Chapter Forty-Nine
THE DRIVE BACK was quiet.
Not the peaceful kind. The kind that buzzed under the skin, thick with things neither of us wanted to say out loud.
Even the road felt muted, tires whispering over asphalt like it was listening.
Briar pulled into the driveway and cut the engine, the sudden silence pressing in hard enough to make my ears ring.
The house sat there like it always had. Porch swing swaying slow and patient. Lace curtains pale against the dark, catching the porch light like watchful eyes.
Home. Borrowed. Temporary.
I reached for the door handle, already thinking about the safety of walls and locked doors.
My phone rang.
The sound cut clean through the quiet, sharp enough to jerk my heart into my throat. I glanced down and froze.
Unknown Number.
Not blocked. Not private. Just… unknown.
Briar noticed immediately. “Who’s that?”
“I don’t know,” I said, my voice coming out steadier than I felt. “I don’t recognize it.”
The phone kept ringing. Too long. Too insistent. Something in my chest tightened, instinct flaring hot and sudden. I answered anyway. “Hello?”
“Lark.”
Zach’s voice wrapped around my name like it still belonged to him.
My fingers curled around the phone. “How did you get this number?”
“That’s not important right now,” he said, too quickly. Like he’d practiced not answering that question. “I need to see you. It’s important.”
“No.” The word landed firm. “If you have something to say, say it.”
A pause followed. Not static. Thought. I could almost hear him weighing something, choosing.
“It’s about Sable,” he said finally. “And the kids.”
The air left my lungs.
“What about them?” I demanded. “Zach, if something’s wrong, you need to tell me.”
“I can’t,” he said. “Not over the phone. I don’t have much time.”
“That’s not good enough,” I snapped, panic threading raw through my voice. “If they’re in danger—”
“They might be,” he cut in. “That’s why I need you to come meet me.”
My stomach twisted hard, like something had reached inside and squeezed.
I closed my eyes, forcing a slow breath.
Zach wasn’t the same boy I’d known at seventeen.
Time had carved things into him. Secrets.
Bad timing. A habit of standing too close to trouble and calling it fate. But one thing had always been true.
He’d never hurt me.
Not when things ended badly. Not when he wanted more than I could give. He might want me back. Might be desperate enough to scare me into seeing him.
But he wasn’t violent.
And he wasn’t cruel.
“I’m not coming alone,” I said. The words tasted bitter, like admitting weakness, but I wasn’t willing to put myself back into a corner. Not again. Not after everything. Chain had moved on, and maybe I was supposed to as well, but right now my trust in men sat somewhere below shattered.
“You have to,” Zach said quietly. “Please, Lark. Just you. I swear you’ll be safe. I won’t push. I know things are… complicated now.”
The word safe slid over my skin wrong. Like a promise that needed convincing.
Still, my chest loosened a fraction.
“Where?” I asked.
“I’ll text you the address,” he said. “Just don’t bring anyone. I can’t take chances. I’ll explain when you get here.”
The line went dead before I could respond.
I stared at my phone, my reflection faint in the dark screen. My pulse beat loud enough I could feel it in my teeth.
“No,” Briar said immediately. “Absolutely not.”
“What if he’s telling the truth?” I whispered. “What if Sable and the kids really are in trouble?”
“And what if he’s lyin’?” Briar shot back. “What if this is how people disappear?”
“I don’t think he’d hurt me,” I said quietly. Saying it out loud steadied something in me, anchored it. “He might be scared. He might want something. But he’s never been that kind of man.”
Briar studied my face, really looked at me. “You sure about that?”
“I’m sure he cares,” I said. “Enough not to cross that line.”
My phone buzzed.
An address. No message. No explanation. Just a pin dropped into my life like a challenge.
I frowned at the screen. It wasn’t a place I recognized. Not a house. Not a business. Just a stretch of road marked by trees and nothing else.
“I can’t ignore this,” I said. “If something happens to Sable or those kids and I stayed home because I was scared—”
“You’re not going alone,” Briar said flatly.
“I can’t drag you into this.”
“I do what I want.” She leaned closer, voice low, hard with resolve. “And I’ve got a plan.”
I nodded. “Tell me.”
“I drive,” she said. “We get close, not right up on it. Somewhere quiet. Somewhere I can pull off without bein’ seen.”
My heart started pounding harder. “And then?”
“You switch seats,” she said. “You take the wheel. I stay hidden in the back.”
A chill slid down my spine. “Do you really think he’d hurt me?”
“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “And I’m not lettin’ you find out alone.”
I hesitated. “What if he checks the car?”
“Why would he?” she said. “You’re doing exactly what he asked. And I’ll have my phone ready.”
That truth settled heavy in my chest.
“And if anything feels off,” she added, “you leave. No explanations. You don’t owe him anything.”
I nodded. My phone buzzed again. You coming? The words felt impatient now. Expectant.
I typed back with shaking fingers. I’m on my way.
As Briar started the car and pulled out of the driveway, the house disappeared behind us, swallowed by dark.
Dread and determination twisted tight in my gut.
Zach wouldn’t hurt me. That was the belief I clung to, fingers white-knuckled around it.
