Page 56 of All Tied Up
“Linc won’t be killing anyone. Not if he wants in my bed again.”
She turned back to me. “You still up for this?”
I nodded. “Yes. I’ll do anything. But who is Madeline Hughes?” Not that it mattered.
The corners of her mouth quirked. “The boss’s wife.”
Twenty-Five
Noa
There was more silence on the flight than I’d expected, but it gave me time to think. The uncertainty of what I was about to do was clear, even if they weren’t saying it. I could feel the tension in the air. A mixture of fear, anxiety, and determination.
The little Branwen had made it clear she trusted Madeline Hughes, but the two men with us didn’t seem so sure.
Than had only stopped pacing to sit down for takeoff. Once we were in the air, he was back to his feet, unable to stop moving. He was scared. Not for himself, but for Ransom. It was easy to read on his face.
A few times, he stopped. Once to place both his palms on the wall while he hung his head and took a few deep breaths. The other was to run both hands through his hair and fist it like he wanted to yank it out at the roots. He reminded me of a caged wild animal, and I understood that feeling completely.
I sat the entire flight, but I wrung my hands so much and so hard that they were raw and tender.
When we landed, there was a black SUV waiting on us, and Forge climbed into the driver’s seat while Than got into the front passenger seat.
Again, no one said anything while we drove. My heart was hammering so hard in my chest that I wasn’t so sure it would survive this without giving out on me. Like Than, it wasn’t my life I was terrified of losing. Knowing that the outcome of this meeting meant life or … no, I couldn’t think about that. Ransom was going to grow old. He’d live a full, long life. Even if I didn’t get to be a part of it. I had to know he was okay. Breathing. Living.
“Did you explain to her that he may kill all of us for this?” Than asked, breaking the silence.
“In so many words,” Branwen replied with a hint of hesitance.
I glanced over at her. She hadn’t told me that. I studied her, and she gave me an apologetic smile.
“I thought I was the only one putting their life on the line.”
She lifted a shoulder. “Possibly. But with Blaise, one never knows.”
Wait. She was serious.
“Branwen is safe. She’s a Shephard, and Madeline would never forgive Blaise. It’s the rest of us that are questionable.” Forge supplied that information like it was normal conversation.
“Neither of you has to go. We can go alone,” Branwen told them.
“Like hell. Dad wouldn’t let me come, and that was fucked up. He’s my brother,” Than sneered.
“I helped bring you here. I wouldn’t have done that if I had planned on walking away from it. We lost one brother. We don’t want to lose another,” Forge told her.
Branwen nodded and took a deep, steadying breath, thenturned to look at me. “A few years ago, one of the guys was shot and killed. He was Than’s best friend.”
“Crosby,” I said softly, remembering the day I’d gotten the text from Ransom about it.
She nodded slightly. “You know a lot.”
“Ransom and I might have met in person again this past fall, but he’s been a big part of my life for eleven years. We’ve shared most of our highs and lows with each other.”
And I’d give it all up, everything we had, if he got to live.
“We only know a little about it. Ransom didn’t share much,” she told me.
“Has he really been talking to you since high school?” Than asked, his voice not hiding the disbelief.
