Page 81 of Betrayed in the Dark
“Clearly, it’s not!” he shouts, causing a few heads to turn in our direction. He places his hands on his hips, lowers his head, and takes a deep breath. Shaking his head, he adds, “Sorry. I just… I can’t think about…”
I rest a hand on his shoulder. “I know, Leo.”
His eyes meet mine, and an understanding passes through us.
“Gentlemen.” A woman approaches, displaying a sad smile. “Mr. Fowler would like to see you in the study, please.”
They nod in acknowledgment.
“We’ll be there shortly.” Vin straightens his tie before fixing his attention on me. “We’ll see you tomorrow before you leave.”
The three of them stride down the hall, and just as they turn out of sight, I catch a glimpse of hair as black as night swaying over Madeleine’s shoulders as she walks up the stairs and disappears from view.
Taking a calming breath, I follow her, navigating through the crowd until I reach the stairs. My fingers wrap around the banister, and with each step upward, my heart pounds a little faster beneath my rib cage.
When I finally reach the top, I turn left and walk to the end of the hall, passing by all the other rooms until I arrive at hers. The door is slightly ajar, and as I step inside, I find her standing at the balcony entrance, her arms wrapped around her middle as her body shivers.
She turns to face me, tears pouring from her vibrant blue eyes, coating her porcelain cheeks. “I couldn’t hold it in any longer.”
I quickly close the distance between us, reaching her in a few strides before wrapping my arms around her and pulling her close to my chest.
And the girl who has always hidden her tears from the world, fearing that she might appear weak…breaks in my arms.
A sob escapes her as her body trembles against me, her tears soaking my shirt. Her slender fingers clutch my jacket tightly as every overwhelming emotion washes over her.
Unrelenting and unyielding.
“It hurts…so much,” she chokes out, her chest heaving with so much force.
“I know, and I’m so fucking sorry that I can’t make it stop.” I cup a hand on the back of her head, my thumb tracing back and forth. I’ve never seen her this vulnerable before, and it’s makingme wish I could take her pain away—all of it. Every single fucking piece of it. “Let it out, love.”
“I d-didn’t t-think you’d be here… I didn’t know…if I’d see you. But I…” She rubs her forehead against my chest as a tremor rushes through her. “I needed you.”
I needed you.Her admission makes my chest tighten. If I could have been here days ago, I would have, but there were protocols keeping me in place—time zones working against me and three different planes to board that could only get me here so fast.
“I’ll always be wherever you need me to be.” I smooth the palm of my hand down her back, up and down. My lips press against the top of her head as my arm locks around her, securing her to my body.
Hours pass as we stand in this embrace, neither of us able to let go. Eventually, the tears all but dry up from Madeleine’s eyes. As her eyelids begin to close, I carefully scoop her into my arms and tuck her into her four-poster bed, ensuring she’s properly covered beneath her blankets.
Looking down at her, it breaks my heart to know that I have only hours remaining to be in the same time zone as her. Not long after I board my first flight, we’ll be on entirely different continents, and it pains me to think that I won’t be there to keep her safe—to protect her.
But I know her brothers will.
They’ll do everything they can to keep their baby sister out of harm’s way.
This thought eases some of the tension coiling inside me.
Leaning forward, I press a kiss to her forehead, inhaling her scent one last time.
And as I stand straight, I retrieve a letter from my jacket pocket and leave it on her nightstand for her to find in the morning.
Chapter seventeen
Madeleine
My eyes flutter open, still partially lost in the haze of my dreams when suddenly, a roar echoes through the room. Shooting up in a panic, I clutch my blanket tightly to my chest, scanning the space around me. The moon, high in the sky, casts the only light through my window for my eyes to see.
But there’s nobody here.
