Page 118 of Unspoken Promises

I squeeze his hand. “It’s Ava…”

He opens his eyes and does that thing where he almost smiles. Anton has never been a smiley guy. Maybe that’s why it was easy to deal with Enzo’s scowls. Even love them.

“Ava suits you. Sophisticated. It’s a name for a smart cookie.” He sighs. “I guess you want to leave the past behind you.”

I do. I do want to leave it all behind. But not him. My nose stings and the corners of my eyes are wet. “How are you feeling?”

“Ask me that when they take me off the pain meds.”

I laugh.

He wiggles my hand in his. “I’ll be fine. Better when we talk. All I’ve been thinking about these past few days while holed up in this place is explaining myself.” Pain pools in his eyes. “I’m sorry for how things went in the barn. It was the only way I could think to help you was to play Sánchez’s game until the right moment.”

I’m not quite ready to think about that night with him. “I’m glad you’re free.” And I can’t stop thinking about leaving him behind. “I’m sorry I drugged you when I escaped the apartment.”

He raises his eyebrows. “You didn’t drug me.”

“Oh…” it’s still hard to know what was fiction and what was reality. “I guess I wasn’t as clever as I thought I was.”

“Oh, you are plenty clever, Menace. You’re going to doamazing things with that brain of yours… and your sweet heart.”

A stone forms in my throat.

“I can’t believe me leaving was all part of the plan from day one. When I got the letter to go for my master’s? Why did you lie? Why didn’t we take the chance to escape? Together?” My eyes brim with tears, but I steel my spine and blink them away.

“Sánchez had men on us all the time. I’ve never been allowed to be armed. From the moment Sánchez had me, I had a virtual gun at my head the entire time. We were watched always, both of us. The minute you left that apartment, they stormed in and took me back. And the tracker…” He lowers his eyes. “They tracked you the whole time you were in Echo Valley. When Sánchez decided to execute on the abduction, I just had to hope that this Enzo guy was as smart as Sánchez made him out to be. Thankfully, he is.”

I know Anton was part of what has me alive and kicking next to him today, but all of it still hurts. “You drugged me…”

He comes more alive. “Do you think I wantedSánchezstabbing you with a needle? I didn’t want him touching you.” His body tightens, and he grits his teeth. “It was torture watching him with you in that barn. But playing his game was necessary. It was all a gamble, and throwing the dice was the only way out. I had to believe this GhostEye organization would find you when you were abducted, follow, bring trained men to take down Sánchez’s. I can’t sit here and say I knew it would all happen this way. I didn’t. I didn’t know if either of us would come out alive, but if anyone did, I wanted it to be you. So when I had the chance…”

I finish his sentence. “You took the bullet.”

His voice is thick with emotion. “There was no morewaiting. I didn’t care if Enzo shot me. If Sánchez’s men shot if they were still outside. SWAT. I just knew it was time to get you out of the way.”

He gazes at me deeply. “I was thirty-three years old when I was taken in by Sánchez. I was a jaded, angry man with nothing to live for when I got thrown into a dark room at his compound. But a few days later, he gave me a job. He told me to watch you, and everything changed. You were such a clever girl, small enough to have been my own daughter. It was the most dramatic two days of my life being with you those first days. I was a SEAL for four years. I knew I could eventually make my way out of there if I worked on my own. But I couldn’t bring you with me.” Tears well in his eyes, but he makes a dry joke to stop them from flowing. “You were always too clumsy.”

The corner of my mouth quirks, but the weight of his admission pulls me right back to deep emotion. “You stayed under Sánchez’s control for me?”

“I can’t know I would have ever made it out. But I chose to keep living and before you I had a death wish. You gave me something, someone to live for. And yes, Ava, I did that for you.Withyou. You were the kid I always wanted to have. Hell, you’re better than anything I could have made.”

At that my nose starts running and I wipe a rogue tear off my cheek. “And you’re the dad I never had.”

He squeezes my hand. “Now that little girl is all grown up. You don’t need me anymore.”

“You’re the only one who treated me with kindness in all those years. You’re probably my only family…” Am I brave enough to ask the question? I have to. “Do you know what happened to my mom?”

His features stiffen.

“She’s dead?” I ask.

“Mules never make it out alive.” He grips my hand warmly. “I’m sorry.”

My heart hurts, and yet for years I’ve accepted she was never coming back. Sometimes, I even imagined she was dead. It’s painfully tragic she’s truly gone, and yet I grieved for her long ago.

“Then it’s true, Anton. You are my only family.”

“And you’re mine, Menace.” He makes one of his dry jokes. “But am I really old enough to be your dad? More like an uncle.”

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