Chapter 64 Kaius
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
kaius
The dim hospital light sent a weak yellow glow over Astoria’s body.
Her tiny frame seemed to be swallowed by the bed, blonde hair spilling like a halo across the thin white pillow.
An IV line dripped antibiotics and painkillers into her veins, keeping her sedated and comfortable.
Acelynn stood across from me in the corner of the room, trying to shrink into the shadows, but she was failing.
Her eyes were glassy, fixed on the rise and fall of Astoria’s chest like she wasn’t sure if she trusted it to keep going.
Bruises darkened her face, yet she’d refused all treatment, hell-bent on laying eyes on Astoria with her own.
Even unconscious, my little sister was stubborn.
She twitched, trying to yank out the oxygen tube, but Nolan caught her wrist before she could rip it free.
Nolan chuckled at her motion, standing slightly leaned over her and pulling her hand down to rest at her side.
“Stop laughing at me,” Astoria rasped, her voice husky from the hours of screaming Alec had wrung out of her.
Nolan’s laugh died instantly. He leaned close, brushing his knuckles against her hair. Astoria squinted at me, causing me to step back to flick off the harsh overhead lights, leaving us in the softer wash of the emergency overhead lighting.
“Better?” I asked.
Astoria gave a small nod, wild eyes darting between me, Acelynn, and finally settling on Nolan. Relief softened her face as she reached for him. He caught her hand, squeezing tight.
“My brain feels funny. Like it was scrambled and then deep fried,” she mumbled, her eyelids heavy.
“You need rest,” Nolan murmured, bending to kiss her hairline. His hand smoothed back the baby hairs sticking to her damp skin before cupping her cheek.
She shook her head slightly, lower lip trembling. “Just don’t leave me alone, Nolan.”
“Never, princess.” He kissed her forehead again, inciting a contented sigh from Astoria’s lips.
But before the meds could pull her fully under again, I stepped closer, folding my arms over my chest. “Not yet. You and I need to talk.”
Her gaze snapped to mine, face draining of the little color it had. The flicker of guilt glinted in her green eyes. Nolan turned toward me, his lips drew back in a grim line, a pulling at his lips. “Kaius—”
“No.” My voice cut him off, low and sharp. He didn’t get a say in this. Right now, I wasn’t coddling my little sister for her wrongdoings. Acelynn shifted uncomfortably as I continued, “We’re not doing this shit later. She talks now.”
Astoria’s throat worked as she swallowed, her hand tightening around Nolan’s.
“I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.
It was all me, though. I tipped off the feds about the night Oscar was killed because I knew Acelynn would blame herself.
He told me she would blame herself, and he wanted her to be on edge. ”
Her eyes filled with tears as she looked toward Acelynn.
“It was me who broke into your house. Logan told me I needed to draw the symbols and leave the weird, cryptic note on your wall. Before I left, he planted the snake. And the Polaroids…I planted the camera in Kaius’s room and followed you to get the other images.
I never found the photo in your car. It was just another way they wanted to fuck with your head.
I thought if they continued to taunt you, you would run and stay away.
I regret it. I regret every single thing that I did for them.
It not only hurt you, but it got you arrested that day, Nolan.
All I was trying to do was protect you. Protect all of you. ”
Nolan’s jaw clenched. “Protect me? By setting me up to rot in a cell?”
The tears began to fall down her cheeks.
Astoria looked down at their hands. “You don’t understand.
Alec threatened to kill you all. Logan was his errand boy who made sure I didn’t stop doing their dirty work.
Alec said if I didn’t play along, if I didn’t feed them information, they’d put you in the ground.
I thought if I kept them focused on me, if I gave them just enough… I thought I could keep you safe.”
Acelynn stirred in the corner, her voice breaking. “Astoria…”
I cut her off with a snarl. “Don’t you dare romanticize this.”
Stepping forward, I leaned down over the hospital bed, getting eye level with Astoria. “You think handing our people over to the wolves makes you some kind of savior? No. It makes you their fucking pawn.”
Her breath hitched, tears spilling. My voice dropped to a lethal whisper.
“You tipped the feds. You sold out Nolan. You kept secrets while Alec broke your bones. And for what? Because Logan pointed a gun in your face while hiding behind his leader? You put us all on the board. And now he’s still out there, breathing.
Do you understand what that means? He will come back.
He will make this personal. And when he does, the blood will be on your hands first.”
A broken sob broke through her lips. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“There’s always a choice,” Nolan snapped, but his grip on her hand didn’t loosen. His anger warred with the softness in his eyes, his voice cracking as he added, “You should’ve trusted me.”
Her lips trembled. “I was trying to save you.”
“Save us?” I let out a low laugh, cruel and humorless.
“No, Astoria. You played right into Alec’s game.
You thought you were smart enough to outwit him, and look where that got you.
Flat on your back, broken and bleeding, while Logan’s still out there free.
You didn’t save anyone. You damned us all. ”
Silence weighed heavily over the room. Nolan lowered his head, pressing his lips once more to Astoria’s hair, even as his shoulders shook with restrained rage.
Astoria’s sobs quieted into soft hiccups, shame sinking her deeper into the mattress.
And in the corner, Acelynn’s hand found mine, her grip trembling, as if she already knew Logan’s shadow wasn’t leaving us anytime soon.
The door creaked open, dragging me out of the silence. Detective Watson slipped in, the weight of his badge dragging at his shoulders. His eyes swept the room, lingering on Astoria’s swollen face, then catching the way Nolan still hadn’t let go of her hand as he glared daggers at the detective.
“You weren’t supposed to be here this long,” Watson muttered, shutting the door behind him. “Hospital staff talk. And right now, the last thing I need is whispers about certain faces showing up on security footage. Visiting hours are over.”
