Page 10 of Queen's Ransom

“Good,” Helena said. “And good attack, but no brakes next time. Don’t hesitate. Don’t give me or someone else that extra second to adjust. Just go.”

They began to circle again, trading jabs and blocks, as Celia shared a little of herself with her friend. “Been trying to put the brakes on Mia and Ethan, but that’s a different story.” A relatively normal and mundane topic of conversation. No less worrisome, though. “Only the promise of unlimited Lily time got her on board with the weekend at Casa Madigan plan.”

“Ah, young love.”

“Young love resulted in me having her, my first kid, at her age and spending half my life in an abusive relationship.”

Helena halted on a dime, her fingers twitching at her sides and her icy blue eyes cutting to the knife strip. “If he steps out of line…”

Celia spun, distracting Helena from her murderous intent. She hadn’t meant to put Ethan in her sights. “None of the warning signs are there. I’m just being hyper vigilant. Dex was always on his best behavior around Mom. Fooled all of us.”

Helena swept her leg low, and Celia hopped over it. “Despite Dex, you raised two great kids.”

“I know.” She was proud of Mia and Marco and of the job she’d done raising them, effectively as a single parent. She’d kept them out of Dex’s line of fire and had strived to give them everything they needed to succeed, day by day and in whatever future they chose. She’d made mistakes, but she’d done her best to keep her kids shielded from them. “I just want better for them.”

She and Helena traded upper cuts, jukes, and high knees in another speed round, retreating to their corners after an intense two minutes. “I get that,” Helena said. “It’s why we made certain changes last year. For Lily and others of her generation to come.”

They met again in the center of the mat, and this time Celia didn’t hesitate. She sliced a jab across her body, aiming for Helena’s opposite shoulder. The hit landed—triumph—but then Helena’s other arm came up between Celia’s still extended arm and her chest—caught.

Helena hauled her in close. “That’s what took me away the past couple months.” Her hold remained firm, but her voice and expression softened. “We’re trying to make things better. I’m sorry if I hurt you doing so. That was never my intent.”

“You don’t have to apologize, but thank you.”

Neither moved to break the hold, and this close, Celia could see the beads of sweat glistening at Helena’s hairline, could smell her lavender-scented shampoo amplified by the moisture. As good as nectar, drawing Celia closer and sending a rush of heat south to where only Celia’s fingers and a vibrator had been in years.

“You two still going at it?” Chris’s voice and trudging feet echoed from the stairs.

Helena unlocked their arms and stepped back to the edge of the mat. Bending, she grabbed the water bottles off the floor and tossed one to Celia. “You should put on a demo for Ethan,” she said. “Pretty sure that’ll slow him down.”

“Not a bad idea.” Celia cracked the lid on her bottle and took a long swallow, letting the cold water quell the heat that had flared between them.

Chris appeared from around the corner, quelling it further. “What’s not a bad idea?”

“Making sure Ethan knows his girlfriend’s mom can kick his ass.”

“I like this plan.” Chris’s gaze swung from Helena to her as he pushed up his sleeves. “Want to show me what you’ve got?”

Celia wasn’t a petite woman—both she and Chris had inherited their father’s height, and she their mother’s curves—but comparatively and objectively, Chris was massive. Ripped and trained, nowadays with experts far more skilled than her.

She cut a glance at Helena, who stared back at her like a proud, confident teacher. “You can take him.”

Helena, of all people, would not blow smoke up her ass. If she thought Celia could take Chris, then she could. And if Celia could match up with Chris—hell, if she could even hold her own against her brother—then she had no doubt that when Dex reappeared, because he would, she could kick his ass right back out the door. With all the chaos of earlier, it was comforting to think she could at least protect her family from the danger they did know.

She screwed the cap on her bottle, dropped it on the floor, and stepped onto the mat. Confidence infused her movements and stance, helping her keep her limbs loose and at the ready. Like her teacher and friend had taught her.

Dark eyes clashed with dark eyes, and she raised an arm, curving up her fingers and egging her brother into making the first move. “Show me what you’ve got.”

Helena howled with laughter behind them.

Chapter Five

Celia blinked once, twice, a third time. Didn’t help. She took a giant gulp of coffee from her mug. Still didn’t help. She closed her eyes and focused a good ten seconds on the sound of pouring rain on the other side of the garage door, then reopened them. Clear eyes and caffeine failed to change the sight in front of her or help her make any sense of it. “How the hell did this get here?”

“Holt.” Chris circled the rear bumper of the black Charger parked in the Madigans’ garage. A car that looked suspiciously like the one that had shot up the shop yesterday. “He was scanning traffic cams and surveillance footage for it all night. Found it abandoned in an alley in the Mission.”

She drained the rest of her coffee, set the mug on the workbench that ran the length of the back wall, and pushed up the sleeves of her Henley. She approached the open passenger window and peeked inside. Everything looked in order, not even wet despite the monsoon outside. No broken glass, no torn seats, no missing electronics. No signs of prior life either. No change in the ashtray, no residue in the cup holders, no food or straw wrappers on the floorboards. The car smelled clean too, like it had been recently washed and detailed. “Abandoned? Are you sure?”

“Car was left unlocked, windows rolled down, tags removed.”

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