Page 135 of What Remains

Dad’s hand falls to his side, his fight collapsing on a deep breath before asking in a ragged voice, “And if they throw her in a cell?”

“Won’t happen. That’ll be negotiated before the two of us turn ourselves in along with her,” Easton explains. And he’s being the rock I need. I’ll be forever grateful to him for believing in me, supporting me. “We’ll go to a safe house of our choosing in Bern.”

“Bern,” Carter says under his breath. “I think I know of a place we can use.” We were counting on that reaction. Batman always has “caves” on call everywhere. No clue how, but he’s resourceful. “Overwatch, chokepoints, the perimeter. I’ll ensure everything is secure before we leave.”

“And if they send everything they’ve got at her because they’re desperate?” Dad aims his question at Carter, recognizing he’s obviously on board with this, thank goodness.

“If they had enough mercenaries they trusted, they’d have used them to grab Gwen sooner rather than going to such extremes to get her laptop.” And thank you, Uncle Gray, for having my back, too.

“The Australians already outlived their usefulness.” Like that bastard Bodhi. “Looks like they were never meant to be involved in part two of the plan.”

“I expect they have more bodies for us to fight, but nothing we can’t deal with,” Carter continues, holding his mobile at his side. “And they’ll have no choice but to send them if they want to try and finish carrying out their plan.”

Dad slowly turns to Natasha and rasps, “What do you think?”

The fact he’s even asking her . . .

This is good.

“You know me. I’m not the wait-and-see type.” She shoots me an uneasy smile, then faces him. “I’m in.”

Thank you, thank you! “I’ll give you my rig since I won’t be able to bring it with me,” I rush out. “You can keep an eye on the facial recognition program that’s searching for Jezebel. And keep in touch with Julian in case they use the CCTV nuke again.”

“I’ll also continue monitoring Elaina’s texts,” Natasha offers. “Should the team stay in London, or should we pull them in for support in Switzerland?”

“We may need boots on the ground there if they do strike before we make it to Bern,” Carter suggests. “And something tells me if Molly truly is our suspect, she’s in London or close by to the city. Staying underground, but there.”

And that reminds me . . . “Did you talk to Zoey about Molly yet? Did she accidentally say anything to her and just not tell us?”

Based on Carter’s grimace, the call went as I expected. Miss Always Flies Solo wasn’t a fan of being questioned about her loyalty. Probably took it much worse than Nash did.

“She said she’s never shared anything private about our team with Molly.” He squeezes one eye closed. “Different words were used, but you get the idea.” He holds his mobile in front of his mouth like he’s going to tap it against his lips but doesn’t. “Maybe I should call Camila?”

“Having second thoughts about using my daughter as bait, are you?” Dad, dammit.

“No, we’re not letting Camila risk her life for a vision just to save mine.” I slap my free hand over my chest. “She would also have to slowly and safely wean off the medicine first, and we don’t have the time. And that’s the bloody truth, not just me being stubborn, and you know it.”

Carter lowers his mobile to his side and hesitantly nods. The fact he’s possibly having reservations about my being taken into custody doesn’t exactly sit well with me, which means it’ll sit like a box of boulders in Dad’s stomach.

I gently pull my hand free from Easton’s and approach Dad with cautious steps. I rest my hand on his chest. “So . . . have you made up your mind?” He opens his mouth to answer, but before he can, I clarify, “Are you staying behind?” I swallow. “Or are you coming with us?”

CHAPTER 47

Easton

Wyatt peers over Gwen’s shoulder at me, jaw tense and mouth closed in a tight line. I stare quietly back, even though my heart is liable to explode in my chest.

What I really want to do is agree with him. Get on my knees and beg Gwen to stay here where it’s safe. We can build bulletproof walls to surround her. Never let anyone go near her ever again.

But I can’t.

A cage isn’t what she needs, and my support is what she wants. So, I have to give her that. Use my body as a shield when we step out of this hotel. Me in front, her dad behind her. Falcon flanking her sides.

“So?” Gwen prompts again, and I look over at Carter, Gray, and Natasha patiently watching on.

Carter’s sudden “maybe pull Camila in” consideration didn’t do wonders for my nerves. But he won’t let us step a foot out of this place unless he’s certain our asses are covered, so I’m choosing to put my energy there.

Wyatt’s staring at Gwen like she’s still his little girl. The one he never got to raise and can’t fathom losing now that he’s got her. I can’t even imagine what he’s going through. “I hate this,” he says low and deep.