Page 81 of Broken By Silence
Will exhales, the tension finally breaking. “Alright,” he says, shaking his head. “As long as no one’s dying, I’ll let it slide. But next time, I want to know before she comes home looking like she fought a bear.”
Claire raises an eyebrow. “A bear would’ve lost.”
Archer finally moves closer,pulling her into a hug. “You scare the hell out of me,” he mutters.
She hugs him back, cheek pressed to his chest. “You love it.”
He huffs a laugh. “Yeah, I do.”
Will’s still frowning, but the edge is gone. He looks at Claire. “You hit her hard?”
Claire shrugs. “She hit back.”
He sighs, muttering something that looks suspiciously likeGod help me.
The tension dissolves slowly after that. Crew sits on the counter, swinging his legs. Roman raids the fridge like the argument never happened. Elijah lingers, still too quiet, watching Lottie like he’s seeing her for the first time.
Archer leans beside me, signing low.“I wanted to be mad.”
“You still are.”
He nods once. “Yeah. But… she needs it.”
“She needed someone who wouldn’t go easy on her.”
“Claire’s right. We’d have babied her.”
“You would’ve.”
He glares. “You wouldn’t?”
“Maybe a little,”I sign with a grin.
He rolls his eyes, but there’s a smile behind it.
“Alright,” Will claps his hands. “So we’re all clear. No more pranksandno more secret sparring sessions, yeah?”
Lottie pretends to think. “Define secret.”
Claire smirks. “Define stop.”
Will groans, looking at the ceiling. “I live with heathens.”
Lottie steps forward and hugs him. “You love us.”
He hugs her back, tight. “Unfortunately.”
Lottie turns then, looking at all of us—the glittering boys, the exasperated adults, the crumbs and chaos scattered everywhere. Herbruises catch the light again, faint now, already fading. But I see something else there, too.
Strength.
Will looks at her and sighs. “You’re really okay?”
She nods, firm this time. “Yeah. For the first time in a long time, I really am.”
I guideher down the hall, and her fingers lace into mine. It’s just her, her heat pressed against me, her presence demanding attention.
I press her lightly against the wall, palm resting on the small of her back. She tilts her head, letting her hair brush my shoulder, eyes catching mine, lips curving in that teasing, knowing way.
