28. Mira #2
The silence stretches as I process what they're offering. Not just Kade through the secure link, but all of them. My throat feels tight with unexpected emotion.
They want to help me hunt Alexei. Not just use my intelligence—actually help with my personal mission.
"You'd risk your organization for my vendetta?" The question comes out more vulnerable than intended.
"Taking down child traffickers isn't personal vendetta—it's operational mandate," Cole states with matter-of-fact certainty while closing unnecessary display windows. "Your mission aligns perfectly with our core objectives."
Remy leans forward from his position at the medical station, his green eyes serious but warm. "You think we'd let you face that monster without proper backup?"
"I've been hunting him alone for seven years." My voice cracks slightly on the admission. "Never expected—"
"Family protects family," Asher's rare contribution from his position by the window makes everyone turn. His cold gray eyes meet mine through the tactical display reflection. "That's non-negotiable protocol."
Family.
The word hits like physical impact. I've spent so long convinced that needing people made me weak, that emotional connections were operational liabilities to be avoided.
Jax's thumb strokes my nape, grounding me while my understanding of the world shifts fundamentally.
Damian speaks from the shadows, his voice quiet but carrying absolute certainty. "Seven years you've carried this alone. Time someone had your back."
The displays show Alexei's network sprawling across continents like a malignant web. Information I've gathered piece by piece for over a decade. But looking at it now with their tactical expertise overlaid on my intelligence...
We could actually destroy him. Systematically dismantle everything he built.
"I don't know what to say."
Kade's approval carries through the comm system with unusual warmth. "Say you'll let us be the family you deserve."
Heat builds in my chest, spreading outward until my skin feels too tight. Being claimed by all of them fundamentally changes something inside me.
Jax's fingers tighten possessively at my nape, and I turn in my chair to meet his burning gaze. The pride and satisfaction I find there makes my pulse spike.
He did this. Brought me home to his family and made them mine too.
"Yes." The word comes out stronger than I feel. "I want that."
Remy grins from his medical station. "Good. Because we weren't really giving you a choice."
"Damn right," Xander adds with satisfaction. "You're stuck with us now."
I address the room but keep my gaze locked on Jax. "Thank you. All of you."
For the first time since I was sixteen, I'm not alone in this fight.
Later that evening, I find myself curled against Jax on the couch in his room, hyperaware of his injured shoulder. Every small wince when he shifts position triggers protective instincts I'm still learning to navigate.
"You're thinking loud enough to wake the dead." Jax's uninjured hand traces lazy patterns on my arm. "Can practically hear the analytical gears turning."
"I've never had anyone willing to fight for my personal mission." The confession slips out easily. "In seven years of hunting, it's been just me."
"That's what family does—we protect each other's missions because they become our missions."
Family. He keeps using that word like it's simple, natural, inevitable.
"It doesn't make tactical sense," I shift carefully, mindful of his shoulder. "Why would they risk everything for my revenge?"
"Because it stopped being just revenge tonight." His eyes hold mine with honest clarity. "Taking down Alexei saves lives. You connected trafficking networks across three continents. This is bigger than personal vengeance now."
"Kade looked at me like he was proud. Of me. For what I've accomplished, not what I could do for them."
"You built intelligence networks that could save hundreds of lives. Of course he's proud."
The simple acceptance in his voice breaks something loose in my chest. Heat builds behind my eyes, and I press closer to his warmth.
"This is terrifying," I press even closer, careful not to jostle his injured side. "Having precious things to lose."
"Good terrifying or bad terrifying?" His lips quirk upward in that crooked smile I'm becoming addicted to.
"Both." I trace the edge of his bandage with careful fingers. "You could have died because of me."
"Could have died without you too." He catches my hand with his good one, bringing it to his lips. "I'd rather face danger with you than safety without you."
Stupid, reckless, perfect man.
"That's the most ridiculous thing you've ever said to me."
"Wait until you hear what I'm thinking right now." Heat flares in his eyes, and suddenly I'm hyperaware of our position. The way his breathing has changed despite the medication.
He wants me. Even after watching me kill.
"Tell me."
"I'm thinking about how proud I was watching them accept you tonight. Watching them see what I see." His grip tightens possessively on my hip. "You belong to us now. To me."
Mine. His. Theirs.
The claiming in his voice sends liquid heat straight through me. I shift carefully, straddling his lap while avoiding his injured shoulder, my leg draped over his thigh, needing to be closer.
"Dangerous thinking, Nitro."
"The best kind." His good hand frames my face as I lean down, my hair creating a curtain around us. "You're mine now. My deadly, beautiful, perfect killer."
The kiss starts gentle but quickly turns desperate. All the emotion from tonight pours into the connection between us.
Safe. Finally safe.
When we break apart, his pupils are dilated with more than just medication.
"I love you," he says simply.
The words should terrify me. Instead, they feel like coming home.
"I love you too." The admission comes easier than it should. "Even if you are completely insane."
"Especially because I'm completely insane." He grins. "Takes one to know one, deadly girl."
I trace the bandage covering his shoulder wound. "Having a family to protect makes moving against Alexei more terrifying than any enemy I've faced."
His good hand frames my face, forcing me to meet his burning gaze. "Now we keep each other steady. Through whatever comes next."
The promise ignites something desperate in my chest. Heat floods through me as I realize the depth of what we've built—not just attraction, but actual partnership. We've been unconsciously saving each other without realizing it, and now that recognition makes everything more intense.
He sees me. The real me. And he still wants to protect me.
"This changes everything. Having people to lose."
"Having people worth fighting for." His correction carries fierce conviction.
His answer comes in the form of a careful kiss that promises everything—protection, acceptance, love, and the kind of partnership I never knew I needed.
Tomorrow we'll start planning Alexei's destruction. Tonight, I'm exactly where I belong—in the arms of the man who watched me kill and called it beautiful, surrounded by the family who made my mission their own.
For the first time since I was sixteen years old, I'm not fighting alone.
And that changes everything.