Page 132 of Seen Knot Heard

“Careful of your step,” I say worriedly as Kyle works to anchor the water taxi to the dock.

Grady rolls his eyes at me. “I heard you the first t-three times.”

“Don’t worry.” Holden grasps Grady’s arm, while Blake waits on the dock. “We won’t let him fall.”

After a week of observation, Grady had been released from the hospital, and I insisted he come to Misty Pines for his rehabilitation. He had grumbled but allowed us to pack up his plants, fill a suitcase, and kidnap him off to our island.

I pass Grady’s cane to Blake before grasping Holden’s hand and stepping over the side of the water taxi. Hurrying forward, I support my bestie’s free arm, and he makes his unsteady way down the weathered boards while my Alphas help Kyle load Grady’s belongings onto the waiting golf cart.

Tears prick at the corners of my eyes as I nuzzle Grady’s arm. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

“I’m gladyou’reokay.” His breaths quicken at the exertion of walking after being immobile for so many weeks. “You still need to…” He trails off, and frustration crosses his features as he searches for the words. “Need to…”

“I’ll tell you everything once you’re settled,” I say gently.

The doctors had said it would take time for him to recover, not just physically, but mentally, too.

He huffs with annoyance. “I h-hate this. I feel so helpless. Like I’m t-trapped in my own body.”

I squeeze his arm. “You’re not helpless, you’re healing. It’s going to take time, but you’ll get there.”

“I know.” He huffs again. “But expect me to b-be a b-b-brat.”

A giggle escapes me. “I’ll suffer through it, but only because it’s you.”

As we step off the dock, the still forest draws my eye, and I shiver.

When the police arrived, they had scoured the island with K-9 units and found Simon’s small encampment out past the Phase Two construction site, but he was long gone. His prints and DNA were all over the tree branch that had killed Louie, though, and the police informed us that Simon was registered as a private investigator, but his license was revoked for stalking.

I wasn’t his first fixation, only his most recent, and an arrest warrant was issued for him. The police sounded confident that they would find him. After killing such an influential Alpha, they were putting all of their resources into bringing him to justice.

“Chloe?” Grady’s voice, tinged with worry, pulls me back to the present. “Are you okay?”

I turn to face him. “Of course! I can’t wait for you to settle into your room. Nathaniel even brought sun lamps in for your hoard of plants. And he said you can help in the garden if you want, which Blake assures me is a big deal.”

Grady gives me a crooked smile. “That’s kind of him.”

“Careful,” Kyle warns as we join the others at the golf cart. “That’s how they rope you in. At first, it’s just an offer to use the boat to fish, and then suddenly you’re taxiing people back and forth five times a day.”

Grady chuckles. “I’ll gladly take the distraction.”

As Holden helps Grady into the front seat, Blake kisses my forehead, his beard tickling my nose. “Sure you don’t need me to come up to the Homestead with you guys?”

I swat his arm. “You’ve taken enough time off work.”

They had completed the list from the inspector yesterday, and Nathaniel was growling at Blake early this morning about needing to get back on track. Blake had promised to report to the job site the second we returned.

“Fine.” Blake kisses me again before clapping Holden on the arm. “They’re in your hands now.”

Despite his teasing tone, Holden’s expression remains serious. He’s still struggling with how I sacrificed myself to save them and Louie’s attack. He hasn’t let me sleep alone since, which I don’t object to. Sometimes, I still wake up with nightmares that Louie is after me or that Simon is hiding in the closet, waiting to “save” me again.

I climb into the second-row seating next to Grady’s belongings while Holden takes the wheel. With us safely delivered to the island, Kyle plans to do some late afternoon fishing, and Dominic’s up at the Homestead, waiting for us to return so he can help unload Grady’s belongings.

Dominic had suffered a mild concussion from his fight with Simon, and I had insisted on being the one to sit by his bed side and wake him up every few hours that first night. Almost losing him had made me realize that I still want Dom in my life. It will just take a little time to rebuild what was so damaged.

As we bump along the path, leaving the dock behind, my phone vibrates in my pocket, and my stomach swoops. Part of me wants to ignore it, but Dominic helped me send in the contract for the trilogy, and I’ve been waiting for confirmation.

It would be a spot of good news to tell Grady.

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