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Phoenix exhales, her shoulders visibly relaxing, acting relieved. But then she looks Liesel in the eyes with concern. “You sacrificed? All of you?”
“We did,” she says quietly.
Phoenix nods.
“We did our part. We felt the pain. We hurt. We won, but we only got Rose and Atlas back. We didn’t get Declan. Corbin gave Beckett another kid, not Declan,” Liesel says.
Phoenix looks down as she picks her nails.
“Phoenix? Does Corbin even have Declan?”
She nods.
“How do we get him back?”
“I’m sorry,” Phoenix says, looking from Liesel to me. “Truly, I am. I never wanted the kids to suffer. I only wanted to hurt you.”
“Will Corbin hurt Declan?” I ask. If he would, I’m not waiting. I’ll fight Corbin to the death right now. I’m not going to wait for whatever games.
“No, he just doesn’t think you all have suffered enough.”
“What do you think?” Liesel asks.
Phoenix exchanges a glance with Liesel. “I think once you finish the games, you’ll have paid me back for the pain your father caused me.”
“So, how do we finish th
e game?” I ask.
“You get the treasure. You give it to Corbin. You set me free, and you promise to never attack my family again.”
That’s not something I can promise.
“Can I ask for something?” Phoenix asks.
“No,” I say, at the same time Liesel says, “Yes.”
“I’d like to say goodbye to the kids. I know you don’t think I deserve it, but I want to explain to them why they won’t be seeing me anymore when the time comes,” Phoenix says.
“No,” I say, walking out the door. I’m done with her. I don’t trust her. She’s manipulative and did the one thing I view as unforgivable—hurt my children.
I’m nearly out the door before I hear Liesel say, “He’ll come around. He’s just hurt. We’ll figure something out when it comes to the kids.”
I head up to the top deck of the yacht and lean over the edge of the railing, looking out as the moon rises over the ocean.
Liesel stands next to me.
“Are you upset with me?” she asks.
I inhale a deep breath. “No, I can’t be upset with you, even when we disagree—not anymore.”
“You can be mad at me and still care for me. I’m sure you get mad at the kids sometimes, but that doesn’t mean you don’t love them.”
I shake my head. “I’m not upset with you. I just disagree with you. And I’m upset with myself that you don’t trust me enough to tell me what you sacrificed so I can help you heal.”
She sighs as she leans further over the edge of the railing.
“What if I told you the sacrifice I made didn’t matter because I already lost that part of me years ago? The reason I don’t want to tell you is that nothing has changed. I don’t want you to think I was suffering and you weren’t there to stop it when it’s not true.”
