Chapter 36
Phoenix
I woke before the house. It was an old habit carved out by years of opening the brewery at dawn, of checking lines and valves when the rest of Val-Du-Lys still slept.
Except this morning it wasn’t barley or steel on my mind.
It was the woman in my bed and her son in the next room breathing easy in a place they could call home.
I set water on for coffee and padded down the short hall. The door to the room beside mine, which was Braden’s now, had the door cracked open. Inside, soft light poured into the room. Braden had drifted on his stomach, his bum in the air. I stood there longer than I meant to, just listening.
Our room was dimmer. Elyna had rolled onto my side sometime in the night, sheets tangled at her waist, hair a golden tumble on my pillow.
I could still feel the echo of her palms on my shoulders, the press of her mouth, the way she’d said “our room” like she’d tested the words and decided to keep them.
Something in my chest went soft and fierce all at once.
I brushed a kiss against her temple, and she stirred, not quite waking. “Coffee,” I whispered. “And toast you’ll pretend you don’t want.”
She hummed softly. “I always want toast.”
I grinned and backed out of the room since my phone was vibrating. Becket’s name lit up the screen.
“Morning,” he said without preamble. “Two things. Patrol ran both plates again at four. Same vehicles were still circling river road and the sugar shack, but my cars didn’t approach them.
Our guys at The Frosted Mug made contact with a runner last night; he’s jumpy.
Also, we pulled headers on those texts to Elyna.
You were right, they’re bouncing through a relay app. ”
“Which app?”
“A not-so-clever one. Spoofs the number cleanly and masks the sender. But the network pings say a few messages originated from a public Wi-Fi in Montreal in the Plateau neighborhood. Other hits from a cell tower north of the city on the autoroute. None from inside Val-Du-Lys.”
I leaned my shoulder to the kitchen beam and stared through to the orchard. “So either Riley isn’t here, or someone has his phone and the brains to run it through a relay.”
“Exactly. We can’t clear him. But the pattern screams distance.” Papers shuffled on his end. “Also, that Bernadette at the daycare?”
“Yeah,” I waited.
“I had a uniform stop by. She’s been ‘chatting’ with Colette more than she admitted. I told the director their policy is zero discussion with non-authorized relatives. We’ll keep a car near Birch at drop-off and pickup for the next week.”
“Thanks, bro.” The word tasted like relief. “We moved Elyna and Braden into my place last night.”
Becket paused, and when he spoke again his voice changed to less cop and more brother. “About time.”
A small smile spread my lips because he wasn’t wrong. “Keep me posted on the plates,” I said. “And, Beck? No hero moves. Eyes and ears.”
“I know my job,” he said dryly, then added softer, “And Phoenix? You’re doing yours.”
I ended the call. The coffeepot was full and ready. By the time the toast popped, Braden had started up a low babble. I lifted him from his crib, warm from his blankets and unbothered by any of the mess that had become our lives. He patted my jaw.
“Let’s go find your mom.”
Elyna was sitting against the headboard when we came in, hair braided over one shoulder, my T-shirt on her looked too good. She opened her arms, and Braden dove, headfirst, belly laugh ricocheting off the walls.
“Hey,” she said to me over Braden’s shoulder, eyes still soft from sleep. “You stood guard again?”
“Fox at 3:00 a.m.,” I said. “He just passed through.” I turned out of our room. “Be back in a second. Couldn’t hold Braden and coffee.”
I padded back to the kitchen and grabbed the toast and coffee and went back to our room. The smile she hit me with landed in the center of my chest as I handed her the mug, set the toast on the nightstand, and sat on the edge of the mattress.
“Becket called,” I said. “They’ve been reviewing the messages. Whoever it is used a relay app. It showed a few hits coming from a Montreal public Wi-Fi, another from a tower north on the highway. No origin inside Val-Du-Lys.”
Her fingers tightened on the mug. “So… it might not be Riley. Or it might be Riley, but he’s not here.”
“Right.” I kept my voice even.
The breath she let out wasn’t quite relief, but it wasn’t panic either. “Thank you for keeping me in the loop.”
“Always,” I said.
“We should call the daycare and tell them he’ll be back tomorrow,” she said. “I can’t hide forever.”
“You’re not hiding,” I said. “You’re regrouping, it’s different.
” I stroked a thumb along the line of her jaw.
“Dad will have a car at the far gate again tonight. I’ll add one more camera to the north corner and angle it low.
And . . .” I hesitated, because the last piece had rattled in my pocket all night “Dad and I want to run one more test on the ‘delivery’ text that came in.”
Her brows lifted. “What kind of test?”
“Decoy.” I stood; Braden latched to my shirt.
I kissed the top of Elyna’s head before I went to the dresser for a packet of bright orange tape and a blank parcel label.
“We tape a fake ‘signature required’ note at the bottom of the stairwell door. Something only a person walking up here can see. We set a trail cam at knee height that catches hands and shoe brands if anyone reaches in. If they’re fishing for you to open a door, they might try again. ”
Her eyes searched mine. “What if they don’t fall for it?”
“Then we don’t find anything new.” I passed her Braden and the orange tape.
“And my cameras still see everything.” On some level I knew I was going overboard with all the cameras, but I felt like it was the only control I had in this moment when my goal was keeping them both safe amongst so many moving parts that were wild cards.
We ate in the kitchen, the three of us at the big table while sunlight and warmth came in through the windows. I cleaned dishes while Elyna read Braden an entirely fabricated story about a fox and a maple leaf who were best friends. The world, for ten minutes, was very small and very good.
By midmorning I’d installed the low cam on the porch and a matching chime on the mudroom door. I texted Dad a photo of the setup. His reply came back fast. Looks good. Keep the chime on armed. I’m ten minutes away. Will check the lane.
