Chapter 25 #3
I pace the length of the kitchen and grasp both elbows, holding them close to my body.
“Even when I was free, I wasn’t. Not really.
” I hold each man’s eye for a count of three.
“I’m done being her victim. I’m done being scared of anything that moves, and some things that don’t.
I’m done fighting her in my nightmares. I’m done running.
If the only way to end this is to face her…
” My voice wobbles, and Valen springs from his chair to stand at my side. “Then that’s what I’m going to do.”
“Not alone, you won’t.” Chief pouts, but I also see a certain amount of pride hiding behind all that fear.
“I know, but I do have to do it. Don’t you see? It has to end. I have to end it before it ends me.”
Valen wraps his arms around me so tightly that I’m not sure I can take a full breath. “Then I’ll be by your side. Every step. No negotiation.”
“We’re all in,” Grant says firmly. “We don’t move until we’re certain Clover is protected.”
“I’m in,” I say, pretending to be brave and hoping that eventually my lie becomes my truth.
For the next two days, we plan with men and women with more military experience than I can even fathom.
Grant pulls up maps on his laptop. Sterling makes lists and compiles spreadsheets. Chase paces, tossing out increasingly wild ideas that Grant shoots down with barely concealed exasperation.
“We need somewhere isolated,” I say slowly, an idea forming. “Somewhere with meaning for us both. Somewhere she believes I’d go.”
“The tree,” Valen says. “Our tree.”
“It’s not technically on the compound,” I say. “It’s in the middle of the woods and far enough away from neighboring properties that no innocent people could be hurt. There’s enough cover from the forest for your team to hide, but it’s open enough that we’ll see her coming.”
“Trees hold meaning for her too, right?” Valen asks. “Roots of Salvation. She has a tattoo of a tree on her wrist.” His gaze darts to mine, and he shakes his head as if he’s trying to grasp the last threads of the memory. “Everyone got one when they crossed over from Styx to Stone.”
I nod, emotion welling in my eyes—it’s fear mixed with hope because as much as it shouldn’t matter, not now, it does. Every time Valen recalls something from our past, it ignites the hope that one day he’ll remember me too.
That he’ll remember us.
“It’s workable,” Grant says, typing rapidly. “Roman can position his team in the woods. We’ve already set up cameras and motion detectors throughout the property. We’ll use them to secure the perimeter.”
“And when she shows up?” I ask.
“We contain her,” Grant says simply. “Peacefully, if possible. By force if necessary. Before we turn her over to our contact at the FBI, we need to understand the full scope of whatever she’s hiding.”
“When?” Valen asks.
“Tomorrow night,” Grant says. “We need time to set up, but not so much time that she makes another move. We’ll get a message to her that makes her think Clover’s coming to the tree alone. She’ll assume Clover’s an easy target.”
“There’s no way she’s working alone,” Chief says. His expression is dark and demanding as he studies me.
“Agreed,” Grant says. “We’ve been tracking all the people our mother listed as Terra’s top advisers.
Two are unaccounted for, so we’ll prepare for them too.
One is a tech genius. He’s worked for the top companies around the world.
That’s how she’s been skirting our systems, but I doubt he’ll be much use in the field.
The other is lesser known, so we assume he’s dangerous. ”
“How do we get the message to her?” Chief asks.
“We’ll reply to the number that sent Clover a text message at the compound,” Roman says, sliding a phone to me. “Sterling still hasn’t been able to trace it, but she wouldn’t have closed off that line of communication. It’s her only link to Clover right now. She’s waiting for a response.”
“What should I say?” I ask.
Everyone looks at me.
Okay.
“What does Terra want to hear?” I mutter. “What would make her come running?”
Biting my lip, I allow my fingers to press into the keyboard.
“I know it’s me you want,” I say slowly, the words forming as I type.
“Valen has been through enough. I won’t drag him into this fight.
I’ll meet you alone if you promise to leave him out of this.
” I finish typing and look to Roman. “Should I tell her where?”
“Not yet,” Roman says. “Tell her you’ll give her a time and place tomorrow at four p.m. when Valen leaves to meet his cousins. It gives us time to move into position and makes her think you’ll be alone.”
“She’ll know it’s a trap,” Valen warns.
“She might,” I say. “But she won’t be able to resist because, despite everything—the planning and the stalking and the control—Terra has one weakness.”
“What?” Chase asks.
“Her need to win.” I meet Valen’s gaze. “She needs to win above all else. To look me in the eye and prove that she was right. To prove that I always belonged to her, that I couldn’t ruin what she’d built.
That I could never really escape. She wants to know that she will always own me, my fears, my dreams, my basic human rights. ”
“And we’ll give her that win,” Grant says. “Right before we rip it all away. This time, for good.”