Page 18 of Broken By Silence
I’m still here, and I won’t let Lorenzo Valen take that from me.
Not again.
Chapter 6
Lottie
Idress in silence, tugging on a hoodie that doesn’t feel like armor, but it’s warm and soft and smells like Archer—like safety. I pull my damp hair out of my face into a braid with trembling fingers, then step back into the hall.
Oscar is curled into the armchair like a watchful statue, eyes meeting mine the second I appear. He stands immediately.“You okay?”he signs.
I nod.
Then shake my head.
Then shrug.
None of those are the correct answers, and all I want to do is fall into his arms and fall apart. Archer stands by the doorframe, appearing with two mugs of hot tea, the kind Claire always makes for me when I’m upset. When he sees me staring, he moves forward, placing the cups on the table with a soft clink, and turns to me.
“Hey baby,” he says softly. “You need anything?”
“A new life?” I joke, my mouth twisting into a sad smile. “He knows I’m alive.” Oscar’s jaw tightens. Archer doesn’t flinch. “I wantto be prepared. I don’t want to hide or run again. I need to be ready if he comes for me.”
There’s a pause, the only sound in the room is their breathing, which seems to pick up. Archer steps closer, pulling me into his arms like I’m something precious. “We’ll be ready. We’ll protect you…”
“Whatever it takes.”Oscar’s hands move purposefully, never breaking eye contact.
And just like that, a decision settles in my bones.
This time, I don’t disappear. I don’t run or hide, or try to take my own life by jumping into the waves where the silence seemed to wrap around me like a comforting blanket.
This time, I’ll make sure he does. I’ll scream, claw, and fight my way out of this… for the life I now have.
I’m tugged down in between them. Archer’s arm draping over my shoulder, Oscar’s thigh pressing against mine. I feel like I should cry, but there’s nothing left in me—only exhaustion and quietness.
The kind of quiet that settles into your bones when you know, for once, you’re not alone.
I don’t know what’s going to happen next or what Lorenzo will do, or if Roman will survive long enough to fulfill the promises he made in blood and secrets.
But I know I survived Lorenzo once before, and I’m never going back.
Archer squeezes my shoulder gently, and Oscar’s fingers brush lightly against my knee, grounding me in the now. I sink into the couch cushion, sandwiched between them, letting their warmth seep into the cold parts of me that never seem to have thawed.
No one speaks. There’s no need. The silence is no longer heavy, it’s steady, like a pulse.
After a while, Archer leans in, brushing his lips against my temple. “You should rest, baby,” he murmurs.
“I’m fine,” I lie, even as my body screams otherwise. The tremor in my hands hasn’t stopped, and the heaviness behind my eyes makesit hard to keep them open. Still, some instinct keeps me upright and alert, as if falling asleep might mean letting my guard down. If I close my eyes, the past might catch up and drag me back.
Oscar notices and his eyes meet mine again.“Come lie down with us, Lottie.”
He doesn’t wait for me to respond. He stands and reaches out a hand. I hesitate, only for a second, but I take it.
Archer’s ahead of us, already moving toward the bedroom, and I follow, letting their presence calm me. The hallway feels longer than it is, like some part of me is walking toward something that can’t be undone… but maybe that’s okay.
Maybe I’m allowed to change and want things.
I’m allowed to want to be safe.