He showed up exactly eight minutes later with a bag of screwdrivers and a look that said he trusted my work but planned to verify anyway.
He walked the perimeter with me, but he paused at the north fence line and his eyes narrowed toward the old logging track beyond the sugar shack.
He could read this property better than most men could read a map.
“They circled late,” he said. “They will circle again. Their patience is running thin.” He cut me a sideways glance. “How is she?”
“Better,” I said. “Sleeping. Eating. Laughing.” I kept my voice steady on the last word.
He grunted, satisfied. “Good. Keep her near people. Keep your phone on.” Then, after a beat, he clapped my shoulder, a rare gesture.
“You’re doing well.” I allowed the words to sink in while he went straight to his car.
When I left for Europe after high school there had been a rift between us.
I felt like I was holding on to too much responsibility and I needed a break.
He felt like I was walking away from the family.
At the end I came back but our family dynamic changed since Eric stepped up in taking care of our younger siblings.
I still helped out too but dad wanted me to join the force.
I had no interest. There had always been a push and pull between us where I felt like I wasn’t meeting his expectations.
That’s why him telling I did well carried weight. It was words I longed to hear.
I stood and watched his taillights disappear down the lane. They were losing patience.
Inside, Braden had discovered the lower kitchen drawer full of wooden spoons and was attempting to start a band.
Elyna leaned against the counter, ankles crossed, looking at him like nothing in her life had ever been more beautiful.
When she looked up at me, the same softness didn’t leave her face. It just… widened to make room.
“Pierre was checking the perimeter? she asked.
“Yes.” I tapped the portable sensor Dad insisted I keep on me. “And he left me more toys to play with.”
She eyed the device. “He’s relentless.”
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” I said, which was true. My father was a born protector and I took on that trait too.
After lunch, I hauled out the box marked October.
Maple Valley didn’t do anything halfway; even in a year like this one, we’d string lights in the beer garden and cut paths through the corn for the haunted maze.
I found a cardboard sleeve of bat silhouettes Asher had bought on a dare and had never used.
Elyna hung them in the kitchen doorway while Braden supervised from his high chair, clapping his hands.
At three, my phone buzzed.
Becket: Update. Frosted Mug runner says the Montreal boys are asking about “the Thorne place by the orchard.” Not the main house, they mean you. Stay close.
I texted back a clipped Copy and showed Elyna the message.
“They’re asking for you?” Her voice went small around the last word.
“They’re testing,” I corrected. “We just go on living our life, Elyna.”
So we did. We finished the little things homes are made of, like stacking diapers in the top drawer of the family room buffet and finding the right spot for Braden’s velvet-eared fox on the bookshelf.
With dusk everything grew darker, the orchard line faded as the stars emerged, lighting the sky.
One of the most beautiful parts about living in a small town was enjoying the stars at night since we didn’t have the city lights drowning them out.
I set the alarm on the mudroom door, checked the cams one more time, and dropped my phone face down on the counter.
Eric dropped by earlier with some onion soup and cheese buns so we ate that for dinner, once again sitting around the large wood table.
Braden liked to sample everything but decided that an empty spoon tasted the best. After dishes, I carried him down the hall while Elyna set up his bath.
She bathed him and I joined in singing some songs.
While she got him dressed, I took off to shower and turn down our bed.
By the time I came to check on them in the other room, Braden was fast asleep.
I walked over to the crib and watched him sleep for a few beats. He looked so peaceful.
“Goodnight, buddy,” I whispered.
Elyna was waiting in the doorway when I stepped out. “What now?” she asked. I could tell her nerves were doing a number on her.
“Now,” I said, lifting her hand to my mouth, “we let the house do its job. And we do ours.”
She slid closer until our shoulders touched. “What’s our job?”
I looked down at her, at the woman who had walked back into town with a baby, a spine made of steel, and a heart of gold. “To relax.”
She exhaled, and the last thread of the day’s tension let go. We moved to the couch and half-watched a movie because as hard as we tried, our focus was on the shadows outside. When the portable sensor chirped once, it was only because my thumb had brushed its side. I turned it off and set it aside.
Later we got into bed. Elyna curled against me and I hated she was feeling so unsettled, but I couldn’t blame her because I was in full alert too.
My phone buzzed again. One line. . .
Becket: They just turned back to town. No detours. No stops. Our plainclothes will shadow.
I typed Thank you and set the phone on the table where the screen wouldn’t glow against her face.
“Everything okay?” she asked, not opening her eyes.
“Everything’s where it should be,” I said and meant it.
I turned off the lamp beside my bed. I lay awake a little longer, the way men do when they’ve found the thing they didn’t know they were building toward.
Part of me wanted to say it out loud. . .
I don’t want this to be temporary. Stay and put a photo on every wall.
That would be my plan once the dust settled. Hopefully soon.
Until then, I watched the dark and listened to Elyna’s slow breaths.
The phone vibrated once more, a tiny pulse against the wood. I reached for it without waking Elyna.
A push alert from the north-side camera: Interference detected. Static scrolled across the thumbnail, a thin, snow-like smear where the feed should be clear. It had begun to rain outside so the weather could’ve caused the interference, but I wasn’t going to take any chances.
Every part of me went cold and focused.
I slid out of bed without a sound, grabbed jeans and the portable sensor, and glanced once at the crib monitor where Braden slept in a soft curve of light. Elyna shifted, not waking, trusting me and these walls to keep her safe.
I walked toward the back door quiet, sure.
I checked the camera and everything looked fine and untouched.
The tension left my body and I went back inside and closed the door.
But this situation awakened something inside me, and I knew right here I would protect Elyna and her son until my last breath.