And whether it was right or wrong, it was the thing that pushed me forward.
***
I DROVE SLOWER than I needed to.
There was a house at the address Zach sent, it sat at the end of a narrow stretch of road, half swallowed by trees. Its porch sagged forward like it had long ago stopped pretending to be welcoming. No lights. No neighbors close enough to hear anything if someone screamed.
Briar was hunkered down in the backseat, hidden low just like we’d planned. I could feel her back there, a taut wire stretched between us. The only thing keeping me from turning the car around and flooring it.
Something was wrong.
The closer I got, the sicker I felt. My palms slicked the steering wheel. My throat tightened. Every instinct I’d learned the hard way whispered don’t.
Then Zach stepped out onto the porch.
He smiled when he saw me.
Not the strained smile from the motel. Not desperation. Not guilt. Just that familiar warmth I remembered. The Zach from our teenage years. The one who promised he would never let me go. The Zach who loved me.
Relief hit hard enough to make my knees weak.
Maybe I was wrong.
I parked and got out, the door clicking shut far too loud in the quiet.
“I’m glad you came, Lark,” he said as he walked toward me. His voice was gentle. “After the way I behaved the other day, I wasn’t sure you would.”
I forced myself to stay focused. “What do you know about Sable and the kids?”
His expression shifted. Sober now. “They’re in danger,” he said. “The new prophet wants Malik and Zara.”
My stomach dropped. “And Sable?”
“They’re planning to kill her,” Zach said softly. “After they take the children.”
The world narrowed to a single point.
“No,” I whispered. “They can’t. How do you know?”
Zach opened his mouth to answer.
“Because, my dear flame…”
The voice behind me crawled straight up my spine.
“I was on the council who ordered it.”
Every muscle in my body locked.
I didn’t need to turn around. I already knew.
“Jasper,” I said.
I spun anyway, ready for him, just as he stepped out of the shadows. Too close. Close enough that I caught the familiar stink of smoke and oil and the memories I’d buried with my teeth clenched.
I moved.
I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t freeze. I ran.
I barely got a step before arms locked around my waist and hauled me back hard. Air ripped from my lungs as Zach’s grip tightened, iron and inescapable.
I fought anyway. Elbows. Heels. Teeth.
“It’s alright, Lark,” he murmured against my ear, calm as a prayer. “You’re not going to be hurt.”
I went still. Not surrender. Calculation.
“You’re just being returned,” he continued softly. “Where you belong.”
Rage burned hot and clean in my chest. “How could you do this?” I hissed. “You know what he does. You know he doesn’t hesitate to hurt me.”
Jasper circled us, smiling like this was theater put on just for him. “Because Zach is a Shepherd,” he said. “And Shepherds are loyal to the Flame.”
Movement exploded behind us.
A hand yanked open the back door of the car and dragged Briar out by her arm, hard enough that she stumbled. Another Shepherd. I recognized him instantly.
Bran. As sadistic as Jasper.
“Get your hands off her!” I screamed, thrashing again.
Briar fought like a wildcat. Cussing. Kicking. Twisting in his grip. “You hurt us and I’ll fuckin’ find a way to kill you!”
Bran slapped her hard across the face, trying to tame her.
It didn’t work.
She laughed.
It was wild. Unhinged. Brave and at the same time stupid. But she didn’t know what they were capable of—I did.
“You didn’t trust me,” Zach said quietly, tightening his hold when I surged again. “That hurts, Lark. I only wanted to make you pure.”
I jerked my head back, catching him under the chin. Not enough. But enough to feel. Before I could scream, he clamped a hand over my mouth and dragged me tight against his chest.
Jasper lifted a hand. “Disable the vehicle,” he said calmly. “Now.”
One of the men moved fast, ducking under the hood. A sharp yank. A cable torn free and tossed into the bushes.
Jasper turned his gaze on me. “Phones.”
Zach slipped his hand into my pocket before I could react. He pulled my phone free and dropped it at Jasper’s feet.
I watched as Jasper crushed it beneath his boot. The screen shattered. The sound loud. Final.
Briar screamed and reached for her own phone, but the Shepherd holding her ripped it from her hand and slammed it against the gravel, grinding it under his heel until it was nothing but shards.
“You will regret ever laying a hand on us!” Briar snarled, still fighting. “Every last one of you.”
Then the Shepherd holding her screamed.
A raw, high sound as he staggered back, clutching his side. Blood poured through his fingers. “That bitch stabbed me!” he yelled.
Briar didn’t hesitate.
She ran.
Straight for the trees.
“I’m getting help!” she shouted over her shoulder.
Jasper cursed softly but didn’t chase her. Instead, he grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him, fingers digging into my jaw. “Let her go,” he said evenly. “They don’t know where we’re headed.”
His thumb brushed my cheek like a lover’s touch.
“By the time anyone finds that bitch,” he added, smiling, “you’ll already be home.”
Zach’s arms tightened around me as he whispered, “I’ll be with you, it’s going to be okay.”
The last thing I saw before they dragged me toward the back of the house was the dark line of trees swallowing Briar whole.
Running. Breathing. Free.
While I was being taken back into hell.