Page 5 of Fighting Shadows

“We have the best people looking for her, ok buddy? She’ll be home before we know it,” I say.

“Do you promise?” he asks me, breaking my heart even further.

“I can’t make a big promise like that, buddy, but I can promise that I’ll go out there and help them look for her. Tobias is already doing that, so I’ll go help him once I drop something off to Zander, and I’ll keep Mom updated the whole time.”

“She’s not my mom, silly. Autumn is,” Chase says so confidently I nearly fall on my ass.

“What do you mean, buddy?” I asked, needing to make sure I understood.

“She’s going to adopt me one day, and she’s going to be my Ma,” he says, matter of factly.

“Is that so?” I can’t help but laugh at how serious he sounds.

“Yep! She’s going to be my Ma, and you’re going to be my Da.”

“Buddy, I don’t think that’s possible right now,” I tell him, trying desperately to let him down easily.

He scoffs at me, fully scoffing like I’m an idiot.

“Not right now, obviously,” he scolds, his little voice as harsh as he can make it; I can practically hear him rolling his eyes at me, “When Autumn gets better, you are both going to adopt me.”

“Is that so?”

I can’t help but smile at how certain he is.

I’d love nothing more than to adopt this kid; he makes everyone happy, and I know Mom is getting on and wants to stop fostering, her body unable to keep up.

But I know that we aren’t in any position to take in a kid, never mind fully adopting one.

“Yup. A girl in my dream told me when I was having nightmares about being in the house with my other Ma,” he says, his voice choking up as he remembers his mom.

“OK, buddy. I believe you, but we need to keep this between us right now. I’m going to find Autumn Chase, and I’ll try my hardest to bring her home to us,” I say, “Now put my mom back on, please.”

“Okay! I love you!” he chirps.

Rustling on the other end tells me he’s chucked the phone back to Mom before I can reply.

“He’s been adamant about all of that since the Christmas party,” Mom says as she comes back on the line.

“You didn’t say anything.”

“No, but Autumn knew he broke down crying at the party when he thought she was having a baby, and someone made a joke about it. Poor thing was so inconsolable that Autumn took him from the room to soothe him and reassure him she wasn’t.”

“She didn’t say anything,” I muttered, sounding like a parrot.

“She didn’t need to. She is dealing with the loss of her sister, who was her child; she may not have enough space in her heart for another child yet,” Mom scolds me, her tone firm and no-nonsense as she continues on her rant about how we would probably have tried to push her into it even if we were meaning well.

“I’ll let you go so you can start looking for her. Bring her back to us, son,” Mom says.

Muttering a quick goodbye before hanging up, I desperately try to control my breathing.

I want nothing more than to bring her home, to find her, bundle her up in my arms, spank her ass for nearly leaving me once again, and then never let her out of my sight ever again.

In fact, a pair of handcuffs sounds good. If she’s attached to me, she can’t leave or be taken.

Of course, I had to fall in love with the one woman who’s in danger every five minutes, but I wouldn’t have it any other way; she matches the darkness in my soul and mirrors it in a way I could have only ever wished for.

I don’t believe in soulmates, but I know in my gut that that is what she is.

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