Page 63 of Flawed Revenge

“If there’s a lab here, then they’re coming for Whitney at some point,” Blade said, his arms tightening around his girl.

“If that happens, we take advantage of it. You can't break through the bars?” he asked Steel, who tossed a glare his way.

“Don’t you think if I could, we’d already be out of here? They must have reinforced them. I can probably get through them, but it would take time,” Steel told him.

“So we’re thinking that when we got here, wherever here is, that River told her people to put her daughter in a bedroom rather than with us. Maybe she does love Rose after all,” Lion said, making Steel growl.

“That’s a mistake,” Cassandra said. “Rose isn’t going to just sit quietly in a bedroom and wait to see what her mother has planned. If I know her, she’s probably already figured out a plan, maybe even a way to get herself free.”

“Rose wasn't raised by her mom, not past the age of four anyway, so there’s a chance that River doesn’t realize what a threat she actually is,” Thunder said.

“Which makes her our secret weapon then,” Blade added. “Because Cassandra is right, Rose is going to figure out a way to get out of wherever it is her mom stashed her.”

“Hopefully without bringing the roof down on her head all over again,” Voodoo muttered, making Steel give another growl before a small smile curved his lips up.

“My girl should never be underestimated,” Steel agreed. “She’s going to blow this whole mess wide open. River Gardner has no idea what she’d gotten herself into by bringing all of us here at the same time.”

Lion could only hope that Steel was right. That with enough time, he could bend those bars enough that they could get out, that Rose was cooking up a plan of her own, that there was a lab here somewhere, and that someone would come to get Whitney at some point, necessitating the opening of the door, which would give them an easy out.

Could only hope that his girls were here somewhere, safe for now, and sure in the knowledge that nothing would stop him coming for them. Even if he had to let the anger inside consume him to make it happen. He would sacrifice himself in a heartbeat if it meant getting his girls out and setting them free to live the lives they deserved.

March 19th

7:01 A.M.

“Mommy?”

The soft voice drew her attention from Rose and back to the bed where her daughter rubbed her eyes and sat up.

“Yeah, sweetie-pie, I'm here. You feeling okay?” she asked as she headed toward the bed and sat on the edge of it, running a hand over her daughter’s messy blonde locks.

“I have to pee,” Ariella replied.

“Okay then. Bathroom is just through there,” she said, pointing to a door on the other side of the room. As she pulled back the covers, she tried not to focus on the bruises littering her daughter’s skin. So much worse than what she was used to seeing. Damn River Gardner for playing with their lives and almost killing her daughter in that plane crash.

What had the woman been thinking?

If she wanted the guys to study them, she’d almost ruined that by having them all killed. Which made her think that River really didn't care one way or the other who lived and who died. That was kind of the impression she’d gotten on the helicopter ride, but then the woman had her people bring Rose there, which meant everyone else was likely there too.

Unless …

Was it possible that River had ordered everyone else killed and spared only Rose because the woman was her daughter?

As much as she hated thinking that thought, allowing it into her mind felt wrong on so many levels, but she’d be stupid not to consider it. There was a chance she was hoping for a rescue that would never come. A chance that the man she’d only just reconnected with was already gone, and this time she would never get him back.

“Go to the bathroom, sweetie,” she said, trying to keep the fears she felt off her face so she didn't get her daughter worked up. The most important thing right now was keeping Ariella calm, and to do that, she needed to keep alive the possible illusion that Daddy was coming for them.

Ariella climbed off the bed and padded across the floorboards toward the bathroom door. Once it was closed behind her, Rose arched a brow, asking what had changed the shift in her demeanor.

“Your mom, she …” Kate gulped, swallowing down the fear that threatened to overwhelm her. “She talked about possibly blowing up the farmhouse, killing everyone. When I asked her about it, she said she wanted to bring them here to study them, but I got the feeling that … really, she doesn’t care one way or the other. She wants to study Ariella, she said she wants immortality, and that your brother’s studies were just to keep attention off her. But what if she did kill the guys? What if she only kept you alive because you're her daughter, and that’s why the others weren't with you?”

All of a sudden, it felt like there wasn't enough air in the room.

Or maybe the problem was that there wasn't enough oxygen getting into her lungs.

Was she hyperventilating?

No. She couldn’t.