Page 80 of Montana Silence

“It’s okay.”

She sighed. “This whole thing has been ludicrous and confusing, and I will be so glad to leave it all behind.”

Something we both could agree on. “I admit I’m a little nervous. We still don’t know who sent the veil and note since he had to have someone do it.”

“He won’t be able to send you anything else,” Claire said. “Trust me.”

I looked over at her. “How do you know that?”

She shrugged. “I just do.” Then she shook her head like she was clearing it. “I’m sure the panel will take the packages into consideration when sending him back. They’ll likely limit his access to things like communication. So he won’t be able to send you anything else.”

“That’s…good.”

Claire looked strange, and she was acting even stranger. Looking in the rearview mirror, as if she expected someone to be following us.

“But truly, it’s been incredibly hard, this whole thing. Having to watch Malcolm sit there like he still has any power at all. Like he didn’t throw it all away when he wasn’t fucking careful enough not to get caught.”

“What?”

“Back when the compound was still here in Arizona, everything could have been avoided. I’ve seen everything, Mara. He could have misdirected the FBI away from raiding the place. When they came, he could have had a plan in place and made everything look normal. Instead, he got cocky and fucked witheverything.”

My breath went shallow.

When the compound was still here in Arizona.

Did that mean what I thought it meant? It still existed somewhere? Daniel and Jude hadn’t found anything. There wasn’t any evidence, and they said the old property was mostly abandoned.

“Claire, it’s a good thing it happened. You helped send him to jail the first time. You’re putting him back in jail and keeping him there. This doesn’t make any sense.”

“I’m trying to tell you how hard it was, watching it,” she said. “Watching him have to stay quiet and hidden while everyone else fawned over someone who’s essentially dead. Having to stay in the shadows?” She huffed out a breath. “He deserved better.Deservesbetter. Finally, he’s going to get it. It’s been far too long.”

“Who deserves better?” I asked quietly.

“Neil.” She looked at me, eyes wild, and I barely recognized her. Claire looked like she was full of restless energy, bouncing in the seat a little and tapping her fingers on the steering wheel. “Neil deserves fuckingeverythingfor what Malcolm’s done. When one father passes, another takes his place. What does it matter if the previous one hasn’t fully passed? He’s never getting out of prison. We made sure of that.”

Her smile now was maniacal. I couldn’t move or breathe. Every muscle was tense. I didn’t even want to reach for my phone in case she saw, because she was driving, and I didn’t know what she might do.

Panic began to claw at the inside of my stomach, but there was nothing I could do. Not until I could reach my phone and call Liam. Breathe in, breathe out.

I felt my voice slipping away, but I needed to hold on to it. The urge to curl in on myself and hide rose, and I fought it back. Whatever happened now, I needed to be awake, alert, and ready. Because like hell was I justlettingthis happen. I had things to live for and a man I loved waiting for me.

God, did Liam know? He hadn’t called me. Please, Liam, figure it out. I was going to do everything I could to get out, but I also knew Liam would move heaven and earth to find me if he knew something was wrong.

The car sped up, and I looked outside to see us merging onto the highway. I felt one last spark of hope. “Claire, where is the other building?”

“Just a little farther. A few exits.”

Yeah, that was a lie.

Making sure I barely moved, I slid my hand down into the pocket of my jeans. Thank god my phone was on the side of the car next to the door.

“Who’s Neil?” I asked, keeping my voice light and conversational.

“You don’t remember him?”

I cleared my throat. “No. Should I?”

“He’s a member of The Family, just like you. A few years older than you, but not by much. I would think you would know the name.”

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