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CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

“The things we fear the most have already happened to us.”

~ Robin Williams

Em

I didn’t feel anything when I went back upstairs. I saw Dafni, who apologized and hugged me, and I was once again amazed how someone who didn’t have the same blood running through my veins cared more than the ones who did.

Maeve hugged me too and wouldn’t leave my side for a while. Eventually, fresh-baked cookies and ice cream won out.

“You must be Em.” I looked up from my spot on the couch at a familiar face.

“Governor Hopper.” I stood.

“Please call me Eugene.” He held out his hand which I shook. “My son tells me you kept him sane and that you took the brunt of everything down there.” His eyes danced across my face, likely cataloging my injuries.

“I’m just really glad Andre is okay.”

“He is, thanks to you and Saros.”

I waved him off. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Yes, you did. Sometimes just being there is something, Em. Thank you for being with my boy.”

“Well, you’re welcome, I guess.”

Saros entered the room and walked right over to us. “I see you two have met.”

I glanced at his hands, where fresh bruises were blossoming. “Yes.”

“Sorry to have kept you waiting, Governor.”

“ Pfft , I have a feeling you have a lot on your plate right now. Everyone has been lovely. I do need to return home by the end of the day, and Andre’s mother wants to see him.”

“Of course. Shall we go into the study to discuss everything?”

“Sounds good.”

Saros rubbed my arm. “Do you want to come with us?”

“What for?”

“You’re involved in this, and you have a right to see it to the end.”

Part of me really didn’t want to go, but another part, one that desperately needed to heal whispered in my ear.

“Sure.”

I followed them to the study. Cosmo, Benny, and Mike were in there already, and I went over to the couch. I didn’t know what I had to contribute but just being there, knowing I was wanted, was enough for me.

“Ramsey can’t walk away from this, and jail will only breed more hate. Eventually, he could rise from it. Even if his power is only in prison, it could be enough to hit back.”

Eugene nodded. “So then what you’re telling me is that the location I provided you based on Ramsey’s intel was flawed? My son was there, but Ramsey Brookes was not?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

I didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to know the governor had just signed off on Ramsey’s death.

“However.” Saros sighed. “His son—there might be something fixable about him.” He met my gaze. “Em has a say here.”

RJ had been awful. But not always—he’d ignored me a lot, called me things. He’d maybe hit me once.

“I don’t ever want to see him again, but I don’t know if he’d have been a different person if he knew I was his brother. Ramsey wasn’t a father to anyone. I always wondered why RJ fucked up as much as he did in his life, and maybe it’s things I don’t understand.”

Eugene nodded. “What do you suggest, Saros?”

“I have an organization in Greece. I could give him a chance to prove he really can change. But he’ll only get one chance. I won’t risk another.”

Eugene pursed his lips and looked at me. “Do you agree?”

“Uh, yeah. I mean, that’s generous of you, Saros.”

“I just hope it doesn’t bite me in the ass.”

“What of Shyla?” Eugene asked.

“If she survives her detox, well, there’s nothing she has to come back to and unfortunately, she’d spill anything and everything for a bump.”

“I see.” The governor scratched his chin. “So Mr. and Mrs. Brookes couldn’t be found, then.”

And that sealed the deal on my parents.

“No, it seems they could not.” Saros handed Eugene a tumbler of whiskey. I wasn’t a fan, and Saros knew.

“Very good. Once I’m home I will make a statement, thanking you and your family for your help in recovering my son.”

“The good press is always appreciated.” Saros clinked his tumbler with Eugene’s, and they gulped down the liquid.

“I feel like we will do a lot of great things together, Mr. Tancredi.”

Saros smirked. “I certainly hope so.”

That night Saros held me, kissing me and making me feel only the good parts of this world. I didn’t ask what he was going to do with Ramsey or Shyla; I didn’t want to know. The end game would be the same, and details didn’t matter.

I woke alone in bed with a note on Saros’s pillow, reading that he’d return tomorrow. I didn’t rush to get up. I decided to be lazy. When I did finally tumble out of bed, I showered and changed and made my way downstairs.

Saros, Cosmo, and Benny were nowhere to be found, but Gino was. I overheard him talking to Dafni as I approached.

“The guys will be okay. Whoever grabbed Em tranqued them, practically killing them.”

“Who?” I asked, and they both faced me.

Dafni grimaced but answered me. “The day you were taken. Saros had more than the one guy back there, but it turns out the ones who took you tranquilized the others. I’m honestly surprised he didn’t kill them.”

“Oh wow, and they’re okay?”

“They will be.” Gino nodded. “It was a horrible error in judgment. We assumed nobody would trek through those woods. It’s unsafe, and with as many men as we had, nobody expected Ramsey to come that way, or that he’d have the manpower to do it. It’ll never happen again.”

I couldn’t believe the mess Ramsey had left in his wake. All the lives he’d ruined…or at least he’d tried to. He was a dangerous man…or at least he once had been—I didn’t know if he was still alive.

The rest of my day was spent relaxing, mostly. I watched a movie with the kids—a mindless cartoon movie that numbed my brain. I made personal pizzas with everyone and then tucked in early.

I missed Saros, wanted him to hold me while I slept, but I knew he’d be home tomorrow. I read until my eyelids got heavy and I slipped into a dream, a perfect dream where the prince saved me and we lived happily ever after.

When I woke the next morning, that same exact prince was lying beside me with a smile on his face.

“I missed you,” I said.

“I’ll always come back to you, Em.”

“And I’ll always welcome you back.”