me into his arms.

A surprised laugh escapes as he lifts me onto the counter, my bare leg exposed between the hem of my t-shirt. He steps closer, the heat of him chasing away the chill from the kitchen.