Page 124 of Dirty Mechanic

My stomach sinks.

“He looked at me like I was the answer to every twisted question he ever had. I can’t stay here and wait for him to find me again. I need space. A chance to have...any kind of life after this. Caroline and Emma are arranging protective custody or a safe house until Rick’s caught. Unless he shows up to court, which... I doubt.”

I squeeze her hand tighter. “No. Stay in Lords Valley. It’s your home. We’re your family.”

But Misty shakes her head. “Everything I’ve lost is here,” she says. “And I’m tired of losing. We don’t know when Blake will wake up and I need space. I need... To breathe.”

The ache in my chest sharpens, like grief grinding bone against bone.

Derek reaches over the bedrail and takes her other hand. “You don’t have to do it alone. We’ll protect you. You shouldn’t be out there without backup.”

Misty shakes her head. “I need to not be hunted. Just for a while. I need to find out who I am when I’m not… Someone else’s secret.”

Derek leans forward, elbows on his knees, head bowed like he’s praying for the right words. His fingers rake through his hair before he looks up, eyes glassy but steady. “Please stay until Blake wakes up. He’s going to need you.”

“Then I’ll come back,” Misty whispers. “But right now, I’m falling apart. And I don’t want to do it here.”

I swallow hard. “You’re family, Misty. No matter where you are.”

A tear rolls down Misty’s cheek, but she doesn’t wipe it away. “I know. I still have to leave after the hearing. I’ll wait to testify,” Misty says, her voice low but firm. “But after that… I’m gone.”

Her fingers curl around the wheelchair’s armrest.

I want to argue, but I see it in her face. She’s already halfway gone.

“Please stay until Blake wakes up,” I whisper.

“If he wakes, I’ll come back,” she says.

Caroline checks her phone. She smiles, and her tone softens

“Let’s get you two uncuffed, at least.” She presses the nurse call button. “Emma posted bail. Pulled strings. It’s done.”

The cuffs click loose. My wrist tingles where the metal sat. Freedom smells like antiseptic and hope.

For a second, I can’t process the words. My mind trips over the shift—from locked down to free, from waiting for a war to walking out the door. Emma pulled this off? I didn’t even know I was still holding my breath until it finally breaks.

The cuffs fall away minutes later with a soft clink. But the sound is louder than it should be. Freedom tastes like rain-cooled air and sugar on the tongue.

I fall into Derek’s arms as soon as the IV’s disconnected.

“I thought I lost you,” he whispers, thumb brushing away the hair on my forehead.

The doctor hesitates, clearly not thrilled about releasing any of us. Derek’s still healing from cracked ribs. Misty’s had surgery. And I nearly drowned. But Emma steps in with that unstoppable Silver authority and a credit card that could probably pay off the hospital’s roof repairs. She’s already arranged for a full-time private nurse to monitor us at the farm—someone trained in post-op care and trauma observation.

Caroline, of course, pounces on the legal angle, citing bail terms, civil liability, and the fact that we’re not technically under arrest anymore. Within the hour, she’s fast-tracked the discharge paperwork with a speed I didn’t think was possible outside a hostage negotiation.

“You’ll be under close medical supervision,” the doctor warns, looking directly at Misty. “She needs help bathing, dressing, pain control—full post-surgical support.”

“We’ve got it covered,” Emma says. “The nurse already has hospital clearance. She’ll follow your instructions to the letter. We’re setting up a hospital bed in the Fields’ living room. Better for her arm. And no stairs.”

Misty raises a brow. “You planned all that already?”

“Of course,” Emma says. “You think I was going to let you convalesce in a jail cell or a hospital bed?”

The doctor finally nods. He scribbles something on his chart and exhales like we’re no longer his problem.

“Fine. Go. But rest. All of you.”