Page 90 of Stay Little Fighter

I make two promises to myself as I pull my knees to my chest. I’ll never allow anyone close enough to hurt me like this again, and I’ll never ignore my gut when it tries to tell me something’s not right.

CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE

RONAN

NOW

Icheck the location on the phone we gave Chloe for what feels like the hundredth time since we watched their jet take off an hour ago.

They’ll be in and out of Miami in under an hour, and then they’ll be on their way back to us. But that does little to ease the anxiety racketing in my chest.

Splitting up seemed like the right call when King floated the idea, but now that I’m living it, I’m not so sure.

Trusting two men I don’t know very well with my reason for breathing is overshadowing the knowledge that I’ll be face-to-face with my father for the first time since I escaped with Chloe.

Once Salvatore is dead and his operation has been dismantled, we’re going to go to the compound one last time to pick up the things that meant a lot to our mom. She would want Chloe to have her engagement ring and whatever other sentimental jewelry she accumulated over the years, and Damon admitted he squirreled away some keepsakes from the Weavers just in case Chloe came looking for them.

And then we’ll burn the place to the ground.

There’s a part of me that’s sad that the place where all the best things in my life happened will be turned to ash, but the ghosts within those walls will never be exorcised, and there’s a satisfaction in burning down everything our father holds dear.

He deserves to rest in hell, knowing his life was meaningless.

We haven’t decided where we’re going to make our home base once this is all done, but our girl loves the house in Maine and we’ve settled in there without any issues. There’s space for the army of animals she and Ryker are always talking about, and it will be nice to live somewhere without walls.

The compound was always a prison, even when they told me it was for our safety, and although we’ll always be surrounded by security, the expanse of the ocean will never feel like the wall around the compound did.

“You’re as bad as my guys.” Camilla rolls her eyes, but there’s an adoring smile on her face.

As if to prove her point, Kaos sidles up beside her, wrapping an arm around her waist, and she doesn’t hesitate to lean into him.

“I’ll feel better once she’s back on the ground in Jacksonville,” I admit.

Kaos nods in understanding. What they went through when Camilla and Crew were missing is still weighing on them heavily, but she doesn’t seem to mind their overprotective instincts.

“Are they in Miami now?” she asks.

“They’re making their way to the facility.”

“I know your instincts are screaming at you to shield her from the world, but I’ve sparred with Chloe a lot over the years, and I promise she’s not a damsel in distress. The things you taught her when you were young stuck. And her shooting skills have always been strong. Even if she’s a little rusty, she’ll be able to protect herself.”

Her words are comforting, even if she’s not telling me anything I didn’t already know.

Damon steps up beside me and glances down at my phone with a smirk. “I thought I was the only one.”

“All four of you are watching her like a hawk,” Kaos informs us, and I look up to see Ryker watching his screen intently as he drills a discreet camera in the corner while Kingston has his phone propped up against his laptop screen, looking between the two devices every few seconds.

“This was a bad idea,” Damon says.

“This was the best option. We need whatever is in that lockbox, and this is the only time she’ll be able to slip into the city and out again without Lombardi’s attention,” I assure him.

“One of us should be with her.”

“But we all need to be here. I know you’re worried, I’m worried too. But in a few hours this will be over and we can move on with our lives.”

His eyes glance back down at the screen again and then he stalks off without another word.

“God, I thought I was stubborn,” Kaos chuckles.