Page 86 of Surrender

Fuck, I'd love to see them just fucking put him down like a dog. But I wouldn't subject Ser to that. Witnessing a murder on top of being kidnapped would be too much for her, and I want to protect her from everything. In fact...

"Ser?"

She's the one that suffered at his hands. She's the one that was kidnapped and forced naked. It should be up to her.

"Let him go," she says simply. I whip my head around to look at her. Nothing? Not a single punishment? For what he put us through?! My need for revenge, for retribution, for destruction is through the roof and she just wants to let him go. No punishment, no retribution, no nothing.

She squeezes my hand, though, and explains. "He'll have to live knowing he failed. That I'm not a prize to be won, or something to be taken. That I'm in love with another man and could never love him the way that I love you. He'll have his membership revoked, of course, and we're going to get me a bodyguard or guard dog or something...because I don't think Hank's going to guard anything...so he can't try it again...but..." and she turns to address him directly. "He is not a man who is used to not getting what he wants." She repeats in a Russian accent. "But I think it's time he learns."

I've admired her strength, her resilience, and now I admire her grace. It's got a bite to it, for sure, but she could have had him killed. She could have had him beaten. She doesn't know who Rico and Santiago are, but they don't appear to be on the rightside of the law, either. So, I'm sure she knows she could have asked for anything, and we would have given it to her.

Volkov is absolutely seething in his defeat. His nostrils flare, his chest heaves, but the guns pointed at his brain make him comply. Even if he hates it.

So, with a nod to Rico, we back away to the elevator. They follow us, guns still drawn. Once the elevator doors close, we all breathe a collective sigh of relief. Rico and Santiago uncock their guns and slide them into the back of their pants as easily as they breathe. It's strange. Guns are outlawed in DC, so we rarely see any. By nature, they make me nervous, but I trust these two men to know what they're doing.

Ser is tucked into my side silently. She may need some time to process all of this, maybe some therapy.

We hug and say goodbye to Cas, Harrison and Daniel. Joseph wraps Ser in a long hug, as if he needed to reassure himself that she's okay. And she hugs him back.

Not only has Ser gone from jumpy, scared, and timid to someone full of grace and confidence, she has a family now. A real one. Cassidy, Daniel, Harrison, Joseph, Magda, and her friends from The Envelope are her new family. They love her, worry about her, and would do anything for her. They care. And it's so much more than the parents she came from. My heart swells with gratitude for her new family.

I wrap her in my arms and let Joseph drive us home.

Chapter fifty-two

Serenity

Declan's tense again. I know what just happened was traumatic for both of us. And I know there's a lot we need to talk about, but he's silent on the drive back. We love Joseph, but he doesn't need to be an unwilling participant in what I'm sure is going to be a stressful conversation.

Hank greets us by the door.He really does need a new name.I kneel and press my face into his fur.

"We need to talk," Declan says, toeing off his shoes by the door. I stand and follow suit.

I nod my agreement and follow him to his bedroom.

"Are you working tonight?" I ask. He's at The Envelope most nights.

He shakes his head and sits on the bed, motioning me to sit next to him.

"How did you get the upper hand on him? Did he touch you? Did he hurt you? What the hell happened?"

God, the sheer panic and stress in his expression kills me.

I take his hands in mine and guide him to his bathroom. I need to wash away this day. And I need to touch him, reassure him.

I strip and start the shower before stripping his clothes off of him. I pepper kisses against his shoulder, his chest, his arms. I'm going to explain everything, but sometimes words aren't enough, and I want to reassure him with my body.

Once we're under the spray and I lather his body soap in my hands and tell him everything, from the moment I stepped out of the courtroom to the moment he arrived. After the photo, I was crying so hard, Adrian couldn't even look at me. He showed me what was supposed to be my room and shut the door. But the door locked from the inside, not the outside, so after I spent a few minutes crying over the pain I knew Declan was about to feel, I decided I couldn't wait any longer to escape. I needed to get to him and explain before he thought the worst of me, if he didn't get my message in the photo. I prayed he trusted our love enough to not believe the photo, but I needed to get to him either way. I was prepared to walk the streets of DC in my underwear just to get to him.

Because Adrian assumed I was weak and mourning, I was able to sneak out of the room and get to the kitchen. The way his bodyguard was sitting by the entry, the couch and kitchen island blocked his view of me as I crouched and crawled across the floor. By the time Adrian came out of his home office, I was able to come up behind him, kick him in the back of the knees and bring the knife to his throat.

The relief I felt when Declan burst through the front door was palpable. He'd gotten my message. He hadn't believed the stupid, forced photo. And he'd come for me.

As I tell the story, I can feel the muscles under my hands relax, inch by inch. I run shampoo through his hair, and he closes his eyes with a sigh. I wonder if anyone has ever taken care of him. He's always in control, and taking care of everyone else, but I love that he's letting me lead.

Once I've tilted his head back under the spray and massaged the shampoo out of his hair, he washes me down and tells me his side of what happened.

"I'm nervous about letting Volkov walk around DC freely," he admits.

---