Dimitros nodded once, his composure intact. But I didn’t miss the way his mouth trembled.
I pulled my son against me. I didn’t care that he was almost a man. To me, he would always be my son, and I would always protect him with everything I had.
“Thanks, Dad,” he murmured against me, clinging to me.
I closed my eyes briefly and held my son tighter.
For years, this family had been built around surviving Amara’s instability. Around managing her moods, hiding the damage, enduring the chaos.
But now she was gone.
And standing there with my son in my arms while my daughter clung to her real mom, I realized surviving the fire had been the easy part.
Now we had to survive the memories that Amara left behind.
THIRTY-THREE
VIOLET
Smoke still clung to the back of my throat while I stood in the living room, looking out the window, images of what we’d just endured flashing through my mind.
The children were back in bed, curled together, and a part of me wanted to be with them. However, my mind and emotions were all over the place and I had to tackle them before I could help anyone else.
The memory of what could have gone wrong with Amara’s action and rage made my stomach twist. She could have killed us all. She was so close too.
The floor creaked softly behind me.
“You should rest.” Lykos’s voice was rough with smoke and exhaustion.
I exhaled slowly, then turned to look at him.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to close my eyes anytime soon,” I admitted.
“It’s all my fault.” His expression filled with guilt and it undid me.
“No, it’s not,” I said quietly. “The clinic should have never let her out.”
His jaw tightened. “I should have known better.”
“How?” I challenged. “Because you’re a therapist? Because you’re an expert on human minds? You were just trying to do right by your wife.”
“I know and that almost cost me my children and you.”
Lykos stared into the darkness beyond me, battling with self-inflicted guilt.
“I kept thinking,” he said at last, “if I endured it long enough… if I stayed patient enough… kind enough… eventually she would become herself again.”
My chest squeezed, aching for him.
“She wasn’t herself,” I whispered. “She probably wasn’t herself for a very long time.”
“Maybe it’s because I never loved her. She deserved better, and I didn’t give it to her.” The confession settled heavily between us. His eyes locked with mine, his hands hanging next to him, clutching into fists. “Maybe I pushed her over the edge.”
I reached for his hands, taking his fists into mine, slowly unfolding his curled fingers. The second my fingers touched his, his hand closed around mine tightly. It was like he had been starving for my contact.
“You were there for her, Lykos. You ensured she got care and was in the best facility here. You visited her. Don’t let guilt eat at you. Kids will need us.”
He let out a shuddering breath. “Does that mean you’re staying?”
