Gram smiled and shifted the corner of the afghan to make sure Fiona’s toes were covered. She went back to the kitchen and came back with her own mug of tea, then settled into an armchair.
Asher had driven us straight here. I didn’t know how Gram had known what was happening, but none of our story surprised her. And she’d made fresh muffins this afternoon, as if she’d had a feeling we’d descend on her house after a bizarre crisis involving armed men in an old abandoned mine.
Grace arrived and flew into Asher’s arms. I could hear him gently assuring her that everyone was fine. Sasquatch came in with her and immediately ran to sniff Fiona, checking to make sure she was okay.
“Hi buddy,” she said, reaching out to pet him. “It’s good to see you too.”
“Where’s Gallagher?” I asked.
Grace’s eyes flicked to Fiona, her face full of sympathy. “There was a warrant out for his arrest, so Jack took him in.”
“It’s okay,” Fiona said. “Unfortunately, that’s what needed to happen.”
“I’m sorry,” Grace said. “But I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“Did Leo go home?” I asked.
“Yeah, he had to get back to his family.”
“I don’t know how to thank him,” Fiona said. We’d given her the basics of how we’d found her, and how Grace’s brother Leo had helped. “In fact, I don’t know how to thank any of you.”
I squeezed her, careful so she didn’t spill her hot tea.
Asher put his arm around Grace and when he spoke, he met my eyes. “We’re family. It’s what we do.”
Not for the first time today, I had to breathe through the tightness in my chest. But I didn’t shy away from the emotions buffeting me. I felt them. I’d gone from gut-wrenching terror to overwhelming relief to heart-bursting love and gratitude. And it was worth the agony. She was worth it.
She was worth everything.
A vehicle pulled up outside and a few seconds later, the chaos of my younger brothers crashed through the front door, all three of them talking at once.
“Fiona!”
“That was insane.”
“So glad you’re okay.”
“Do I smell muffins?”
“Calm down,” Gram said, her soothing voice carrying over the ruckus. “Everyone’s fine now, and there’s plenty for all of you.”
“Thank god. I’m starving.” Levi went straight for the kitchen.
“That was, hands down, the coolest thing we’ve ever done,” Logan said.
Gavin’s eyes were wild, glittering with excitement. “It so was. What a rush.”
“What did you guys do?” Fiona asked.
“Evan and Ash needed a distraction, so we made a distraction,” Logan said. “We got a fire going not far from the mine entrance. It wasn’t very big, but we made it good and smoky.”
“You’re not telling it right,” Gavin said. “First we stole a fire engine.”
“Borrowed,” Levi said from the other room.
“Fine, borrowed, although stole sounds more exciting,” Gavin said. “We left Chief a note. I’m sure it’s fine. Anyway, Levi drove us out there in the engine, then Logan and I went ahead on foot to start a big brush fire.”
“Controlled burn,” Levi called.
“Sure, controlled burn, whatever. So we got it going, and Gram, you’ll be very proud of me: I had lots of ideas to make it bigger, but I was totally a grown-up and very responsible with my use of fire.”
“He was, actually,” Logan said.
Gram’s lips twitched in a smile.
“Once the smoke looked convincing, Levi drove up and blared the siren once, just to get their attention.”
“It was crazy. Guys with fu—” Logan stopped himself before he finished saying fucking in front of Gram. “Guys with guns came out. One of them started to run up the hill, like he was going to confront us or something, but another guy stopped him. So we just acted like we were there to put out a brush fire.”
“But that’s not even the best part,” Gavin said. “We got the call from Leo that Fiona was safe and he said the FBI were on their way. But the bad guys obviously figured out Fiona was gone because they came out like they were going to pile in their SUV and get away. So we turned the hose on them.”
“Are you serious?” I asked.
Gavin started laughing so hard he couldn’t finish.
“Yeah, we actually did,” Levi said, coming in with a half-eaten muffin in his hand. “We didn’t hit anyone directly, just kind of herded them back to the mine entrance.”
“So they didn’t get away?” Fiona asked.
“Nope,” Gavin said, obviously feeling very proud of himself. “We held them back until the FBI showed up.”