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Without another word, we both climb out of the car and he leads me into the warehouse. It’s massive, and we take so many twists and turns, passing so many doors, I can’t even keep track of where we are.
Finally, he buzzes us into a large room, with what I’m assuming is a two-way glass mirror along one wall. It’s like thetype you’d see in a police interrogation room. We can see into the room, but they can’t see us.
Bree, Liam, Kellan, McKenna, Finn, Shane, and Belle are already in the room waiting for us. They’re all standing around, some looking nervous, others excited. As soon as we enter, they all call out greetings our way.
Belle and McKenna come over and pull me into hugs. Although I haven’t spent much time with Belle, we’ve spoken several times over the phone recently when I’ve called to check on Esme.
She’s doing so well, and has settled in nicely with Dec and Belle. Even though they clearly weren’t ready to have a young girl come and live with them, they have all adapted well to her being there.
She’s with Dec right now, who has also taken a shine to the little girl. Although he wanted to be here for Belle, she insisted he look after Esme, rather than leaving her with someone else before she’s ready.
When McKenna brings me in for a hug, I laugh as her growing bump presses between us. “Are you sure you should be here?” I ask, not bothering to elaborate, as we both know I’m referring to her doing this while pregnant.
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be,” she replies, and although she looks relaxed, I can see the pain in her eyes.
Out of all of us, with the exception of Mia, she’s the one who has been hurt the most by Whitlock and his wife, Mel. She deserves to be a part of this, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t going to worry, given that she’s pregnant with twins.
“She promised she’ll leave if it gets too much,” Finn adds, hovering beside her like her protector.
McKenna gives him a big smile that makes my heart ache. “Stop worrying about me,” she says, as she leans up to press a kiss against Finn’s lips, silencing whatever he’s about to say.
As the conversations continue, we quickly say hello to everyone else, before I see Kellan sitting in the corner of the room by himself. We’re not close, but I feel drawn to go over and speak to him.
“Hey, are you alright?” I ask as I pull up a chair to sit beside him.
When he looks up at me, he’s got dark circles under his eyes that probably match mine, and he looks exhausted. He tries to give me a smile but it’s forced, and his eyes tighten. “Yeah, I’m fine,” he lies, and I roll my eyes.
“Try again, only this time with the truth, please,” I say, wagging my eyebrows in a way that makes him laugh.
“I’m supposed to protect Mia. I promised her a long time ago that I would make sure her father never hurt her again. He’s supposed to die. Yet, here we are, setting him fucking free. She will never feel safe if she knows he’s out there.
“Her nightmares are back, and it’s all because she knows he’s going to be set free, and she doesn’t feel safe anymore,” he admits, his voice cracking at the end.
I reach over, placing my hand on his arm to provide even just a little comfort. “I know this isn’t the ideal scenario, Kel. But after today, Whitlock won’t be a threat to anyone. It may not be in the way you envisaged, but when he leaves here, he will know that he means nothing to Mia, and that you’re all the family she needs.”
“But her nightmares…” he trails off.
“That’s not on you either. I had more nightmares last night than I’ve had since the first night Evan brought me home. I stand by my decision to be here, but talking about everything I went through yesterday was triggering for me. Still, that’s my trauma to work through, same as Mia’s is hers. All you can do is be there to help her through them,” I reply.
He looks up at me with a smile. “Thank you. Who looks after you when you have nightmares?” he asks, his gaze flicking over to Evan, who is standing by the other wall by himself, staring unashamedly at us both.
I shrug my shoulders. “Usually a large glass of wine and a big bar of Cadbury’s chocolate helps.”
Before Kellan can say anything more, the door to the adjoining room opens, and Kian and another guy I don’t recognise walk in, pulling Mortimer Whitlock between them. Liam steps closer to the window and presses a button beside it, flooding the room with sounds from next door.
“What the hell am I doing here?” Whitlock snaps. “I’ve told you everything I know already.” Even though he’s trying to sound tough, I can hear the way his voice shakes.
“I’ve already told you, Boss Lady wants another word with you. So sit your ass down and stop moaning,” Kian says in his usual upbeat, perky way.
Whitlock is so focused on Kian and the guy with him, throwing him into the chair and tying him down, he doesn’t even notice the hospital gurney and medical trays at the back of the room.
“Show time,” Bree sings loudly, as she walks towards the adjoining door, a maniacal smile on her face. “I’ll call you when I’m ready,” she adds, as she opens the door and walks into the room, holding it open for Kian and the other guy to join us.
Once it’s closed, Bree turns to Whitlock, who is glaring at her. “What is the meaning of this? I have told you everything I know. I’m starting to think maybe you are not going to honour the agreement we made,” he snarls.
Bree shakes her head, glaring at the old man tied to the chair. He looks a lot older, paler, and thinner than the last time I saw him. Life in captivity will do that to a person. But more than anything, the posh regal air he had about him is gone, and helooks almost broken now. That in itself brings me a joy I wasn’t expecting.
“I always honour my agreements, Whitlock. I have brought you here to finalise things. As per the deal we made, I have agreed to let you go, and I’ve promised not to kill you. I will help you flee to a European country of my choosing, and you will be given a small amount of money and a new name to help with your getaway. All access to your fortune has been cut off, and the money will be used to help your victims.
