Chapter 25 Laney
Laney
Iwake up because the baby is crying.
Not hungry.
Not uncomfortable.
Scared.
I know the difference now.
The sound is thin and shaky, the kind that comes from somewhere deeper than a simple need.
The cabin is quiet.
Not peaceful quiet.
Wrong quiet.
Heavy.
No voices.
No boots shifting on the porch outside.
No low murmur of radios or the quiet rhythm of men who never truly relax.
Just wind brushing against the trees.
And my daughter’s frightened cry.
I sit up too fast, the room tilting as my head spins.
“Shh… it’s okay, sweetheart,” I whisper, pulling her against my chest.
Her tiny body trembles against mine.
But my heart is already pounding.
Something is wrong.
Saint should have checked in by now.
He always does.
Always.
I glance at the clock on the small table beside the bed.
Too much time has passed.
My stomach knots.
I stand, wrapping the baby tighter in the blanket before stepping into the main room.
The air inside the cabin feels tense.
Wolf sits at the table, a map spread out in front of him.
Trigger stands near the radio equipment, speaking quietly into a headset.
Marco is at the window, staring into the dark forest outside like he’s expecting someone to step out of it.
All three of them look… tight.
Controlled.
But tense.
“Where’s Saint?” I ask.
No one answers.
The silence stretches.
My stomach drops.
“Where is he?” I repeat.
Trigger’s jaw flexes.
“We lost his signal about an hour ago.”
The room tilts.
“No,” I whisper. “He wouldn’t just— he wouldn’t—”
“He went dark,” Wolf says gently. “Which means either comms failure… or trouble.”
Marco turns from the window.
The look on his face makes my chest tighten.
He already knows.
“She took him,” he says quietly. “I know she did.”
The words hit me like a physical blow.
“No,” I say quickly. “She wants the baby. She wants me.”
“She wants leverage,” Marco replies.
His voice is calm.
Too calm.
“And Saint is the leverage.”
My chest tightens until it hurts to breathe.
I pull my daughter closer, pressing her tiny head beneath my chin.
“This is my fault,” I whisper. “If I hadn’t come here—”
“No,” Wolf says firmly.
His voice cuts through the room like a blade.
“This is on her.”
I look at them.
At these dangerous, capable men who have spent days protecting us.
For the first time since we arrived…
I don’t feel protected.
I feel hunted.
And in the middle of that fear, another realization crashes into me.
I don’t just need Saint because he’s protecting us.
I need him because…
I love him.
The truth slams into me like a wave.
It steals my breath.
Leaves my chest aching.
And there’s no time to process it.
Because he’s out there.
Somewhere in the dark.
And she has him.