Chapter 24 JACE
JACE
I watch as Tessa races upstairs, every instinct in me telling me to go after her, but instead, I sit stuck in my chair until she disappears. She tried to act as if she is not connected to this whole thing, but I already know everything, or at least enough to know that she’s involved somehow.
Running my hand over my face, I feel frustration crawling up my neck. I haven’t had a wink of sleep since the attack, bouncing between the sheriff’s men and the security feeds, as I try to piece together all the pieces so I can give my family the answers they need.
Everything and everyone around me is tense, with the dark cloud of the attack still hovering over us.
The ranch hasn’t felt this quiet in years.
Not even after the storm that wreaked havoc all over the property.
It’s that kind of silence that hums beneath the skin—heavy and expectant, too still to trust. Outside, the sun has already set, the night bringing with it looming terror and fear.
Inside, the air still smells faintly of bleach and gunpowder.
It’s up to me to keep my family safe; security is my responsibility, so the fact that they tried to take Ella right under my nose has left me feeling lacking as a big brother.
“Did y’all see the military-grade equipment these assholes had? Night vision gear, tactical wear, guns, knives. It’s like they were prepared for a small war. Who the hell was behind them to afford this kind of setup?” Zane asks from the corner, scrolling through the report on his tablet.
Those three men knew exactly what they were doing. They moved through the dark like ghosts, and they would’ve gotten away with it, too, if the storm hadn’t forced them to act sooner.
I rub the back of my neck, muscles stiff from tension. “Anything new on the van?”
“Stolen,” Beck replies. “From a junkyard in San Antonio. Before they abandoned it, they scrubbed it clean to get rid of all the evidence, which means they had a getaway driver.”
I exhale through my nose because there is not enough to go off on.
“Okay, Jace, what do we know so far?” I mutter to myself.
The three kidnappers are dead.
A van was found abandoned two miles out.
No IDs. No fingerprints. No trail.
But I already know who the trail leads back to. She got home less than ten minutes ago and is now locked away in her room, doing God knows what.
I want something concrete before I confront her, but nothing I have is tangible enough.
Besides the name Richard Kane flashing on one of the kidnappers’ phones, there is nothing else.
We weren’t able to get anything concrete off their devices before they were collected as evidence by the Sheriff’s department when they came to get the dead bodies earlier.
All we know is that whoever they are, they’ve done this before. This isn’t their first operation; it’s a professional job gone wrong.
Gone wrong because they tried it here.
I should feel relieved that my family’s safe. That Daisy and Tessa were not here when it happened, that Ella’s shaken but alive. But underneath it, there’s this burn. A low, pulsing heat in my chest that won’t let go.
Whatever Tessa is involved in, she’s brought it straight to my doorstep, and I will be damned if I give them a chance to strike again. To hell with evidence. I need answers, and I need them now.
I pull myself up from my wheelchair, my mind made up.
“You’re going to confront her?” Beck asks me as I walk past him.
“We’re getting to the bottom of this tonight,” I grit out, fisting my hands by my sides.
“Be gentle. We have no idea what she’s dealing with,” Zane calls out, but I’m already halfway up the stairs.
It’s hard to do as Zane has asked when I’ve been stewing since last night, but I still force myself to take a few calming breaths. I don’t want to lash out without getting a concrete explanation.
When I stop outside her room, I hear the faint murmur of her voice. At first, I think she’s talking to herself. But when I lean closer, I realize she’s on the phone.
“… he’s coming for me,” she whispers, voice raw.
Every muscle in my body goes still. She’s just confirmed everything I’ve been suspecting. My jaw locks as the rest of the pieces fall into place: the alias when she arrived, the secrecy, the half-truths she’s been feeding me since she showed up.
“He’s really coming,” she cries, and that’s all I need to hear.
I knock once, but she does not respond. All movement ceases inside her room, but she cannot pretend that I didn’t hear what she just said. I know she’s in there, and I need answers. Now!
My fist still on the door, I pound on it again, louder this time. “Open the door, Tessa!”
I hear something drop onto the floor with a soft thud, followed by a faint tone of someone calling her name over and over again.
“Open it,” I repeat, a bit calmer but meaning each word. She cannot stay locked in there forever.
