Page 90 of Finding Denver

“You won’t do a damn thing, Colt. This isn’t your war to fight. It’s Denver’s.” I open my mouth to argue back, but he raises a hand. “This could be her only chance for closure. You’re not taking that from her. You’re angry, we all are, but it is not your blood to spill.”

I straighten up off the side and turn my back to him, trying to calm myself. A whisper at the back of my brain tells me he’s right, but my muscles are taut, and my mind is racing, and I keep hearing Denver’s voice as she asks over and over where Theo is.

“He’s right, darling,” Helena says softly.

I face them. “Then tell me what I’m supposed to do. Tell me what to do while she falls to fucking pieces.” I look desperately at Finn, my throat tight, my hands shaking. “Tell me, because I can’t stand here and do nothing.”

Helena goes to Lewis. “I’ll show you to a room, Lewis. You’ll be right next to Denver, okay?” He glances at me before following Helena, leaving Finn and I alone.

The man whose advice I seek and respect approachesme and grips my shoulder. My father, even though we’ve never said the words. And I need him now more than ever, because I’ve been this lost before, but never because of someone else’s pain.

“You’re there for her if she needs you. But you follow her lead.”

I meet his eye. “I can’t believe he’d do that to her.”

He exhales deeply. “Some men are pushed to atrocities. Some have it in their blood. Looks like Ranger lives and fucking breathes it.”

Chapter 22

Colt

Two days pass and Denver doesn’t move. A doctor tells us to encourage her to eat and drink, keep her company and reassure her, and that’s all we can do.

She sleeps so deeply that she doesn’t stir when any of us sit with her. When she’s awake, she talks to herself, always about Theo. Alistair has located him in Florida, and I can only imagine Ranger wanted him as far from Denver as he could get. He’s a healthy three-year-old, and from the photos, he seems happy. The couple who adopted him had exceptional references, and from their social media posts, they seem like a happy family.

They have no idea the child they adopted was stolen.

Ranger called Denver repeatedly the first day, and I wonder if he somehow knows, or if this is how it’s been since she left him.

Lewis is so wrapped up in watching Denver that I don’t ask.

I’m in the TV room at the McEwans’ after a long day when Ronan claps me on the back. “How is she?”

I exhale as he sits beside me on the couch. “The same.”

It’s day three. I heard the en suite door in her room open and close earlier, but then she got right back into bed.

“You here to see Finn?” I ask.

“Picking up Holly,” he says. “Where is she?”

Holly has spent the day here and asked to see Denver, but I said she needed rest. Apparently, she didn’t heed that. I hear my niece quietly talking above us and sigh, getting up and taking the stairs two at a time to reach Denver’s open door.

Holly’s back is to me as she lies on her side, facing Denver. “Do you like it?”

“I love it, thank you,” Denver says, her voice raspy. She plays with a colorful bracelet on her wrist, one Holly asked me if she could give to Denver earlier.

Holly plays with Denver’s hair. “Is your brain busy?”

My heart aches at the words, and Denver nods, her voice breaking. “It is.”

“What three things do you like in here?”

I close my eyes and rub my face, tears burning.

“I love my new bracelet,” Denver says. “I really like this pillow. And you.”

Holly giggles. “I like that I’m on your list.”