Chapter 9 Zephyr
Chapter Nine: Zephyr
I walk out of the guest bedroom and head straight to my room. My duffel bag is somewhere in the closet. A couple days at Callum’s. Maybe more, depending on how psycho her dad gets.
I yank the bag out and start throwing clothes in. T-shirts. Jeans. Whatever. My hands move on autopilot while my brain tries to catch up to what Tigerlily just said.
Her dad punched her.
In the face?
Fuck, that’s rough.
I scanned her face in that moment. Her soft face.
No bruises. No scratches. Nothing visible.
Maybe a swollen lip, but I mistook it for being plump.
It didn’t look like a punch did it, it looked more like she bit it.
Which means either her dad’s careful about where he hits her, or Jax got there before it got worse.
I shove another shirt in the bag harder than necessary.
A sweet girl like her. Innocent. Gentle. And some piece of shit puts his hands on her.
Movement in the hallway catches my eye. Jax walks past, his jaw set in that way that means he’s locked down tight. Processing. Planning.
I zip the bag and follow him to his room, slipping inside before closing the door behind me.
“Why didn’t you fucking tell me?”
Jax doesn’t look up from packing his own bag. “Tell you what?”
“Dude.” I step closer. “Her dad hits her?”
The door opens, and Callum slides in, looking between us with that hungover but curious expression. He nods like he wants details too.
Jax’s hands still on his bag. His voice comes out flat. Cold. “He’s a piece of shit. He’s lucky she held me back because I would’ve killed him.”
“Did you fuck him up?” Callum asks.
Jax shakes his head once. “I punched him once. Then she stopped me from doing anything more.”
Callum leans against the doorframe. “How do you even know her?”
“I don’t.” Jax zips his bag with force. “But it takes only two eyes to see that she deserves better.”
I cross my arms. “Okay, so we lay low at Callum’s. He won’t find her there.” I pause, thinking through the variables. “And what about the sister?”
Callum perks up. “She has a sister?”
“She’s ten years old, dude.”
I look back at Jax. “You think the sister will remember where we live?”
“Was she here or something?” Callum asks.
Jax and I both turn to glare at him.
He holds his hands up. “Brothers, I came in mid-story. I don’t know what the fuck’s going on.”
I turn back to Jax. “I don’t even know if this turd’s going to remember today. He’s so fucking hungover.”
“Nah,” Callum grins. “Tiger purified me. She has cleansed me.”
Jax grabs his bag and shoulders it. “You’re right about the sister. Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
“Lock up, boys!” Callum announces behind us, way too loud for the situation.
When I step into the hallway, Tigerlily is standing there. All three of us must look like the three stooges crammed in one bedroom.
Her eyes are wide, taking us in.
I cut the corner to my bedroom and grab my overnight bag.
When I walk back out, she’s looking at Jax. That look she gives him—I can’t even describe it. Like she’s counting on him. Like he’s the anchor keeping her from floating away.
“No, I don’t think my sister remembers how to get here,” she says quietly. “She’s not the best with directions.”
Her eyes flick to mine.
I stare back and hold her gaze.
Something shifts in her expression when she looks at me. Different from how she looks at Jax. I can’t tell if it’s relief or interest or something else, but whatever it is, I’ll take it.
“Sit in the front, Cal,” I mutter as we head out the door.
Jax locks up behind us, checking the doors twice.
Callum grins at me as we walk to the car. “You want a turn to sit next to our Tiger.”
She blushes. The pink spreads across her cheeks, down her neck.
I watch her closely. She is our Tiger.
When we get in the back seat, I reach over for her seatbelt before she can. She flinches when I pull it across her lap, and I force myself to move slowly. Deliberately. I click it into place. I can smell her shampoo. My eyes stare into hers, and she’s so shy that she can barely keep the contact.
“Thank you,” she whispers.
Jax settles into the driver’s seat while I keep my gaze on hers. She stares back, those brown eyes so fucking innocent it hurts.
We pull out of the driveway and head toward Callum’s place.
The moment we reach his driveway, Callum’s announcing his house. “Welcome to Casa de Callum, where the vibes are immaculate, and the hospitality is unmatched.”
I grab her things for her, and Callum opens her door.
When we walk inside, I’m actually surprised. It’s tidy. Like, genuinely clean. Good for Callum. I’ve only been here a couple times since he moved in a few months ago.
I look around, half-expecting to see a shrine of Sienna hidden somewhere. A photo wall. Candles. Something pathetic because this man’s fucking obsessed with his ex.
“So, I only have one bed—”
Jax cuts him off. “She gets the bed, and we sleep on the ground.”
Callum looks at Tigerlily. She looks like she might laugh—her lips twitch, eyes brightening—and I can only stare because I’ve barely seen her smile. She holds it in, biting her lower lip. I can tell she likes him right away. And I hope it had nothing to do with seeing his dick this morning.
Callum shows her to his bedroom. I follow, setting her things down on his unmade bed.
“Bedroom’s here. Bathroom’s there. And that’s the grand tour,” Callum says, already walking back to the kitchen. “Water anyone?”
We all follow him. He fills four glasses like he’s hosting a dinner party, then turns to us with that easy grin. “So, what should we do?”
Jax and I both stare at him.
He’s an idiot. A well-meaning idiot, but still.
Callum’s grin widens. “Tiger?”
“I’m tired,” she says softly.
He nods, suddenly serious. “You can nap.”
She glances between the three of us, then back at the bedroom. “Are you sure? I don’t want to—”
“You’re taking the bed,” Jax says. Not a suggestion. A fact.
She nods and disappears into Callum’s room, closing the door softly behind her.
The three of us stand in the kitchen, staring at the closed door.
Callum breaks the silence first. “So. We’re really doing this.”
I stare at him.
Jax doesn’t say anything. He just drinks his water and stares at that door like he can see through it.
And I realize we’re all thinking the same thing.
We’re not letting her go back.
Not to that house. Not to that man.
Over our fucking dead bodies.