There’s a pause, followed by a rustle of movement, then the sharp click of the lock turning. The door cracks open an inch, and she peers out. Her eyes are swollen, lashes clumped together from crying, shoulders tense like she’s ready to bolt.
“Jace,” she whispers, voice barely there.
I push the door open the rest of the way and step inside. The room smells like lavender detergent and fear. She’s still wearing the T-shirt from the trip, damp from sweat, fingers twisting the hem.
“Who’s coming for you?” I ask.
She flinches like I’ve hit her. “You were listening?”
“Not intentionally. I’m not that childish, but I heard what I heard, so answer me. Who is coming for you?” I insist. My voice comes out low, calm—too calm.
Her throat works, but she doesn’t say anything. I take a step closer, and she retreats, hitting the edge of the bed.
“Tell me the truth, Tessa.”
She shakes her head. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
Her lip trembles. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.”
I cross my arms, watching her closely. “I know that three men broke into my ranch, and they didn’t want money. They wanted you. And when they couldn’t find you, they tried to take my sister instead.”
Her knees buckle. She sinks onto the bed like her body finally gives up fighting. “I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”
“Then make me understand,” I say quietly. “Start talking.”
For a moment, she stares at the floor, hands clasped tight. I can see the war inside her—the fear, guilt, exhaustion, everything she’s been holding in since the day she showed up. Then something breaks.
Her voice comes out small. “I was a cybersecurity analyst at AegisTech,” she says, eyes fixed on her hands.
“I found out my boss was tampering with the software I created, deliberately leaving the vulnerabilities I left in for testing in the build. They created backdoors and used them to exploit people—selling classified data, people’s identities, bank records, everything.
So I reported him. I thought I was doing the right thing, but when he found out I was the mole, he came after me, and I’ve been running ever since. ”
My jaw tightens. “Richard Kane.”
Her eyes fly up to mine. “How do you—“
It seems she’s forgotten the conversation we had on the day I fired her after realizing she was lying to me. If I’d let her go then, would we be here?
“Because I make it my business to know who’s trying to kill the people under my roof,” I bite out.
She looks stunned. Then, slowly, the fight drains out of her.
“I thought I could hide here. I used my best friend’s name, Sienna Carter, and her credentials to get a job here.
She’s the one who was originally supposed to come, but we switched places when he found me again.
So I left DC, wiped everything clean, and came here, but he still found me. ”
I keep my expression steady, even though every word cuts deeper.
Her voice cracks as she looks up at me. “I never meant to put you, or your family, in danger.”
For a long moment, I don’t say anything. The air between us feels like it’s holding its breath. She’s just confirmed everything I knew from the moment I found out about her real identity.
Then I crouch down in front of her, my back and leg protesting, but I don’t care. “Look at me.”
She hesitates, then lifts her gaze. There’s fear there, but also trust—fragile and flickering.
“I should be furious,” I tell her honestly. “And I am. But not because you lied.”
Her breath catches, tears welling in her green orbs.
“I’m angry because you thought you had to deal with it alone.”
Tears spill over, silent and hot. She covers her face, shaking. “It wasn’t your problem to deal with.”
I take her wrists gently, pulling her hands away. “You don’t get to decide that.” My voice softens. “You’re not alone anymore. You hear me?”
She nods, barely. “Jace—No. I need to get out of here, to keep you safe before they come again.”
I tighten my hold around her wrists, shaking my head. “You are not going anywhere. I’ll deal with Kane. You’re staying put.”
Her head snaps up. “No. You can’t—“
“I can. And I will.”
The steel in my voice leaves no room for argument. I brush a tear from her cheek with my thumb, the touch grounding both of us.
“You’re safe here,” I say quietly. “No one’s taking you from this ranch.”
Something in her finally gives. She leans forward, pressing her forehead against my shoulder, body trembling. I wrap my arms around her, holding her tight, feeling every rapid beat of her heart against mine.
And to think that she had to deal with all this alone for so long. This woman has no idea how much she’s come to mean to me, how much I love her, and the lengths I’ll go to to protect her.
Outside, the wind picks up, carrying the smell of rain and dust through the half-open window. The storm isn’t over, not by a long shot. But for now, she’s in my arms. And that’s a start.