Page 87 of After All The Wreckage

“Three years.” He said it instantaneously and without the least bit of embarrassment. “After Demi left, I had my hands full learning to take care of a baby. Later, I convinced myself I didn’t want to let more people in our lives who would leave again.”

The openness of his words was both a balm and a cruel jab I was sure he hadn’t intended. My thoughts returned to the ones I’d had the night before—all reasons why I should walk away before I hurt them. But the thought of leaving, of not seeing Gage and Monte and Ivy again, caused as much pain as the idea of turning off Mom’s life support.

My throat bobbed, and any response I might have given dried up. I looked away with my pulse hammering, taking in the industrial area we’d driven into. My eyes fell to the side mirror and landed on a large black vehicle several cars behind us. In D.C., black SUVs were the norm with the number of security teams trolling the city. But this looked decidedly like the grille of a F-150.

“Your turn,” he prompted, not letting me off the hook.

I wanted to say something light. Something funny that would keep the smile on his face, but all I could come up with was the truth. So, instead of watching my words rip the grin away, I watched the traffic behind us as I said, “Shay and Nan keep telling me I need to go out more, but the idea of trying to enjoy myself while Mom is lying in a bed unable to move… It just feels wrong.”

“It’s been almost a year, right? What are her chances?” he asked.

My chest squeezed tight. “The doctors have already given up. Dad gave up months ago. It was just Nan and me, but now…”

I still couldn’t look at him because if I did and I saw any kind of pity or caring, it would wreck me. I swallowed hard and breathed out the worst of it. “Now, Nan wants to take her off life support too.”

He inhaled softly as if feeling the blow as much as I did.

“I’m truly sorry you’re having to make that kind of decision, Rory.”

I finally turned away from the window to find he wasn’t looking at me but at the road ahead. I watched his profile as he drove. He looked so damn sturdy and stable. A rock radiating strength. What had he said to me last night?We’re strong alone… but imagine what we would be like if we shared our burdens.What would it be like? To have Gage at my side if the wind knocked me down?

I couldn’t think of it right now. All that mattered at the moment was getting the proof we needed to stop Dunn and West.

We pulled up in front of the first warehouse on the list to find it was a hive of activity. Vans with a cleaning company logo on the side zipped in and out of the parking lot. Not exactly a place you could bring a kidnapped teen—or hold a woman—without anyone noticing.

“I don’t think this is the place. I’ll check their financials and run any ties they might have to Dunn and Argento Skies, but this looks like a regular business.”

He nodded. “What’s the next address?”

I read it off, and he punched it into the GPS before flipping a U-turn and heading back in the opposite direction. My gaze caught on the black truck parked down the street. The man inside was a shadow, but he was wide enough to fill the space behind the driver’s wheel. He wore a baseball cap that he tugged as we drove by, blocking his face.

I snapped out a command over the GPS voice. “Take the next right.”

“What?”

“Gage, now, turn right.”

He did as I asked, tires screeching a bit.

“There! Pull over,” I said, pointing to an open slot among a row of cars parked along the curb. “Stay here!”

I jumped out. My hand immediately settled on the stun gun at my waistband as I ducked behind a sedan, grateful the rain had stopped for the moment. The street was quiet. Nowhere near the bustle of people there’d been outside the Argento Skies building. I’d barely inched forward to the edge of the sedan’s bumper when the black truck turned onto the street. The F-150 drove past Gage’s SUV and pulled in a few cars ahead of us.

I stayed low to the ground, glad in a way I rarely was for my small size. It allowed me to stay out of his rearview mirror while closing in on the truck. I’d just reached the tailgate when the cab door opened. I moved quickly and quietly, approaching the driver just as he slammed the door shut. I placed my stun gun on the back of his neck.

“Freeze, asshole.”

Both his hands went out.

“I can explain,” he said in a deep voice. He turned his head slightly toward me, and I caught sight of his aviators and the square face I recognized from the Space Force website.

“Why are you following us?” I demanded of Casada.

Behind me, I heard a door slam and Gage’s feet pounded as he ran up behind me.

“What’s going on?” Gage demanded.

“I need your help,” Casada said.