Chapter 2 - THE SAFE HOUSE
The armored SUV moved through the rain-slicked streets of Manhattan like a predator in the dark.
Inside the cabin,
the silence was heavy enough to suffocate.
Mave sat pressed against the far door,
holding Posie so tightly that the child began to squirm.
I sat opposite them,
my soaked tuxedo jacket discarded on the floor.
I watched my daughter.
She had my jawline,
the same stubborn set to her chin,
and those hauntingly familiar eyes.
Posie looked at the glass partition,
then at the glowing buttons on the console,
her little fingers reaching out tentatively.
"Don't touch,
baby,"
Mave whispered,
her voice trembling.
"She can touch whatever she wants,"
I said,
my voice gravelly.
Mave finally looked at me,
her eyes red-rimmed and fierce.
"Why are you doing this,
Garrett?"
"You just threw away a peace treaty for a woman you haven't seen in three years."
"I didn't throw it away for a woman,"
I replied,
leaning forward.
"I did it for my child."
"You didn't even know she existed ten minutes ago,"
Mave countered.
"I knew the moment I saw her eyes,"
I said.
"The Hail eyes don't lie."
We pulled into the underground garage of a building I owned in Chelsea.
It wasn't my main residence,
but it was the most secure.
Wesley opened the door,
his hand resting near his holster as he scanned the perimeter.
"The perimeter is clear for now,
boss,"
he said.
"But Coraline’s father is already calling."
"Ignore him,"
I commanded.
"Get the medical team here."
"And find some clothes that aren't soaked through for both of them."
Mave stepped out of the car,
stumbling slightly.
I caught her by the elbow,
feeling how thin she had become.
"I can walk,"
she snapped,
pulling away.
But as she took a step,
she looked at the job applications in her folder,
now ruined by the rain.
A sob escaped her lips before she could stop it.
"Everything,"
she whispered.
"I had interviews today."
"I needed those jobs,
Garrett."
"We have nothing."
I looked at the cheap plastic folder,
then at the luxury surroundings of the safe house.
The irony wasn't lost on me.
"You have me now,"
I said.
"And that means you have everything."
I led them into the elevator,
the doors closing on the world I had just set on fire.
As we rose toward the penthouse,
Posie reached out and grabbed my thumb.
Her hand was small,
warm,
and perfect.
The feeling of her grip sent a shock through my system more powerful than any drug.
May you like
I was a father.
And I was going to find out exactly who had kept that from me.
