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“Is coming,” he promises. I realize he’s no longer wearing his jacket. There’s blood on his shirt. I gasp, my feet stumbling. He immediately shakes his head. “Not mine. I’m okay.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.” He gives my arm a reassuring squeeze. “And I keep those, remember?”
Something relaxes in my chest. He does keep them. He’s proven that already. And thank god, because any minute now I’m about to be forced to leave him behind, and he better fucking keep his promise that he’ll follow.
It takes both too much and not enough time to get to the safehouse. Carter and I shed our slave gear and clean up with wipes that Ace - the fourth and final man on Jake, Travis, and Maison’s team - gives us. We dress in fresh clothes. We don’t talk, both terrified for the men we left behind, and maybe a little terrified of the future we’re heading toward. But we hold hands the whole time.
The house is gorgeous. It’s bigger than I expected, built on a hill with a river, trees mostly blocking it from sight. Ace drones on about safety protocols and semi-retired operatives being around to help and a security booth. I think Carter is listening, but I can’t focus. My ears are starting to ring with an impending panic attack.
When we stop at a room and Ace points, I assume it’s mine. I see Carter go into the room across the hall from me. Ace says something, his eyes kind, his lips moving, and then he leaves me behind to go speak with Carter.
Leaving the door cracked open, I walk through the room and try to let it sink in that I’m officially safe now. Officially free. Even if something goes wrong with the clean-up of the operation, it won't affect my place here. There's no longer any risk to me.
It's real now.
Why does that feel so awful?
"Casey?" Ace says from the door, his voice soft. "Do you mind if I come in?"
It's such a strange concept - that I’d have to invite the man inside. Even after I knew the truth with Jake, I never owned the space around me, never really held the power to tell Jake to go away. Or maybe I did and just never felt the urge to use it?
"Casey?"
"Yeah.” I turn to face him. "Sorry. Um. Come in."
Ace steps inside but lingers near the door. He's not as big as Travis and Jake. Still muscular, but more compact and lithe. I tell myself I’m safe with the man. Of course I am. This whole house is safe. But the logic doesn't translate. My chest still feels thick with panic. My legs still wobble. My hands still shake.
"Do you need anything?" Ace asks with a careful smile. "Medical attention? Anything for pain? Food? Something to drink?"
Jake trusts him, I tell myself. Jake wouldn't have let you be here alone with him if he didn't trust him.
"Casey?"
I realize Ace has stepped further into the room. If he reached out, he'd be able to touch me. Don't panic. It'll only be worse if you panic.
My tongue feels heavy, but I manage to murmur, "I'm fine."
Ace frowns. The expression makes me flinch and step back, preparing for the consequences of causing displeasure. A few agonizing seconds tick by before Ace steps toward the door. "I'm sure you're overwhelmed right now. I'll be awake until the others get here. I'll probably set up shop in the kitchen. It's down this hall. Come get me if you need anything, alright? Otherwise, I'll leave you be. Give you space to… process."
I just nod. My mind is spinning, logic fighting with my survival instincts. Ace won’t hurt me. He’s a good guy. He’s Jake’s friend. I know all of this. But… fuck does my body want to fold to my knees and prepare for pain.
Ace leaves. I count to five in my head before hurrying forward to close and lock the door. I let myself sag against it in relief, not caring when my legs give out. I end up on the floor with my back pressed against the wooden barrier between me and the rest of the world. I bring my knees to my chest, trying to remember how to breathe. How much longer until Jake is here?
With no way of tracking time, I’m half-convinced an eternity passes before I finally have a knock on my door. I nearly break the doorknob from how hard I turn it. The moment my eyes fall on Jake’s exhausted, unfairly handsome face, relief floods all the way to my fingertips. He’s here, he’s safe, it’s over.
His blue eyes rake over my body slowly, almost like he’s checking to make sure I’m still intact, before settling back on my face. He smiles. “Hey.”
I swallow hard. “Hey.”
“Sorry I took so long.” He adjusts a strap on his shoulder that’s attached to a black backpack. He has a steaming mug of coffee in his other hand. “It took us a while to wrap everything up and hit the road. Then I needed to help Ace with feeding and medicating and helping all the survivors as they arrived. Travis abandoned our asses the minute we showed up, going after Carter, and Maison nearly passed out trying to help so we sent him away.”
“Is everyone okay?”
“For now. It’s going to take some time. They’re all pretty freaked out. Untrusting. Scared. Some of them tried fighting or running. But we have everyone calmed down now and any major injuries have been taken care of.”
“I’m glad you were there for them. I can’t imagine how they must feel…”
