Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 354(@200wpm)___ 283(@250wpm)___ 236(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70801 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 354(@200wpm)___ 283(@250wpm)___ 236(@300wpm)
“I’m being smart,” I say automatically.
Dean’s voice is quiet now. “You can’t be smart and in love at the same time. Not in this work.”
I flinch at the word even though he didn’t say it cruelly. Love. As if it’s already obvious. As if it’s inevitable.
Dean exhales. “I’m not telling you to shut it off. I’m telling you to keep your head. Because if you lose it, it won’t just get you hurt. It’ll get her hurt.”
My jaw clenches. “I know.”
“Good,” Dean says. “I’ll update you when we have more.” The line clicks off.
I stand there for a beat, phone still at my ear, listening to nothing. The night air feels colder now. I rub my face with my free hand and stare out into the dark. Salem’s father hired Maddox Security. Salem’s mother is drinking fruity cocktails on a beach with money that doesn’t belong to her. Carl is a suspect. Goldenbell runs the ring. Serafina’s name is in the mix. And Salem is sleeping inside like the world isn’t sharpening its knives.
I have a strong urge to go back in there and wrap myself around her again. To keep her in that warm bubble of ignorance. But ignorance isn’t safety. It’s just a delay. And delays get people killed.
I exhale slowly and scroll through my contacts to Poe.
Poe Cameron is the one person who can say a single sentence and put my skull back where it belongs.
He answers on the second ring like he’s been awake waiting. “Oliver,” Poe says, voice dry. “You calling because you’re bored or because something’s on fire?”
“Both,” I say, and my voice sounds rougher than I want it to.
Poe hums. “That’s not an answer.”
I stare at the tree line. “Dean called.”
Poe’s tone shifts immediately. “Okay.”
“He asked about Salem’s father,” I say. “Turns out… her father hired Maddox Security. Paid for the extraction. Then vanished.”
A pause. Poe’s voice goes quiet. “That’s bad.”
“Yeah,” I agree. “Also—Salem’s mom and her boyfriend Carl are on vacation in the tropics. Luxury resort. Like they suddenly found money.”
Poe swears softly. “That’s worse.”
“It gets better,” I mutter. “The ring’s name is Goldenbell. Dean thinks Serafina’s tied to it.”
Poe exhales, slowly. “We’re in deep.”
I close my eyes briefly. “Yeah.”
Silence stretches for a moment. Then Poe says, casually, “You didn’t call me just to deliver bad news. What’s the real reason?”
I squeeze my eyes shut. I almost hang up. Then I hear Salem’s voice from earlier in my head—I’ve never trusted anyone. “I’m falling for her.” The words land heavy in the cold air.
On the other end of the line, Poe goes quiet. Then, like he’s smirking through the phone, he says, “You’re doomed.”
I bark out a short laugh that sounds more like pain. “Helpful.”
“You want helpful?” Poe asks. “Be careful.”
“I am careful,” I snap.
Poe’s voice stays calm. “No, Oz. You’re protective. That’s not the same as careful.”
I swallow. “What do you want me to do? Not feel it?”
Poe pauses. “I want you to keep your brain online. Because I’d hate to have to rescue you when things go sideways.”
My mouth tightens. “You’d love rescuing me.”
Poe scoffs. “I would hate it. You’d never shut up about it.”
I smile faintly despite myself.
Then Poe adds, quieter, “She good?”
I glance back at the window. That warm glow. That bed. That girl I shouldn’t want this much. “She’s… better,” I say. “When she laughs, it’s like—”
“Don’t,” Poe interrupts. “Don’t get poetic. I’ll hang up.”
I huff. “Whatever.”
Poe’s voice softens. “Just… don’t forget who you are, Ozzy. You can love her. But don’t let love make you reckless.”
I swallow. “Yeah.”
“And when the time comes,” Poe says, “tell her the truth. Before someone else does.”
My chest tightens. Because I already know that conversation is going to cut. “Okay,” I murmur.
Poe sighs. “Call if you need me.”
“I always need you,” I say, deadpan.
Poe snorts. “Gross.”
I hang up with a laugh.
The porch creaks under my weight as I stand there for another beat, staring into the dark. Then I tuck my phone in my pocket and go back inside. Because Salem is in that bed, warm and trusting and finally sleeping without flinching at every sound. And no matter what Dean just told me— Salem is mine to protect. And I’m going to keep her safe long enough for her to find out what she deserves.
Even if I have to burn the whole world down to do it.
TWENTY-ONE
SALEM
I wake up to the bed shifting. It’s still dark outside. Ozzy slides back under the covers like he belongs here. Like we belong here. His heat finds me immediately, a warm press at my back, his arm curling around my waist. For one sweet second, my body relaxes into him like nothing bad exists. Then I feel it. The tension in him. Not the kind that means he wants me. The kind that means he’s carrying something heavy and sharp, trying not to cut me with it.