Page 320 of Redeemed

“That was a nice shot you pulled off back there.” Colton nods to Wes. “You saved Haven’s life. Thank you.”

“What I’m here for,” Wes says tiredly. He’s leaning against the side of the van, and both his hands are pressed to his thigh. “Hey, Cal—”

“We’re here,” Kellan declares as he slows the van to a stop.

Haven looks up at me, pulling my attention away from Wes. “Here?”

“We’ve got a long way to go until we’re home, but Athelia wanted to see you as soon as possible,” I say as I undo the handcuffs. “This is just a quick stop.”

Cal is closest to the door, so he opens it and jumps out. I slip my arms underneath Haven and carry her out into the fading light.

Our meetup spot is some abandoned fairground that hasn’t been used in over a decade. Most of it’s a dilapidated wreck, but there are a few solid-looking benches, so I make a beeline for one.

Athelia and Julie both jump out of Julie’s SUV. Another girl follows them, and I quickly realize it’s my sister.

“Luc?” she calls, and when she spots me, she sprints over to us with Athelia on her heels. “Luc!”

“What the hell are you doing here?” I demand as I set Haven down.

Rora immediately flings her arms around my torso. “I was so worried.”

“How did you even know where I was?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes! It really does.”

“Save the bickering for later,” Athelia says, annoyed. “It’s stressing Haven out.”

There’s nothing that could shut me up faster than that. Tears are falling onto Haven’s cheeks again as Athelia sits on the bench.

“Missed you,” Athelia whispers, her arm coming around Haven’s shoulders. “We brought you some clothes. Do you want to get out of this dress?”

Haven’s bottom lip trembles, and she nods. “I hate this thing.”

Thank fuck.I almost didn’t recognize Haven when I first saw her in that dress. She still doesn’t look like herself, and I know it’s probably fucking with her head.

“All right,” Athelia says. “Let’s get you to the car so you can have some privacy.”

Stepping forward, I scoop Haven up and head toward the SUV. Julie is hovering near it, watching us with tears in her eyes.

“I’m okay,” Haven says as I set her in the backseat.

We all know she’s not. The recovery process from this will take months, if not years.

“Do you want help?” Athelia asks.

Haven shakes her head. “Just close the door, please.”

Before I do, I lean in and kiss her on the forehead. She clutches at my vest and pulls me in until her lips meet mine.

“I love you,” she whispers shakily against my mouth.

“I love you, too, little fawn.” One more small kiss, and I pull away.

She watches me with tears in her eyes as I close the door. I don’t want to leave her alone, but there’s no way in hell I’m disrespecting her boundaries.

When I turn to give her privacy, my eyes fall on Rora. My shock from earlier comes back full force, and I grab her arm. “Explain. How the hell did you find out about this?”

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