Page 30 of No Mistakes (No Mercy #2)

EVA

The kitchen smells like garlic, butter, and roasted meats. Mandy stands beside me, barefoot, dancing around the kitchen island, listening to ‘Stolen Dance’ by Milky Chance, while stirring a sauce with the confidence of someone who’s always belonged here.

After hours of scrubbing dust off surfaces and throwing out expired cans, we’ve somehow made this house comfortable again.

At one point, Mandy and I left the boys to clean while we refilled the house with food, drinks, toilet roll, and the everyday essentials.

When we returned, it was like the Ashford brothers had never shopped for food in their lives with the way some of them jumped at the bags.

“I can’t believe we did all this in a day,” Mandy says, tossing a piece of thyme into the bubbling pot and grinning over her shoulder at me. I try and return her energy, smiling and nodding along, but inside of me, something feels wrong as my mind drifts back upstairs, to that room. To Axel.

I saw him sitting on the edge of his bed, his eyes empty as he looked around. Something inside him shifted when he was in that room, like something haunted him, and the need to protect him for whatever it may be grows every second.

“What are you thinking about?” Mandy asks, breaking the silence as she leans a hip against the counter, drying her hands with a towel.

“Axel,” I admit softly, knowing I don’t need to pretend with her. “I saw him in his old room. He looked… I don’t know. Not sad, but broken. Like he didn’t belong in his skin.”

Mandy’s expression shifts, curious but careful. “You think something happened in that room?”

I sigh, “Not just the room, but the whole house. Something bad happened here.”

She doesn’t push. Instead, she just nods, understanding the weight behind the words I haven’t said yet.

I pick up the knife, returning to chopping vegetables, letting the sound of the knife against the cutting board fill the space between us.

But even the rhythm can’t drown out the void of Axel’s silence earlier.

The way he sat on that bed, shoulders hunched like he was bracing for something to hit him… It stuck with me.

He’s always been unreadable. Secretive, sharp-edged, impossible to figure out. But something changed when we arrived here. This house didn’t just open old wounds. It stripped him bare, revealing a side that I never expected to see, and I witnessed it right in front of me.

I should hate him. I told myself I did. After everything he put me through… The secrets, the betrayal, the way he made me feel like I was just another piece in his fucked up game. I should want to stay away from him.

But I don’t.

I want to be near him, even if I don’t understand it.

He needs me, just like I need him.

There’s something in the way he looked at that room, like he was trying to survive the memory of something no one else could see. And maybe it’s crazy, maybe I’m a fool, but part of me thinks I’m supposed to be the one who helps him face it. I just hope he gives me the chance by letting me in.

“Eva?” Mandy’s voice pulls me back, and I blink, realising I’ve been standing with a carrot in my hand for far too long.

“Sorry,” I murmur, forcing my hands to move again, to keep up the act that everything is okay. “Just… thinking.”

She watches me for a moment longer, her mouth opening slightly like she’s about to push for more information, but she stops herself, turning back to the food.

A pang of guilt hits my chest as I realise I never asked her how her night went with Ant. I’ve been so caught up in Axel, I forgot her.

I watch as her dark hair sways across her back as she moves side to side, feeling the music.

“So…” I start, placing the knife down, angling my body towards her. “I heard you had a good evening with Ant last night.”

She looks over her shoulder, a confused look on her face. “Why did you say it like that?”

I give her a look, tilting my head slightly, and she drops the wooden spoon, covering her face with her hands. “Oh my fucking god,” she says, muffled behind her palms. “I didn’t think anyone would know.”

“I didn’t,” I say, letting the pause stretch. “But I heard you.”

Her hands drop just enough for me to see the horror in her eyes. “You heard us?”

I shrug, fighting the smirk threatening to tug at my lips. “In my defence, Axel and I were walking back to the room. No exactly my fault you two forgot how walls work.”

Mandy groans, spinning around to bury her face in the crook of her arm. “I am going to die. Right here. In this kitchen. Bury me with the garlic bread.”

