My dad clutched my face, his eyes blazing when he saw my neck. “What the hell happened?”
I shook my head. “There’s plenty of time to explain. I just want to get the hell out of here. Ethan needs to go to the hospital.” Brooklyn went up to Ethan to inspect his wounds.
“I’m okay,” he said to her, taking my hand. “It’s been a long two days.”
“How did you find us?” I asked, glancing back and forth between them.
My mom cleared her throat and nodded at my wrist. I peered down at the sapphire bracelet she’d given me many years ago; I rarely ever took it off.
“Yeah, about that,” she said, biting her lip sheepishly. “I wanted to always ensure you were protected, so . . .” she said and stopped as my dad pulled her into him.
My dad nodded over at Brooklyn. “We had Brooklyn have your bracelet made for us. One of the sapphires is hollow, and inside is a tracker. We knew something was wrong when you didn’t show up in California.”
My mom reached out and touched the hollow sapphire on the bracelet. I’d never noticed it before, but now I could tell it differed from the other gems.
“We didn’t want you thinking we were trying to control your life,” she murmured. “We just worried about your safety. With my past and whoyouare, we had a good reason to be cautious.”
“And I’ve never been more thankful,” I said. The agents hauled Martin to his feet, and his head lolled from side to side, but he was conscious.
“There’s a lot we have to tell you,” I confessed, focusing back on my mom. “I saw everything that happened at the Dark Side. I watched your fights with those men.” Then, I turned to my dad. “And yours with all those other people.”
His jaw tensed and he turned away, almost as if he was ashamed. I knew the men he’d killed were evil. Yet, I didn’t see him as anything other than the man who raised and loved me.
Understanding flashed in my mom’s eyes. “You’re paying for what we did, aren’t you?”
I looked over at Ethan, and he nodded at them. “We have been a for a while now,” he informed them. “Emma and Carter were first, and then they went after Reagan and Braden. So, they’re not done with us.”
“Who is ‘they’?” Brooklyn asked.
“The Michelsons,” I answered. “They are the ones coming after us. When you all shut down the Dark Side, it was their operation, not Scar’s. He was just the middleman. I know for a fact Nikolai Michelson is a part of what happened here. But finding the proof is going to be difficult.”
Brooklyn nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”
The agents started to haul Martin toward their cars, but then his eyes locked onto my mother. She glared at him, and I watched her fists clench.
“Hold up,” she called out, making the FBI agents pause. “There’s something I need to do first.” She stormed over to him, and he barely had time to breathe out her name before she punched him, knocking him right out.
The agents dragged him away, and dad grumbled under his breath. “If everyone weren’t here, I would’ve killed the bastard.”
And he would have. So would Ethan and my mom.
Looking up at Ethan, I kissed him gently. I could tell he was in pain from all the gashes. “I love you.”
He kissed me back. “And I love you. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
We walked away, and I had him by my side with Wren on my other.
We were safe.
We were free.
I could finally breathe.
CHAPTER32
PEYTON
We spent a few hours at the hospital while Ethan could get stitches and so that I could get checked out. Ethan refused to get fixed up until I agreed to be examined. The twins were fine, which was a huge relief. I was told their heartbeats were strong.