Page 105 of Royal Bargain

“I’m sorry, Lily. I didn’t mean to scare you,” I whisper, holding her close. My breath shudders out of me. “I’m just—fuck, I’m just scared too.”

Scared doesn’t even begin to cover it.

I’m scared something’s happened to her.

Scared I missed the signs.

Scared I wasn’t enough to make her stay.

I rock Lily gently, pressing my cheek to the top of her head. She’s still sniffling, her tiny fingers curled against my chest,and it kills me—kills me—that she’s here crying because I lost control.

“I don’t know where she is,” I whisper into the silence. “I don’t know if she left because she wanted to or because someone made her. And I don’t know which of those terrifies me more.”

My voice breaks on the last word.

Because if Ana left on her own, what does that say about me? About us?

But if she didn’t… if someone took her?—

I don’t know if I’ll get to her in time.

And I don’t know what happens to either of us if I don’t.

I pace the floor with her in my arms, rocking gently, trying to soothe her. Her cries slow to hiccupping sobs against my shoulder as I whisper anything and everything to her—soft promises, desperate reassurances, words I wish Ana could hear too.

And then,

Buzz.

Buzz. Buzz.

I freeze.

The sound’s coming from the floor where my phone hit the wall.

I cross the room with Lily in one arm and crouch to pick up the pieces. The screen’s cracked but still lit, the haptic feedback vibrating against my palm.

I crouch to pick up the phone, balancing Lily in one arm, and swipe across the shattered screen. The cracks spiderweb through the glass, distorting the messages—but I can still make them out.

Blocked Number.

She asks too many questions.

Curiosity’s a dangerous thing, Liam.

Come find her—if you can.

My stomach drops.

My breath leaves me in a sharp exhale, and Lily squirms, sensing the tension radiating off me.

I clutch her to my chest, then force myself to move. I carry her back to the bedroom and lay her gently in the crib. She fusses, a soft whimper bubbling up, but I press a kiss to her forehead and whisper, “Daddy’s gotta go find Mama, sweetheart. I’ll be back.”

I’m already halfway down the hallway when I shout, “One of you—get in here!”

The guards stumble in from the hallway, startled.

“Watch her,” I bark, motioning to Lily. “Don’t leave that room. I don’t care if the building’s on fire—you don’t leave her. You understand me?”