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“What? No. My mom is an innocent in all of this. You know, aside from the whole thing with drugging me, but she was reacting in the moment then, worried about me. She’s been abused for years, she needs our help, not recrimination. And if she was involved that would mean she knew Asher was gonna be killed that night and basically let it happen. Telling me would’ve stopped it, because I could’ve warned him.”
“If that had been the price to pay to protect you, I don’t doubt that she would’ve been willing to pay it.”
“You were for Aurora,” Asher told my dad with an edge. A warranted edge, considering the part he’d played in all of that, the events of that despicable night.
I walked to Killian and took his hand in mine. “It’s a possibility, right?” I said, gently.
It took him a moment, but then he nodded. “It could be. Maybe. I mean, Olivia said she wasn’t fully gone, that she’d been employing some techniques to fight off my father’s brainwashing and abuse. I mean, if she could do that, it stands to reason she could be working on something covert like this. Just to defend herself, though. Not out of any malicious or nefarious intent. She’s not like that. She’s not that type of person.”
“Not like my mom, right?”
He winced. “That’s not what I meant. Fuck, I’m so sorry this is how it is for you.”
I smiled sadly. “It doesn’t matter. I have a lot of love around me and so do you. That’s what we need to focus on, what we’re fighting for by doing this. To keep that love, to get back to our lives, better lives without this weight and these threats from twisted individuals bearing down on us.”
Jonah smiled out at us.
Asher stepped forward and told my dad, “Carson is mine. Are we clear about that?”
My dad nodded. “The same goes for me with Isobel.”
“Done. All right,” Asher said, folding his arms across his chest. “Let’s iron out the specifics.” He gestured at the laptop and intel in front of Caleb. “And I want to know who every one of your plants are, along with the exact intel you’re giving to the feds.”
My dad nodded, and then we got down to it.
It was happening.
We were finally well on the way to ending this.
Once that happened, nothing would ever be the same.
And, after all this time, the scars could begin to truly heal.
We just had to burn it all down first.
22
~Jonah~
“It’s been an absolute pleasure.”
I grinned at Caleb’s pointed phrasing.
“No doubt there,” I returned to a smirk from him.
I held out my hand and he took it, then used it to tug me against me. Taking me in a tight hug, he spoke at my ear, “Take care of yourself and look after Ash for me.”
“Always,” I said, as we pulled apart.
He turned to Asher who was leaning against the front porch railing waiting patiently as we said our goodbyes. “You need me down the road, I’ll be there.”
Asher pushed off the railing and walked to us. “Call on me any time.” He surprised me then as he wrapped his arm around him and held Caleb to him tightly. “Thank you. For everything, Cal.”
They slapped each other’s backs, then eased apart. “If King gives you any trouble, let me know.”
Caleb chuckled. “Damn, I’d love to see that clash of the titans.”
“Well, once I’m done with the clash here, I’ll be free to—”
