Page 3 of We Will Rise

The heat of the flames licks at my face as I stare at the remnants of Kovu’s car with my heart lodged in my throat.

A memory of the day he brought the thing home a few years ago hits me like a truck. Before Camilla walked into our lives, it was rare to get a genuine smile from the broken boy I adopted all those years ago, but he was so fucking happy when he found his dream car for sale in Connecticut. He and Kaos took off for a day trip to pick it up, and when they came back, Kovu was ecstatic. He even volunteered to do surveillance work, something he has always loathed, just so he could spend more time in his new pride and joy.

Camilla drops to her knees in front of us as a wail escapes her throat. The sound almost breaks me, but one of us has to keep our shit together.

Kaos and Bishop are beside me, both staring at the car burning, but none of us seem to be able to move a muscle.

Because he’s gone.

Kovu’s gone.

I breathe through the emotions that slam into me, forcing myself to remain the cold leader I’ve spent the last twenty years learning to be until we’re out of the public eye. Once we’re home within the walls of the compound, I’ll allow myself to feel, but for right now, I need to get this scene under control.

A rough sob breaks out from beneath us, and I drag my eyes off the flames for long enough to look at our girl.

Camilla grasps her chest as if her heart physically hurts, and hell, it might. Love will do funny things to a person, which is just another reason I tried so desperately to distance myself from her. Because what happens if I lose her? What happens if she leaves? What happens if she’s taken from me?

I shake myself off and crouch down behind her, wrapping my arms around her trembling body. “Camilla, I need you to hold it together. Just for a little while.” There’s a rough edge to my voice that’s almost unfamiliar, and I realize it’s the emotions I’ve been forcing down for the last two decades rising to the surface.

She shakes her head, never tearing her eyes off the wreckage. “I can’t. He’s gone, Crew. Kovu’s gone.” Her voice cracks under the weight of the words, and I press my eyes closed for a moment to regain control of myself.

Bishop drops to his knees beside us and presses his palm to Camilla’s cheek, forcing her eyes to meet his, and for the first time since we ran around that corner and saw what remains of Kovu’s car, I take him in.

His usually vibrant green eyes are haunted, but the way he looks at Camilla is so full of love and compassion I can barely believe it’s the same man who I taught to keep his emotions locked in a little box where they can’t hurt anyone.

“Cami, I know it hurts. Fuck, I know. But we need to get out of here. It’s not safe, and Kovu wouldn’t want you in danger.”

She blinks up at him through an onslaught of tears, her bottom lip wobbling as she desperately tries to regain control of herself.

Kaos drops down on her other side and wraps himself around her, his huge body engulfing her small frame as he murmurs something against her ear that I can’t quite make out.

Since we made her ours, we’ve each spent time pushing her away, trying to reason with ourselves why this can never work, but right now, in the midst of chaos, our only focus is making sure she’s okay.

Everything else can wait.

She nods her agreement, and without hesitation, Kaos lifts her into his arms and stands, his gaze darting around the street.

Sirens blare in the distance, and I know we need to get out of here before they arrive. Even with our connections, they’ll have questions, and right now we’re fresh out of answers.

Bishop’s gaze locks on mine, and he tilts his head the way we came.

I give him a quick nod, and with one last look around the scene, I turn on my heel and take off toward the Scarlet Lounge.

I focus on the sound of my Italian loafers as they hit the concrete beneath my feet, the rhythm distracting me from the fact I’ve just lost my son.

I may not have raised Kovu, but he’s my kid every bit as much as Bishop is, and I don’t know how to process the fact he’s gone.

Elias appears from the alley down the side of the Scarlet Lounge, his dark eyes darting around the suspiciously quiet street, but that’s only because the hive of activity is just around the corner.

He takes in our expressions, and his own face drops when he notices Camilla curled up against Kaos’s chest. “Is she hurt?”

“No.” I shake my head. “We need to get out of here before the cops arrive.”

He fishes his keys out of his pocket and hands them to me. “Take my car. No one will think to follow it.”

I only hesitate for a moment before I take them from him and follow him around the side of the club where they park their cars.

“Where’s Wyatt?” I ask.

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