Page 102 of Silk and Sirens

The sight hit me like ice water, but then her eyes collided with mine. For the first time since I’d known her, the look she gave me wasn’t of anger, defiance, or even desire.

It was relief.

“Caden,” she whispered, sliding off the bed and moving towards me before the doctor could protest.

“You okay?” I asked, crossing the space.

“She’s fine,” the doctor answered, snapping off his gloves. “She won’t need stitches, and her hand isn’t broken.”

I glanced down at her hand, the knuckles a little swollen and already bruised.

Aeris turned back to the doctor, worry etched deep into her features. “And what about Fletcher?” she asked.

“As I’ve already said, Mr Bells’s in surgery. He was lucky. The knife missed all his major organs. As long as there are no complications, he should make a full recovery.”

“Is Aeris done here?” I asked.

The doctor nodded once. “She’s ready to be discharged.”

“Good.” I waited until the doctor left, then dropped my voice to a low whisper. “What happened?”

“A man came at us with a knife.” Aeris glanced away, her shoulder tight.

My jaw clenched, and it took a lot for me to remain calm. “You recognise him?” She didn’t answer immediately, so I caught her chin, forcing her eyes back to mine. “Was the knife meant for you or your friend?”

Her expression shuttered, the mask sliding back into place with practised ease. “Vivienne sent him.”

A sharp whistle cut through the air, and Langdon stepped between us, shoving a brown folder into my chest.

“He was aiming for her,” he signed directly in my face. “Fletcher threw himself in front of her.”

Great. Now I couldn’t kill her friend.

Pushing him away, I opened the folder to study the documents, the quality of them impressive considering I knew they were fake. Every single one was of her sisters and nephews, each with a different name.

“That’s not for you,” she snapped, but didn’t try to take the letter away from me.

To my darling sisters,

If you’re reading this, then everything went wrong.

I’m so sorry. Sorry I never told you the truth. Sorry I couldn’t protect you better. If you’ve been given this folder, it means I’ve failed and I need you to run.

There are some bad people in this world, people I’ve tried to shield you from but couldn’t stop from taking me—the people that took Mira.

I will not let them take you too.

As soon as you receive this, you need to take everything and leave immediately. Don’t pack or tell anyone where you’re going. Not your friends or Dad. Pick up the kids and go. Everything you’ll need is in here: passports, paperwork, new names, and enough money for you all to disappear safely.

Everything you need to start a new life, one where my mistakes can’t chase you.

If you value your life, please don’t look for me, and don’t ever look back.

I love you all more than anything.

A x

I carefully placed the piece of paper back into the folder, then grabbed Aeris’s hand with deliberate calm.