Page 147 of Burn Like An Angel

The silence stretches on. Helpless tears prickle my eyes.

“I fucking failed her,” he rasps. “I’ll never forgive myself for that. What good was my revenge when she’s still lying dead beneath the ground?”

Licking my lips, I decide to speak my mind. “I know I’m not supposed to say this… but you did right by her, Nox. You got rid of the monster who hurt her so badly. And that man can’t hurt anyone else now.”

“It was too late for her.”

“Yes, it was,” I agree sadly. “But it isn’t too late for you to start living your life for her. She wouldn’t want you to carry around all this guilt forever. You have to live in her name now.”

He vibrates with barely silenced sobs. “How?”

“However you want—that’s the point. She’d want you to be happy, living a life you’ve chosen for yourself. Not one full of regret for something you didn’t choose and can’t ever change.”

Holding him tight, I let him cry it all out. The grief. The guilt. Every toxic emotion and traumatic memory that’s carved Lennox from immovable steel into the complex man he is today. A man borne from pain but holding so much capacity for unconditional love.

My muscles are protesting from sitting frozen for so long by the time Lennox lifts his head. I trace my thumb across his cheek, smoothing the faint, silvery trails that have soaked into his stubble.

“Better?”

He puffs out a long sigh. “Yeah. Thanks.”

“It’s okay to rely on others too, you know. I get that you want to protect us all, but we care about you. And you can lean on us when the burden gets too heavy as well.”

With a faint smile, he presses a kiss against my hair. “I’ll bear that in mind.”

“Please do. I’m a mess half the time anyway. I’ll happily share that title with you.”

“How generous.”

Rising, I offer him a hand up. “That’s me. Such a giver.”

Lennox clambers to his feet, clutching my hand in his huge paw. We both look back down at Daisy’s grave. He curses, leaning down to clean the stone with the hem of his shirt and remove the moss speckles.

“I should book one of those grave cleaners.” Lennox brushes off his tee. “You know, when we have actual lives and freedom again. She deserves for it to be sparkling clean.”

“We’ll make it happen.”

“Ripley!” someone bellows. “Lennox!”

Both startled, we turn simultaneously to look back at the car park. Another tinted SUV has pulled in, the interior shaded from sight. No one drives vehicles like that around here without having a good reason.

Terror blooms inside me, quickly growing into a spiky ball that fills my stomach. Ethan’s backup is another man I don’t recognise, and Tara, the brown-haired agent we first met.

They’ve both pulled out their weapons. The guns are aimed at the driver’s side, but it’s the passenger door that opens to release an occupant.

My breath catches. “Shit.”

“Is that…?”

“Yes.”

Brushing off his smart trousers and designer polo shirt, my uncle casts a withering glare at the agents training their guns on him. It’s rare he’s seen out of a full suit. Apparently, he views this as a social call.

I watch the agents reluctantly lower their weapons, though they are kept drawn. Right now, Sabre has no jurisdiction to threaten my uncle. Harming him would cause a huge scandal.

Lennox keeps me slightly tucked behind him as we walk back to the cars. Their voices grow louder. Three men exit the SUV behind my uncle, all stacked with muscle and wearing fearsome scowls.

“I’d just like to speak to my niece.” Jonathan shows his palms placatingly. “There’s no need for weapons.”

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