Page 145 of The Crowned Garza

“Hmm?”

“I’m feeling really, really tired, so I’m going to close my eyes for a little bit, okay? Don’t go anywhere. Stay here with me, okay? I’ll be back soon, I pro… I promise.”

In the foggy space between conscious and unconscious, I hear her sniffle. “I’m not going anywhere,mio sogno. I’m never leaving you. Never.”

Those were all the words my brain needed to give up the fight and surrender to oblivion.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

“Break up with him.”

Tillie

SAINT IS OUT FORhours.

I’ve creep-watched this man sleep plenty of times and he’s never, ever slept so deeply, so soundly. Borderline comatose.

Outside the windows, the sky shifts from a rich blue with patches of white clouds, to a dull orange-yellow gradient, to a deep-purple hue, to a blanket of inky black dotted with twinkling stars.

And still, Saint sleeps.

In the absence of sunlight, his phones on the nightstand are impossible to ignore, flashing through the darkness like freaking Christmas lights.

Gingerly, I ease out of bed and pick up the one that’s been going off the most. There are notifications for over athousandmissed calls, mixed withhundredsof text messages, voicemails, and emails.

Insane.

My brothers’ names are in the mix. Even Sunny’s.

Oh shit,Sunny.She must be worried.

My attempts to unlock the phone are unsuccessful, so I trek over to the large arch windows and wait.

In less than a minute, it’s lighting up again.

True Garza calling…

“You’ve got some nerve, huh?” I answer in a hiss.

“T? Ah, thank fuck. Where are you? Where’s Guy?”

“You don’t even know?”These sons of bitches.Sorry, Mom.“Unbelievable. You don’t deserve the right to know.”

“Look, T, I know we fucked up, but we need Guy. Just got back to the headquarters and Red Cage is on fire. Tor’s overseas on a job and no one but Guy has contact access to him. Core Six won’t take directives from anyone but Guy. Two major assignments are stalled right now ’cause the commandos won’t move ahead without Guy or Core Six overseeing things. We need Guy to—”

“Oh? YouneedGuy, huh? You didn’t know that when you ganged up and beat him near to death? What, you expect him to just hobble back and be your bitch boy again?”

A contrite curse is followed by a heavy, audible exhale. “I’m sorry, T. I tried to stop them. But you know what Trent and Tripp are like. I feel so fucked up right now. I only intended to do a bit of roughhousing, that’s all. I didn’t expect—”

“Waahh, waahh, waahh. All I’m hearing right now is that your dick is small and you’re pissing yourself. Guy won’t be coming to your aid. You don’t deserve him. Let Red Cage fuckingburn.”

I end the call, then reject every other call that comes in over the next eleven minutes, until Sunny’s name is flashing on the screen.

“Tillie! Oh my God,whatis happening?” she exclaims when I answer. “I’ve been so worried. Guy called this morning and it sounded like he didn’t know where you were. Tripp walked in not too long ago looking like shit and asking for you. I’m so—hang on one second... Yeah? … True? ... Oh, okay. Yeah, I’m talking to her now... Tillie?”

“Hmm?”

“That was Tripp telling me True updated them in the chat that he got through to you and—”