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“He said the walls were listening,” I say. “What does that mean?”

“Have you checked for bugs?” Jerald asks Beckett.

“In here?” Beckett asks. “No. I never thought I needed to.”

“Well, I’ll have my men check. We do need to have all conversations at the station going forward,” Jerald says. “Get some rest. We will be here for a while collecting evidence.”

“They can come stay at my place tonight,” Mason says.

“Do that. Grab what you need, and I’ll let you know what we find,” Jerald says. “Beckett. The Feds are on their way. Anything in this house you don’t want them to see?”

“We don’t do anything illegal,” he says. “Just do what you need to do.”

Jerald nods before patting my shoulder and getting up. I sit with Mason and Bella as Beckett packs a bag for us. Bella and I have our heads in his lap as he strokes our hair, and we are nearly falling asleep by the time Beckett picks me up from the couch to carry me outside. I stare blankly out the window as we drive. I hardly remember the drive to Mason’s house.

We get out and go inside. Mason and Bella go to the master bedroom, and Beckett and I go to the guest room.

Facing everything after was hard enough, but navigating without a sense of closure feels suffocating.

Chapter Eighteen

Beckett

By the time we get to Mason’s house, Sierra is essentially nonverbal. She doesn’t say a word as I carry her inside. Her fingers are still fisted in the front of my shirt like she’s afraid that if I let go, she’ll wake up back in that house with Anthony standing over her.

I kick the guest bedroom door shut behind us and lower her onto the bed. “Kitten,” I whisper, but she doesn’t answer. Her eyes are open, staring at nothing. I kneel in front of her and gently cup her face. “You’re safe, Kitten.”

Nothing.

“Sierra?” She finally blinks, like she is coming out of her daze.

I ease her shoes off before pulling the blanket over her legs. She doesn’t fight me when I help her change into one of my shirts. Normally, she’d complain that I fuss over her too much. Tonight… nothing. She curls onto her side before I even finish pulling the blanket over her. I climb onto the bed in front of her so I can pull her to my chest. She immediately buries her face and takes a deep breath, allowing her body to relax.

“I’ve got you,” I whisper.

“I know,” she says, choking out through emotion she has spent almost a decade learning how to bury. Those two simple words nearly break me. She trusts me enough to fall apart. I kiss her forehead and hold her close to my body.

“You don’t have to think tonight,” I say.

“Thank you,” she whispers. I hate that she sees this as a service I am doing for her, but it’s the bare minimum.

Minutes pass, and her breathing slowly evens out. Every now and then her body jerks slightly, like she’s falling in her sleep. Each time, I tighten my hold. Eventually, she stops moving. I wait another twenty minutes, and then another ten. Only when I’m absolutely certain she’s asleep do I slowly slip out of bed.

The second I move away, she reaches for me. Emotion tightens in my chest as I move one of the pillows in front of her. She hugs it to her chest immediately. “Love you,” she murmurs.

“I love you, too, Kitten,” I choke out, leaning down to kiss her once more. If I don’t get out of this room, I will never leave. I watch her for a second more before I quietly step out and ease the door almost shut. Bella is already waiting in the hallway.

“How is she?” Bella asks.

“Asleep.”

“Really?” Bella asks.

“Mhmm. She's exhausted,” I tell her.

“I hate this,” Bella sighs as we walk down to the living room.

“Figured you’d need this,” Ace says, handing me a thermos of coffee.