I laugh, shaking my head, but the sound fades almost as quickly as it came. Because underneath the teasing, there is something else. Happiness.

Mandy’s happiness matters more to me than I think I’ve ever said out loud. She’s carried so much, been forced to grow up too fast, to watch her own back when no one else would. And now that she has someone, even if it’s complicated. I want her to have it all.

Because if anyone deserves to be chosen without question, it’s her.

The dining table is mismatched, one of the legs wobbles, and half of the chairs don’t match, but there’s something about the imperfection that makes it feel… normal. For once.

Carter takes the seat at the head of the table, Ant beside him, silent but sharp-eyed. Gunnar slouches with a bowl of potatoes in one hand and a fork already in the other.

Axel and Flynn walk in last, Axel’s presence putting the air just a little tighter. He stands behind Carter, resting a hand on the chair, clearing his throat.

Carter looks behind him, groaning, “Just for one night, let me have this moment.”

Axel laughs, shaking his head. “Beat it.”

Carter grumbles, picking up his plate before moving to the empty seat opposite Ant. Flynn sits next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “One day you’ll get to play boss outside of your bedroom,” he teases, while Carter shoves his hand off, reaching for the vegetables.

Mandy slides a platter of roasted chicken into the centre of the table, its skin golden, juices pooling at the base. “You’re welcome,” she grins, dropping into the seat next to Ant, bumping her shoulder into his like she’s been doing it her whole life.

The boys dig in fast, as if they haven’t eaten in days, and judging by the state of their idea of a shopping list, maybe they don’t know how. I take my time, listening more than speaking. The sounds of cutlery scraping plates and the occasional grunt of appreciation fills the space.

“You did good,” Carter says around a mouthful, glancing between Mandy and me, giving us a thumbs up. “Almost made me forget we’re on the edge of war.”

“High praise,” Mandy says, winking towards him while sipping from her wine glass.

Axel’s voice cuts in, catching everyone’s attention. “It won’t be long before we’re spotted. People talk. Especially around here.”

He doesn’t look at me when he speaks, but his words wrap around my spine like a chill.

Carter nods. “We need eyes. Surveillance, fast. I’ll sort some outside contacts in the city-”

“No,” I cut in, setting my fork down. “That’s our job.”

Everyone stops, all eyes landing on me.

Mandy nods, “We’ll do it. The two of us can blend better than any of you.”

Axel lifts his gaze, eyes narrowing on me. “This isn’t a game, Eva.”

I meet his stare head-on. “You think I don’t know that?”

He doesn’t answer, but the twitch in his jaw tells me he’s holding something back. Maybe anger. Maybe fear.

“Look,” I continue, pushing forward, looking at everyone individually. “You said it yourself… People talk. And they’ll talk more freely to two women who don’t look like muscle. Mandy and I can go into hops, bars, bakeries, and corner stores. Ask questions without raising suspicion."

“I already had a quick scope of the area when we went to the store earlier,” Mandy adds, shrugging like it’s obvious. “And I’m good at getting people to talk.”

“You’re not trained for this type of surveillance,” Carter says gently, like he’s trying to be the voice of reason.

I scoff at the fact that he thinks we’re not capable of doing anything at this level. “No,” I say. “We’re better. We’re unknown. It’s our job to be invisible, and that’s what we need.”

Gunnar grins, picking up a piece of chicken on his fork. “Honestly? It’s kinda hot watching you two take over the damn table like this.”

Mandy throws a napkin at him, and the tension cracks just slightly.

Axel leans back in his chair, arms crossed, still staring at me like he’s trying to solve a puzzle he didn’t mean to start. I don’t flinch, matching his gaze in our stare-off.

I’m not the same girl who got left behind. In those few days, I changed, remembering who the fuck I am, and I won’t be sidelined again.

Not by him.

Not by any of them.

Axel places his cutlery down, leaning back on his chair. “Well then, since that’s settled. I guess it’s time for dessert with a side of emotional damage.”

He lifts his glass in a mock toast. “Bon appétite.”