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Because when she was in my arms … I felt impenetrable.
Like I was always going to be there to protect her. Like she could take anything she wanted from me, and I’d still have enough to give.
I slam the glass on the bar and get up from the stool.
“Where are you going?” Brandon asks.
As I glance over my shoulder, I grin and say, “To fight.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Accompanying Song: “Keep The Streets Empty For Me” by Fever Ray
Syrena
At night, I’m cleaning up the tables as usual while all the other waitresses have already left. Even Roy’s already left, as he expects me to take care of the inside and close up the club. Usually, it takes me until three in the morning to get things done, but there were fewer customers tonight, so it’s less filthy than normal.
When I’m done washing all the glasses and sweeping the floor, I grab the keys from the kitchen counter and walk to the door.
However, the moment I’m there, it opens right in front of me, and a familiar voice breaks my train of thought.
“Syrena.”
I hold my breath and take a step back, clenching the keys in my hand.
Is this real? Is he really here?
I must be dreaming.
I shake my head.
“How are you?”
There’s that voice again … it’s definitely his.
But why? I haven’t seen him in weeks … I don’t even know how long. And now he’s suddenly here? In the flesh?
“Wh-what are you doing here?” I ask, my voice unsteady, just as wobbly as my legs.
“I wanted to come see you.” His voice is so soft, it unravels the part of my heart I thought I’d finally locked away again.
I hold the keys close to my chest. “How did you find me?”
“Roy’s Strip Club. Not a name that’s used often,” he says, and I can actually hear him smirk. “Didn’t take me long to track it down. And you.”
Yet he chose not to come to take me … until this day.
“Why now?” I ask.
“You know why.” He closes the door behind him and steps closer.
“Don’t,” I mumble, holding up the keys like they’re a knife, as if they’d provide any protection.
“I’m not here to hurt you,” he says. “I promise.”
For some reason, my hand instinctively lowers. As if it knows I can trust him even when he’s lied to my face many times before.
He did it to protect me.
Although I never asked for protection.
“You did it once … What’s stopping you from trying to take me away again?” I say through gritted teeth, not allowing myself to show even an ounce of mercy.
Not because I can’t … but because if I did, it would mean the end of my defense.
If he ever touches me again, I just know I wouldn’t be able to resist. Wouldn’t be able to deny my heart the thing it’s craved for so long.
His touch is like a drug to me, and I just can’t. I can’t allow myself to go there.
“I didn’t come here to force you to come home,” he says.
“Then why did you come?” I say, licking my lips.
“To give you information about Cage and Ella.”
My breathing stops momentarily, and I grab the chair next to me for support. “Are they alive?”
“Yes. We’ve managed to track them down.”
“Oh, thank God,” I mutter, breathing out a sigh of relief.
“I’ve written down the address for you. If you have a phone, you can let it read it out loud for you with an app.”
“Okay.” I frown. “And what do you want in return?”
I assume he wants something. Men always do.
Nothing’s ever free in this world.
“Nothing,” he says.
My lips part, but I don’t know what to say. That was … unexpected.
“So … Roy’s Strip Club,” he says, his voice dark. “Is he treating you better than before?”
I mull it over for a second. “Well, he doesn’t hit me, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Good. If he ever puts his hands on you again and I find out, I will kill him.”
Not a single ounce of hesitation lingers in his voice.
It must be hard for him knowing I came back to the very man who treated me so badly, but he must understand that I had no other choice.
It was this … or back to him.
And still, he demands nothing of me. Doesn’t force me to come back with him even though I can tell from his voice alone he almost wants to beg me.
It’s a strength I can only admire.
“Here,” Chase says, handing the small paper to me.
I quickly take it and tuck it into my pocket before he can take it away again.
“There’s something I have to add, though …” He clears his throat. “You have another brother.”
“Another brother?” I say, flabbergasted.
“His name is Lock. He escaped the compound long before Ella and Cage did. Much older too. Apparently, he lived on an island by himself for quite some time. That’s all my contacts managed to find out.”
