72. Chapter Seventy-Two
Chapter seventy-two
Peter
Adair took a shaky breath, and all I could do was hold her close, kiss the side of her head, and stuff down my rage at her sister and Liam.
“I have scattered memories of a frantic drive that brought me here and then of Derek, Doc, and Lynette all working very hard to keep me alive. I don’t remember much aside from fading in and out of consciousness, the pain, and Derek telling me he would be back and how much he loved me.
A few days later, when I was stable enough to be moved, Lynette took me to a safe house.
She refused to tell me where it was but assured me I was still in the area. ”
“And that’s where you stayed until moving to the safe house in Indiana?”
She nodded.
“What about Derek?”
Adair sniffled. “I didn’t see him again for over three years.”
“That was the first time your heart shattered, wasn’t it?” She nodded, and I pulled her closer, kissing the top of her head. “What do you need from me right now?”
“You.”
“I’m right here, hun. I’m not going anywhere. You’re safe with me.”
Adair sagged against my chest and sniffled. “I know. I love that. I love how patient you are and how you keep reassuring me I'm okay.”
The way she clung to me reminded me of the night after her safe house in Colorado exploded. “Do you need a shower to help you reset?”
She shook her head. “No. Even if you’re there, I'll feel too exposed.”
I ignored the fact she thought about having me in the shower with her and glanced around the room as I racked my brain for ideas. “What about sitting in the safe room?”
Her head popped up, and my heart broke at how bloodshot her eyes were.
“No. Sitting in there feels like admitting defeat… like I have something to hide from.” Adair shook her head as anger and determination flickered in her eyes.
“I’m tired of hiding. I'm done hiding. If there's anyone who should be cowering behind a blast door at this point, it’s Liam and Susan, not me. They are the problem. They are the monsters who had no problem murdering me to get their way. All I wanted to do was what was best for my family. Fuck them. They deserve everything coming their way.”
“Okay.” My eyes were wide as I nodded. I hadn’t expected her to go off like that, even if it was warranted. “Is there anything you want to do?”
“I need to talk to Avery.”
What? “I… Okay. Do you want me to text her or us to find her in person? I’m not sure if she’s working right now.”
“Text her. Please."
I grabbed my phone.
Peter:
Seconds later, there was a knock on the door as Avery opened it. “What happened?”
Adair launched off the bed, ran into Avery’s arms, and burst into tears. “Thank you for whatever you did after Derek pulled me out of that house.”
She nodded as she held Adair close. “I wish I could have done more, but Lynette showed up and stopped me from killing Liam.”
My jaw dropped as Adair gasped. “What?”
She let out a nervous-sounding laugh. “Yeah. We should probably sit down for this.”
I moved and sat on the chair so both ladies could get comfortable on the bed.
Avery took Adair’s hands in hers and started talking.
“Lynette came racing in behind me, demanding to know why Susan was bleeding and why I was holding Liam at gunpoint. When I told her Derek had run out carrying your unconscious body, she made a call, glaring at her son ten seconds into it.” She shook her head.
“I thought fire was going to shoot out of that woman's eyes. After wrapping up the call, Lynette told Liam he had two hours to clean up the mess and report back to the house where he would be having a discussion with her and George. She then tasked me with taking Susan to the hospital, then home. I was explicitly ordered not to speak a word of what I saw and to leave Susan and Liam to fuck up their lives all on their own. Her words, not mine.”
A tense breath rushed out. “She wanted to separate them so they couldn’t corroborate the cover story.”
Avery looked at me and nodded. “That boy was in some hot fucking water when he rolled in later. I wasn’t high enough in the pecking order at the time to be in on any of those meetings, but Liam was really nice to me after that.
Like ass-kissing, terrified for his life kind of nice. It was off-putting, for sure.”
Adair actually giggled weakly. “Well, there’s a silver lining, I suppose.”
I shook my head. “I can’t imagine Liam kissing anyone’s ass. I’ve only ever seen him be a pain in the ass.”
Avery shrugged. “He did the entire time the families were actively, publicly searching for Tori. The longer it drew out, the less afraid he was, like he thought the more time that passed, the less likely I was to air his dirty laundry.” She shifted her attention from me to Adair.
“I was a little distracted with actually looking for you. I nearly lost my job when I demanded answers from Lynette. George was pissed and in my face about how I was speaking to his wife, but Lynette told him she’d handle it and kicked him out of the room.
It was only then she told me you were alive and safely stowed away, but that I had to pull my shit together if I wanted to get my revenge.
” A smile flickered onto Avery’s face. “She told me it was going to be the ultimate long game, but if I stuck with her, it would be worth it. Who was I to question a mafia madame? So, I did… and here we are.”
Adair reached back for me, and I took her hand in mine, giving it a squeeze, and the three of us sat in silence for a moment.
A knock on the door startled us all, and Avery hopped off the bed to answer it.
“I saw you race in here like there was a fire. Is everything okay?”
I saw Ryan over Avery’s shoulder and didn’t miss the worry on his face.
She nodded. “Yeah. I may have overreacted slightly. Everything’s fine, though.”
Ryan poked his head into the room and looked at me and Adair. “Really?”
Adair slid off the bed and walked over. “Yeah. I was having a rough time with some painful memories, and Peter and Avery helped me out. I appreciate you checking in. It was very sweet of you.”
His jaw muscles tightened as he nodded. “I know the date, and I'm sorry it happened, but I’m glad to see you’re in good hands.
She gave him a quick hug. “He’ll get his. Don't worry about that.”
The cold malice in her voice sent chills down my spine.