Page 165 of Ugly Beautiful Scars

I've only known her a few days, but it's clear we've both experienced hell. Different situations, same monsters. So I feel comfortable sharing the truth. "Me too."

Her lips part and she drops her brows, not understanding my meaning.

I swallow. "I… I don't want others to know."

"Of course. I won't tell anyone."

"I was also locked in a room. Chained." The words fall out before I can stop them. "No windows. Just brick walls and darkness."

Sienna's face crumples. "Oh, Londyn." She reaches for my hand and I let her take it. There's a strange current between us, like we've both had moments of drowning and now found each other in the dark water.

"I never thought I'd get out or see sunlight again. I haven't felt safe since. Not until meeting Sean." I touch my stomach with my free hand.

For a moment, we just stand there, two women who understand what it means to be caged, to survive, to carry those invisible scars. Then something inside Sienna cracks completely. She opens her mouth a few times, trying to respond, but finally breaks, standing there motionless and just sobbing.

Declan must've sensed her pain because he suddenly appears. He quickly folds her against his chest like he's tucking away something priceless.

"I wish I knew what was going on," Sienna cries, her words muffled against her husband's shirt. "I don't understand. What did Sean get mixed up in?"

I feel the guilt slithering inside me like a snake, so I move away, returning to the couch. I haven't told them everything. I've kept the details vague, offering only tiny breadcrumbs of truth. It waspartly to protect the mission, partly because speaking it out loud now feels like admitting that it failed. I can't admit that Sean failed and that he's not coming back.

And selfishly, I keep the story close because it's all I have left of him—these fragmented pieces of a plan that somehow changed.

Declan strokes his wife's red hair, his large hand making her seem smaller and more fragile. "Sean said it was about Victor. He said you'd know—"

"Victor?" Sienna's head snaps up and her body goes rigid. Her eyes, still swimming with tears, find mine across the room. There's a new quality to her gaze—recognition layered with horror—like she's seen a ghost.

I look away, unable to hold the understanding of her stare. How does she know Victor?

"We have to gonow." Sienna's voice and entire vibe has transformed into panic. Her fingers twist into Declan's shirt and she yanks him to the side toward the luggage. "We can't wait. If it's Victor, if Sean didn't… We have to go, honey. Now!"

She pulls away from Declan and hurries to the luggage. She tears a zipper open to pull out her passport and double check it. Then she yanks the car keys from Declan's pocket and starts dragging luggage toward the front door.

Our controlled departure is now an evacuation.

"No!" I'm on my feet, blood rushing to my head so fast I feel woozy. I grab the back of the couch for balance. "We can't leave. He'll come back. If we're gone, he won't—"

Sienna drops the luggage and rushes to me. Her hands grip my shoulders. The contact is startling—I'm not used to being touched by anyone except Sean. My body tenses involuntarily, but I don't pull away because I trust her and know she's just freaking out. I've certainly had my share of those.

"Londyn," she says, her voice steadier now with a certainty that chills me to the bone. "I understand. Believe me, I understand how hard this is. But Victor was my ex's father. He's an evil man. If he's involved, and Sean hasn't come back…" Her fingers tighten, not painful but urgent. "Victor will come for us next. He's already on his way. He'll find us if we stay here and we'll be dead."

I remember Victor's black, empty eyes and I know she's right.

"He's killed so many people." Her voice drops to a whisper. "And when he has his sights on you, there's no escape." Her eyebrows tighten and seem to draw her eyes closer together. She looks scraped raw by memories and her fingers tremble against my shoulders. "I know better than anyone. I used to be part of his world, and I've heard so many terrible stories about him that would make you lose your appetite for weeks."

I search her face, and I see the same ghosts in her eyes that I imagine live behind mine. Survivors recognizing survivors.

"I'm sorry, Londyn," she says. "I love Sean. I don't want to think that something happened to him either, but he's always punctual and keeps his word. We have to accept that he's not coming. We need to leave so we don't join him."

Watching Sienna, seeing the raw fear in her eyes, is a mirror that reveals my new future. A life spent running. A life spent looking over my shoulder. A life Sean would never want for me.

Or for our child.

But that's my life now.

Worse than that, Sean is…

He's…

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