Page 34 of Kill Me Sweetly

“They will try. I see that. They will fail.”

His belief in the power of the Alabastrine Consortium was unwavering. I wasn’t sure we could take them on, but I did know I couldn’t, and wouldn’t, abandon Four to be tossed into that world ever again. We’d fight because that was the promise we made.

“That’s a lot.” Shep sighed.

“She was able to get him to agree to let her give him something to sleep. I checked on him throughout the evening, and he was out cold.”

“Is she coming back?”

“Mmhmm.” I lifted my chin, resting it on his chest. “She told us that he needed a lot of help. That people who are born in this kind of world never truly escape it. Listening to Four today, we all realized his earliest memory is of this place when he was little.”

“Was he kidnapped? Any ideas?” Shep ran his fingers through my hair, and a wave of exhaustion hit.

“We don’t know. Aziza said she will continue to work with him and get what she can at a pace that benefits his recovery.”

“Let’s sleep now, baby.” He smiled, and I leaned up to give him a quick peck on the lips.

“Night, Shep. I love you.”

He hummed. “And I love you.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

SHEP

I gotout of bed the next morning, joy and fear battling emotions in my chest. JJ had confessed that he loved me, and Four believed this Alabastrine Consortium would beat us. Not what I was hoping to hear but it was what it was, and we’d need to figure shit out.

JJ was sound asleep, so I was quiet as I showered and dressed. I shut the door and made my way to the kitchen.

Maxwell and Angel were sitting at the table, Maxwell reading the paper and Angel scrolling on his phone.

“Coffee’s made,” Angel said by way of greeting.

“Thanks, want breakfast?”

Angel quirked a brow. “Don’t start the day asking dumb questions.”

I snorted, poured my coffee, and got to work. Maxwell was quiet and when I checked him out it didn’t appear as though he were really reading the paper.

“How you doing, Max?” I began cracking eggs into a large bowl.

“I’d like to go see my daughter.”

I nodded as I gathered up the shells and tossed them into the trash. “You know if you do that, you could put her in danger, right?”

“But they aren’t there. You all said you felt like she wasn’t in trouble.”

Angel placed his phone down and regarded Max. “Do we think they’ll harm her? No. But that’s because they can’t find you, so to them you very much could be dead. It doesn’t mean they don’t have eyes on her, seeing if you’ll show up. Four hasn’t surfaced, so they have no idea what’s going on. Don’t give them a reason to make it worse for you.”

“Can I call her?”

Angel and I shared a look before I answered. “We’ll see if the twins can secure something for you to speak with her.”

That seemed to appease him for now, and he went back to actually reading the paper.

“Interesting,” he mumbled, and Angel and I perked up.

“What?” Angel tilted his head, trying to see what Max was reading.

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