Chapter 24
Zay
“We Don’t Get To Be Soft”
Ihad no desire to sit in a meeting with men who auctioned their families for peace. To me, they were all my enemies.
But I still showed up in France. My son and my girl by my side. I was waiting at the safe house, Ares, and I had turned it into a private rehabilitation fortress just for Yuna.
While they were finishing up their circus of contracts, I stood in the foyer with her assigned medical team. Head nurse. On-call physician. Addiction counselor. Security in plain clothes.
We had everything money could buy to strip her clean.
When I heard engines outside, I opened the double doors.
Ares Rolls truck door flew open, and Yuna stumbled out, frantic, eyes wild. She tried to run before her heels even hit the pavement.
Ares grabbed her.
Not rough.
Not gentle either.
She clawed at him. “Get off me. I am not staying here!”
He lifted her over his shoulder like she weighed nothing and carried her inside. I watched him, frowning. That contract ink was barely dry, and he was already fighting for her.
He set her down on the cushioned bench in the foyer.
“Sit down,” he said low. “Let them help you. Stop acting childish. You’re better than this.”
She tried to slap the blood pressure cuff off.
The nurse was calm as ever. “Ma’am, we just need vitals.”
Yuna kicked at the table.
Ares looked at me.
That look said he was two seconds from snapping.
“I’m not wrestling anymore,” he muttered. “Stick her.”
The head nurse nodded once and drew the syringe she pulled from her scrubs pocket.
“Olanzapine,” she said professionally. “Ten milligrams. Non addictive. It will reduce agitation.”
Yuna tried to jerk away, but security held her arms steady.
The needle went in.
She cursed.
Then her body slowly powered down.
Within minutes, her breathing evened out. Shoulders dropped. Eyes heavy.
The nurse continued, all business.
“Vitals are elevated but stable. Blood pressure 154 over 96. Pulse 118. She is in withdrawal. We will begin monitored detox immediately.”
I crossed my arms. “What are you using?”
The nurse answered clearly.
“Clonidine for blood pressure and withdrawal symptoms. Hydroxyzine for anxiety. Ondansetron for nausea. IV fluids for hydration. Low-dose Diazepam only if tremors escalate, and only under physician approval. No opioids. No substitutions.”
Ares watched her like she might disappear.
“How long before she calms down?” he asked.
“The next seventy-two hours are critical,” the nurse said. “After that, we reassess. She will have round-the-clock monitoring and surveillance in the room.”
They lifted her carefully and carried her upstairs to the main suite overlooking the countryside. The room looked like royalty.
She looked like a ghost in it.
When the team cleared out, Ares and I finally exhaled.
We went to the kitchen.
No liquor in the house. That was intentional.
We grabbed water.
He stood at the island staring at nothing.
“You good?” I asked.
“Nah,” he replied honestly.
“She looked at me like I did this to her,” I said finally.
He leaned back on the counter. “Nah, your family did this to her.”
“She would be dead in six months if I didn’t make her come here,” I shot back.
“Maybe,” he said. “But now she’s mine to deal with. That means every scream, every withdrawal, every relapse attempt. Mine.”
I ran my hand over my face. “Speaking of my family.”
He took a breath. “Lay it out.”
I glanced up.
“My father owes me money. Real money. He been dragging his feet for years. My mother barely sees her grandson and only called me to enforce Yuna. When she got kidnapped, them old heads moved too slow. Too comfortable until I said something about killing my father if he didn’t take care of Dale.”
He nodded slowly.
“They’re losing their edge,” I continued. “If you inherit the Delacroix seat, I’m taking mine. Forcefully, if I have to.”
He didn’t hesitate.
“I’m with you.”
“You staying in France though?” I asked.
“For now, I guess,” he replied. “Until she is stable. I’m not leaving her here alone.”
I gave him a small nod. “Appreciate you being stand up.”
He shrugged like it was nothing. “Go take Emily and my nephew to dinner before y’all fly back. There’s a spot by the harbor. Kid-friendly.”
Nonchalant like he wasn’t about to lock himself inside a war with a broken princess.
The nurse came in quietly.
“She is stable and sleeping,” she reported. “Surveillance is active. We will wake her every two hours to monitor.”
“Call me if she spikes. I’m just going out for a drink,” Ares said.
“Of course.”
I walked into the living room.
Emily looked up immediately. “Is Yuna going to be okay?”
I sat beside her. “She will be.”
She studied my face like she was checking for lies.
“Let’s go to dinner,” I said gently.
She smiled faintly. “I’d like that.”
I knelt and helped her carefully strap on her walking brace.
“You good?”
She nodded.
I picked up my son. He wrapped his arms around my neck.
We headed to the hotel to change before heading out.
As the car pulled away, I looked back at the countryside mansion.
Inside that house, a war had started.
And Ares was already in too deep.