Page 57 of Ghost Among Lies

I knew what she meant.

"That's because we won this battle but not the war. Without the identities of the other four families, we can't put a stop to the organ trafficking ring."

"Call Hawk and get a cleanup crew here. We need to get back to the States, and you have a family to see to."

A family.

I liked the sound of that.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

SLOANE

Cassie and Sasha were officially settled in at one of Trista's Second Chance homes. Wes was kind enough to help facilitate, and I knew they would be in good hands. Wes wouldn't have it any other way.

Cassie was free of the Astors and would now have the opportunity to raise her daughter without the threat from them hanging above her head. It was too bad the Astors refused to tell us who the other four families were before they died.

Until we got rid of them, Cassie and I would always have to worry about our kids.

"What if I don't know how to be a mother?" I looked down at a sleeping Benny in my guest bedroom. Krista had graciously let Hayes and me turn it into a bedroom for my son.

"Follow your instincts," Lilith whispered. "They've gotten you this far."

We walked out of the room and met Anita in the hallway. "I think I might know someone who can help you with the transition," Anita blurted and didn't look her usual confident self.

"Who?" I asked skeptically. "And why do you look like you sucked on a lemon while telling me this."

"Because I'm about to break a friend's confidence, and that's something I never thought I would do."

There was only one friend Anita would hate to betray.

Nova.

I was torn between wanting to preserve Nova's secret and begging for whatever help I could get. Motherhood scared the shit out of me, but after learning the plans the Astors had for Benny, I couldn't let him go with another family. I would never trust anyone again when it came to my son.

"Please," I begged. "I think Nova would understand."

Anita nodded. "I think she would as well." She took a deep breath. "Nova's brother, Jett, works with parents reuniting with their kids. He usually only takes on extreme cases with severe trauma, but I think he would make an exception for you and Benny."

I was still stuck on the fact that Nova had a brother to fully comprehend the rest of what she just told me.

"Since when does Nova have a brother?" Lilith asked before I could.

"She always knew about him, but they never lived together. Same mom, different dads. Jett's father had full custody of him long before Nova was born. Jett's twelve years older, and he was in his twenties when Nova's mom passed away. He tried to get custody of her, but the courts refused. I always suspected his father had something to do with that. Growing up, Jett wasn't allowed to visit his mother, but he would sneak away sometimes to see them. After my mother took Nova in, he visited more, and I kept tabs on him when she disappeared. He works for a nonprofit agency that focuses on keeping families together. I think if I reached out to him and told him your story, he would be willing to help."

It was a full minute before I could speak. "Sure. That would be great." Yes, I sounded like a dumbfounded idiot. Don't judge me. Sometimes, I struggled when people threw me for a loop. And this was one of those times.

"I'll give him a call after we fill the team in."

We walked in silence down to the living room where Nyx, Beckett, and Hayes waited for us.

"The Astors refused to give up the names of the other four families." Anita didn't waste time. "But they made something very clear. Their ultimate goal was to bind the families together until they were one."

"Why is that explanation giving me emperor vibes from ancient Rome?" Nyx shuddered.

"Probably because that's what they meant. Or at least, I assume that's where they were going with it," I clarified. "They kept mentioning keeping the bloodlines pure."

"Kind of hard to do when you adopt a child…" Nyx said what we were all thinking.