Page 264 of Blackwood

This isn’t some prophecy. It’s just betrayal. Right now. Right here. And it’s all I can focus on. But I can’t move. Because deep down, I know Sabine’s right. And that’s the part that fucking kills me.

I’d do anything to get Bella back. Burn cities. Break gods. Drag her soul out of hell myself if I had to. But I can’t. Because right now love isn’t the weapon she needs.

And fuck me, that might be the cruelest part of it all.

Chapter 71

CADE

Our Apartment

2 Days Since the Masquerade

The silence is a canvas, and the quiet is a deeper, more brutal kind of noise than any storm could ever be. Bella still hasn’t moved, not even a breath of a tremor. She’s a sculpture of grief on the couch, all sharp edges and delicate, curled-up lines. A piece of art frozen in its own story, and none of us have the heart to look away.

Knox clears his throat. “Sabine… take the girls upstairs. Please.”

Sabine clicks her tongue, low and sharp. “I’m not leaving until Bella has returned. Not a second before.”

Briggs steps forward. His quiet, calm certainty is a weapon more potent than any shout. “I’ll take them,” he states, his gaze sweeping over the room. “I’ll keep them safe.”

Knox nods. “Thank you.”

The girls don’t move. They don’t want to leave her—hell, none of us do—but they know. This isn’t something you watch. Not if you care about her. What’s coming, it’s raw and ugly. The kind of pain that leaves scars you can’t see.

Laing’s the only one who can take her there. He’s built for it, calm and unflinching. He’s the kind of man who knows exactlyhow to pull the rage out of someone without worrying about what comes next.

I hate him for it. I hate that he is the one that is going to do this.

But, more than anything, I hate that I’m grateful he’s here.

Briggs appears in the doorway and holds a hand out for the girls. “Come on, Ellie. Haley.”

Haley brushes a kiss to Bella’s temple, whispering something none of us hear. Ellie squeezes my arm as she walks by.

The second the door clicks behind them, Knox turns to Khoza and Rez and gives them a quick nod. They move toward Lex. One to the left. One to the right.

He stiffens instantly. “The fuck is this?”

“Lex,” Knox says gently, “you can’t interfere.”

Knox turns to Tex next. “Stand by Cade.”

Tex steps forward without a word. Just stands at my side like a goddamn wall.

Knox breathes in deep. Looks at all of us before looking at her. “Okay.” He nods once, a curt and final motion. “Laing… you’re up.”

Before Laing can move, Roman steps forward from the corner, voice clipped and too calm to be anything but uneasy. “Are we sure this is the right plan?” he says. “There has to be another way.”

The room freezes. Every breath held.

Daniel turns toward Roman. His tone is bone dry, laced with steel. “Back down, Roman. This is family business.”

Roman’s jaw tightens. “I am her family, Barinov. She’s my daughter.”

Lex snaps before anyone else can. “Not right now you’re fucking not.” His voice is a weapon, sharp and explosive. The kind of sound that makes the air pull back.

“Right now, she needs us,” Lex growls. “Not some ghost with perfect suits and a twenty-year absence.” He takes a step forward, Rez and Khoza tensing instantly. “So, unless you’ve figured out how to crawl inside her soul and pull the trauma out with your bare fucking hands, sit the fuck down and shut up.”