eyes open slightly, narrowed slits staring back at me. “You are free.”
My yearning to believe him hasn’t lessened. Neither has the determination not to trust him.
“I’ll help those women,” he continues. “Have faith I can get them out.”
“You won’t make it through the front gates without me.”
“Then I’m happy for you to provide the necessary insight that helps us to get in another way.”
“Us?” I ignore yet another refusal to let me leave and focus on obtaining more information about his plan.
“I’m not stupid enough to go on my own. Your brother will want to help, and Hunter is always looking for a bit of fun.”
Fun? Fun.
“Wrong choice of words.” He drops his hand from his nose and holds it up to me in placation. “I meant Hunter enjoys retribution. Especially against those who deserve a lot of it. Your tormentors will pay for what they’ve done.”
“I don’t care about revenge. All I want are my sis—”
There’s a tentative knock at the door.
“Yeah?” Luca snaps.
The barrier to the rest of the world opens, Tobias’s little face coming into view. He rushes toward me, keeping his distance from Luca as he passes to hold up a cookie.
“This is for you,” he offers. “They said you need to eat.”
“Thank you.” I grasp the offering but can’t stomach taking a bite, not with the lives of four people riding on my negotiating skills.
“Penny?” Tobias cringes and twists his legs together. “I really need to use the bathroom now.”
Shit.
I glance at Luca in question.
“It’s right in here, little buddy.” He jerks his head at the ajar door across the other side of the room, then quickly squeezes his eyes shut again, wincing. “Walk through the robe to the door at the end.”
Tobias peers up at me, waiting for approval.
“It’s okay.” I want to go with him, to lessen his fear, but I’m not finished with Luca. Not by a long shot. “Freshen up while you’re in there. Wash your face and hands.”
He nods, keeping an eye on the stranger as he walks to the door before disappearing inside.
The conversation doesn’t fall back into place once we’re alone.
Luca’s eyes remain partially squinted, his face pinched with discomfort.
Despite being uncertain about where to lay my trust, I don’t like seeing him in pain.
“Do you need a doctor?”
“I’ll be fine. It’s nothing but a headache.”
“It’s not fine. Not when you expect me to entrust you with the lives of the people I love.”
His nostrils flare. “You know what? The slightest bit of appreciation would go a long fucking way to ease the throb in my head. All I’ve done is try to help you and you keep spitting it back in my face.”
I straighten, the tiniest fissure of regret breaking through my defenses.
He’s right. I’ve shown very little thanks for what he’s done. But that’s because his promises of freedom don’t feel real. The death of my captors seems like a dream.
Shock hasn’t allowed for anything positive to sink in. Not relief or happiness.
Definitely not the appreciation he craves.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper. “I’m not ungrateful. I’m just…”
“Forget it.” He huffs out a sigh. “I’ve got a spare shirt if you want to get out of your stained clothes.” His attention treks my body, the scrutiny far more subtle than what I’m used to. There’s no desire. No threat. “Or Keira might have something you can borrow.”
“I don’t want anything from her.” Not clothes. Not placations. “I’ll make do with what I have.”
“You can’t go back to Naxos in bloodstained clothes.”
I straighten. “Go back?”
“That’s what you want, isn’t it?” He raises a brow. “And apparently I can’t get through the gates without you.”
The appreciation he’s been searching for finally hits me, the buzz filtering through my limbs. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. Torian has to—”
“Penny.” Tobias’s frantic voice calls from the bathroom. “Penny.”
My heart drops, the cookie falling from my fingers.
I run, scrambling toward the plea for help, only to have Luca beat me to the door as he pulls a gun from the back of his waistband. I make it to the bathroom a step behind him to find Toby standing at the bathroom counter, looking at the side of his shirt.
His eyes bug at the sight of us, his focus turning to the gun, his mouth dropping open as if he’s about to scream.
“What’s wrong?” I push past Luca and place a hand on his arm to encourage him to lower the weapon. “What happened?”