Page 140 of Hidden Memories

A composure settles on Ava’s features, one that is not typically present in a twenty-five-year-old. Then again, she’s truly not a typical twenty-something.

“We got this, so don’t let it consume you,” Ava says, her tone softer. “This? What’s happening here? This is what you hold on to.”

I scan the room, taking it in. Kat, standing at the front with her hands covered in paint, her laughter carrying above the chatter. Theo, his head tipped back trying not to laugh while Owen draws a mustache under his nose with a marker. Arthur, gesturing wildly, arguing with a senior about which shade of blue to use… it’s worth holding on to.

The class winds down, Kat approaches me, her face flushed and streaked with faint smudges of paint that only add to her radiance. Her eyes are bright, her energy almost from an eternal source, like nothing in the world could ever dim this light.

“How’d I do?” she asks, a touch of nervousness laced with pride.

I brush a streak of green paint from her cheek with my thumb, the tender intimacy grounding me. “You were perfect. Like always.”

We gather our things to leave, Theo slipping his small hand into mine, his trust and warmth anchoring me. Owen drums along beside us, clutching his crumpled masterpiece with a grin wide enough to light the entire room. For the first time in weeks, it feels like a real step forward—toward something whole, something good.

Then Ava’s phone buzzes.

She slides it from her pocket, her sharp gaze flickering to the screen. Instantly, her expression shifts, the lightness in her demeanor vanishing like a thread pulled too tight.

“What is it?” I ask.

Ava hesitates, her lips pressing into a thin line and her gaze sweeps the room, as though scanning for unseen threats. She steps closer, her voice barely above a whisper. “Not here.”

The weight of her tone prickles along my spine. Katcatches the shift, too, her hand brushing my arm, steady but questioning.

“What’s going on?” she asks, calm but edged with concern.

Ava glances at Theo and Owen. “Let’s talk at the ranch.”

It’s not a conversation for young ears.

“There’s been a development.”

The easy banter from moments ago vanishes, tension snapping tight between us. I secure my grip around Theo’s hand, my mind already spinning through the possibilities.

“What kind of development?” I press, trying to read the guarded look in Ava’s eyes.

Ava hesitates. Then, her lips quirk into something that might be a smirk—or maybe something more calculating.

Her voice drops lower. “Trust me. It’s good.”

There’s something about the way she says it—the way her eyes scan the area around us, the way she presses the phone against her leg—that makes my pulse quicken.

Gooddoesn’t always mean safe.

I meet Kat’s gaze, and I know she feels it, too.

“All right,” I say. “Let’s go.”

We head toward the truck, golden light from the sun fades behind us, and we step into the unknown once again.

Chapter Thirty-Six

PRESENT

After leavingOwen and Theo at the stables with Gabriel, Anton, and Luis, Santi and I head over to the ranch offices. The last thirty minutes have been wordless. Like we’re holding our breath.

When we arrive, it’s as if I’m under a sky full of lightning, the air is charged and thick.

Santi’s sitting next to me at the head of the table, his broad shoulders stiff, his jaw set in that way that tells me he’s trying to stay calm. I know him well enough now to recognize when he’s barely keeping his emotions in check.Beside him, Ava’s perched on the edge of her chair, her laptop open and glowing, casting her face in a pale blue light. She got back here before us and has already been working, pulling threads and finding answers.

---