“Then stop wasting time,” I snapped. “Say what you came to say.”
His jaw clenched, but he pulled a worn manila folder from under his arm. He dropped it onto the bedside table, letting the contents spill—a handful of fake IDs, driver’s licenses, and credit cards. All Astoria’s face, all different names. Acelynn sucked in a sharp breath. Nolan stiffened.
Watson folded his arms, tone clipped. “I want the truth, Astoria. How long have you been running with these?”
Her mouth opened, closed, her face pale. “I-I don’t know. Months. A year. It started with Logan. He said it was the only way to stay invisible, to keep you guys guessing. I didn’t think—”
“Didn’t think?” I cut her off with a growl, stepping closer to the bed. My shadow swallowed her fragile frame. “You didn’t think while you painted a target on all our backs? While you let Logan tie strings around you and dance you like his little puppet?”
Her tears started again, streaking her already bruised face.
“Kaius,” Nolan said, his tone breaking. “She’s been through enough.”
“Not nearly enough,” I snarled, dragging my gaze back to Astoria. I grabbed one of the IDs, flicked it between my fingers before dropping it onto her chest like a piece of evidence. “You keep secrets from me again, and you’ll wish Alec was the one you had to deal with.”
Her sob turned into a sharp, choked breath.
Watson cleared his throat, clearly itching to get out from under the tension choking the room.
He gathered the rest of the IDs, his gaze flicking to me, uncertain.
“She’s got heat on her from more than just Logan.
Feds don’t like being made fools of. You need to decide quickly what role she plays in all of this.
Otherwise, she won’t make it to the end of the week. ”
Nolan’s voice broke. “She’s not going anywhere. She stays with me.”
Astoria squeezed his hand weakly, clinging to him like a lifeline. I let the silence hang, then turned my head toward Acelynn. Her eyes were wide, unreadable, searching mine for something she couldn’t name. I gave her nothing but steel.
“You’re going to help me find him, Astoria,” I said, my voice flat and final. “Logan. His boss. Anyone who touches this family again. You’re done hiding in shadows, little sister. You’re going to help me burn them out of every hole they think they can crawl into.”
Her lips parted, a protest trembling on her tongue, but I cut her off before she could breathe it into existence. “This isn’t a choice.”
The room fell silent again, broken only by the beep of the machines monitoring Astoria breaking through.
I couldn’t have pried Nolan from Astoria’s side even if I tried.
His fingers were welded to hers, his lips pressed against her temple as though his touch alone might shield her from the shadows still clinging to the night.
She’d finally cried herself to sleep, her chest rising in slow, steady breaths that were too fragile for my liking.
I let them have their peace, for now. I tipped my chin toward the door, a silent command.
Acelynn caught the cue, her eyes flicking from Astoria’s sleeping form to me.
She hesitated a beat before slipping from the room, her steps falling into place behind mine.
The hallway stretched empty, its fluorescent lights buzzing low and sickly against sterile walls. Except Detective Watson was still there. He leaned against the far wall like he’d been carved into it, arms folded tight, gaze sharp on us the moment the door latched shut.
“I wanted to talk to you about something else,” he said, pushing off the wall, his voice low, gravel roughened by too much coffee and not enough sleep. “But it got a little intense in there.”
Acelynn stiffened behind me. Without thinking, her hand found mine, her fingers lacing tight like she was tethering herself to the only thing that still felt real. I squeezed back once, firm enough for her to feel it. A promise without words.
“What else can we do for you, Detective?” I asked, my voice flat as stone, monotone on purpose.
Men like Watson were always testing boundaries, trying to gauge how far they could push. I wasn’t about to give him anything but calm steel. He lifted a plain manila folder between two fingers.
“These are your new documents,” he said. “You’re officially Acelynn Thorton, if that’s who you choose to be. All you need to do is sign.”
Acelynn shuffled from behind me, her brows drawn tight. “I don’t understand.”
Watson’s jaw worked, like he wasn’t thrilled to be the messenger. “Parsons has a heart, even if he is a slimy bastard. He skipped town this morning but left this on my desk. Though I don’t think that’s the last time we will see him.”
My brow arched, waiting for more.
Watson obliged. “Doesn’t take a genius to connect the dots between the barn fire last night and your sister ending up in that hospital bed. While the body inside hasn’t been officially ID’d yet, Alec Spade’s wallet was found in the bushes outside.”
“Alec?” Acelynn’s voice trembled, soft but deliberate. She let the shock bleed into every syllable, her expression practiced innocence. “I don’t understand what this has to do with me.”
“Nothing.” Watson smirked at her like he was in on a joke only he understood. Then he shrugged one shoulder and held the folder out.
I plucked it from his grip before flipping it open. Rows of fresh identification stared back at me—licenses, credit cards, paperwork. All with Acelynn’s face. All under the name Thorton. I lifted my eyes to him.
“Just know,” Watson said evenly, “you never existed to us. No trace of you being an informant. And all charges tied to Emersyn Spade? Dropped. She’s a ghost. You are getting a clean slate.”
Acelynn edged around me, her eyes wide, lips parting like she wanted to say something, but no words came.
She shut her mouth, nodding once instead, stunned silence draped across her shoulders like a too-heavy cloak.
I extended my hand toward Watson. He narrowed his gaze at it for a beat, suspicion flickering.
Then, reluctantly, he clasped mine, his grip firm but not unbreakable.
“Thank you,” I said, quiet but final.
He let go, straightening the lapel of his jacket like he’d just touched something unclean.
“Don’t mistake this for a free pass,” he warned. “This doesn’t change the fact that your little criminal kingdom is still under my watch now that I have taken lead of the department.”
A slow smirk curved my mouth. “Wouldn’t dream of having it any other way, Detective.”