Page 184 of Celestial Combat

“Sakura Sakura,” Zane’s voice came low beside me.

I turned my head to look at him.

He was still staring at the ceiling, jaw set, his gaze unfocused.

My chest swelled, something unspoken passing between us.

I knew he grew up in Tokyo. Hard childhood. I couldn’t imagine th emotional significance that song must have had on him.

“God,” I exhaled, my voice breaking just slightly, “I’ve been searching for that…Piece of herever since. Thank you for telling me.”

I reached for him then, hand moving across the space between us, wanting to press my palm to his chest – to feel something solid.

But before I could touch him, Zane sat up straight in the bed.

He froze. For just a second. His back was to me now, muscles drawn tight under skin. Then he reached for his phone on the nightstand, the screen casting a glow over his face.

“We should get going,” he said, not quite looking at me.

I stayed where I was, the sheets tangled around my legs, a little stunned by the sudden shift in him.

The song still echoed in my head, and I wondered what it meant to him.

I could tell it was big. But also that he wasn’t ready to talk about it yet.

So I let it go for the moment. Hoping he would find comfort in me to tell me eventually.

The jet waited at the far end of the runway, engines quiet for now, sleek and silver under the late Hawaiian sun. The air rippled off the tarmac in waves, and the smell of fuel clung faintly to the breeze as we pulled up in a rented black SUV.

I parked just behind a dark Range Rover, engine still running. And there he was – Trevor – leaning against the passenger side, no guards, no entourage. Just him and the low hum of tension that seemed to follow him everywhere.

“What’s Trevor doing here?”

“I need to talk to him about something.” I kept my tone flat, calm. “Wait in the car.”

Kali looked at me like she might argue, but I was already out the door.

Each step toward Trevor felt heavier than the last. He was watching me approach; laid back, relaxed.

“I need you to tell me something,” I said once I was close.

Trevor raised a brow. “Okay?”

“Your nanny. When you and Kali were kids. What happened to her?”

His expression changed immediately. “God, Zane. Not you too.”

“I need to know, Trevor.”

He pushed off the car. “Why are you listening to Kali’s bullshit stories?”

I didn’t answer. Just reached into my waistband and pointed my gun at him.

“Zane!” Kali’s voice rang sharp through the heat, the SUV door slamming shut behind her. “What are you doing!?”

Trevor didn’t flinch. He didn’t raise his hands or step back. He just watched me with the eyes of a man used to standing on the edge of violence.

“You don’t want to threaten me,” he said evenly. “Friend or not.”

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