IT WAS ALMOST three in the morning by the time we pulled up to the house in Rye. Exhaustion had taken over long ago. My body and mind were running on adrenaline and even that had begun to wane.

“Alex, do you need me to go in with you?”

I squinted my eyes, trying to understand Deloris’s question. “You’re not staying here?”

“I can but I’d like to go home.”

The door to the house opened as Silvia stood, wrapped in a robe.

I forced a smile. “I guess I never think of you as having your own place.”

“Since you’ve come along, I seem to see it less and less.”

“Go,” I said as Clayton opened the car door. The offending wind reminded me that I was no longer in Georgia. Despite the onslaught of goose bumps, Silvia’s tired, welcoming smile filled me with warmth. After Chelsea and I were out of the car, I turned back to Deloris. “We’ll be fine. Besides, Nox is on his way.”

We’d all received a text from Isaac just after we’d landed. We didn’t know the particulars, only that the charges had been dropped and Nox and Isaac were New York bound.

As we started to walk toward the open door, I added, “Thank you, Deloris, and I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” she asked.

“That I’ve kept you away from your home.” I tilted my head. “Why did you come all the way out here if you’re going back to the city?”

“I promised Lennox I’d get you to this property. I wasn’t stopping until you were here. Go see your mom.”

“Clayton?” I asked.

“He’s driving me back. He’ll be here tomorrow and soon Lennox and Isaac will be too. Don’t worry. You’re well protected.”

My lungs filled with the cold night air as I scanned the grounds around the driveway and front of the house. Images of men in black clothing hiding behind trees came to mind. No doubt, delirium had begun to set in. Shaking my head, I stepped inside. As soon as I did, Silvia shut the door and wrapped her arms around me in a welcoming embrace. “Alex, I’m so glad you made it.”

I smiled as we separated. “My mom?” I still couldn’t comprehend that she was here, in Nox’s home.

“She’s upstairs.”

I reached for Chelsea and introduced her.

The shine in Silvia’s brown eyes reminded me of what it was like to be welcomed home. Slowly, I took in the foyer, the bleached wooden floors, light beige walls, and white woodwork. My cheeks rose at the fresh flowers arranged on the large oval table in the entry. “Is it wrong that I always feel like I’m at home here?”

“Not at all,” Silvia said. “I think that’s wonderful, because you are. Would either of you like something to eat or drink before you retire?”

“I want to see my mom before anything.”

“She’s asleep. I believe the doctor is too, but Mr. Demetri was awake a few minutes ago.”

“I’m still awake.”

We all turned toward the deep baritone voice. Like his son, he was a domineering presence.

“I see you left Georgia without my son.”

My pulse quickened and shoulders straightened. “And you have my mother. Why?”

Not for the first time, I noticed the family resemblance as Oren smiled and small lines formed around his eyes. Not only were they the same shade of blue as his son’s, they held the same silent power of communication. He seemed amused by my response.

“Miss Collins, I admire your fortitude. For the record, I always have.”

Silvia spoke to Chelsea. “Let me show you around, and I can get you something to eat or drink if you’d like.”

Chelsea shrugged questioningly in my direction.

“Wait,” I said. “Mr. Demetri…” I began introducing the two of them.

“Alex, that’s very polite of you but unnecessary. Miss Moore, you’re welcome here as long as you’d like. I promise you’re perfectly safe in my home.”

I bristled, wondering how much he knew about Chelsea. Did he know about Bryce? About everything? It wasn’t only his knowledge that bothered me. The way he referred to this home as his made the small hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention. I wanted to correct him and say it belonged to Nox, but instead I held my tongue as Chelsea accepted his kind gesture and disappeared with Silvia.

“My son?” he asked.

“Is in flight.”

Oren nodded. “I received the same text. I was wondering something else.”

Talking to Oren Demetri put me on edge. Each phrase, each word made me feel as if I were constantly trying to make sense of a riddle. At three in the morning, I didn’t have the energy. “Mr. Demetri, I’d like to see my mother.”

“Call me Oren, Alexandria. The doctor is asleep, but there’s a nurse monitoring Adelaide. She’ll have around-the-clock care.”

“Why?”

“She needs it.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Before we go upstairs, I think we should talk about what happened on the plane.”

I took a deep breath. “Can’t we talk in her room?”

“I’d rather not.”

“I’m sorry. This is rude, but I’ve had a long day. My mother is upstairs. I left Nox in Savannah to get to her. I’m going to go find her.”

He motioned toward the sitting room. “Hear me out. Please, this won’t take long. They say that patients can’t hear what is said around them while they’re unconscious, but I’d rather not take the chance. My house, my rules.”

My feet stopped. “Lennox’s house.”

Oren nodded. “Demetri.”

I took a deep breath and held my lips together.

“I’m not insisting on much,” he said. “Positivity. What happened today needs to be discussed, but not in your mother’s presence.”

I swallowed my resistance and tried to hear his intent. Something in his tone tugged at my heart. “You care about what is said around her? I’m going to ask again, why?”

He sat on the edge of the long sofa and leaned forward. It wasn’t the confident stance of the man I’d last met in this house months ago.

“First…” He gestured toward the sofa. “…please sit. You need to know about the flight.”

I didn’t argue as I settled at the far end of the plush couch. “Nox?”

Oren’s gaze met mine. “What about him?”

“You wanted to know something about him, what?”

He waved his hand. “It’s rather obvious.” Taking a deep breath, he sat taller. “As you should know, your mother has been given what some might consider an inappropriate amount of tranquilizers.”

Tranquilizers was a broad term. I assumed he was referring to the Versed or midazolam that Dr. Miller prescribed. “They said it was to help her withstand the DTs.”

“That’s what they said. The doctor who’s been with her tonight and I both believe that it was to keep her from talking.”

I narrowed my sleepy eyes. “Talking about what?”

He shook his head. “Alexandria, I think we need to get further into the whats and whys tomorrow. Tonight, as you said, has been very long. The point I want to make is that the excessive use of that medication has affected her body.”

My neck straightened as tears I couldn’t fight filled my eyes.

“I wanted to get your mother out of that poor excuse of a hospital as much as you.”

“Why—”

“Please,” he implored, “let me speak.”

I nodded.

“Our doctors couldn’t examine her until we had her safely out of there. They scanned her records. They made their assessments, but their assumptions were based on the information we could obtain. Unfortunately that isn’t as accurate as having the patient in their grasp.”

The dread that had filled me at his text message was back. “What happened?”

“Your mother went into shock after we were in the air.”

I bolted to my feet. “I need to see her.”

Oren stood too, blocking my way. “She’s fine, as fine as she can be, but she wasn’t. I take full responsibility for forcing her removal. Another twenty-four hours. Hell…” His volume rose. “…another two hours… that fucking excuse for a nurse.” His lips shut tight. “Pardon my language.”

“What happened?”

“We got her out of Magnolia Woods. We got her to the plane. She was mumbling when we first got to her, but then her vitals began to weaken.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Her heart stopped.”

I gasped as my knees loss tension and stomach fell. Giving way to gravity, I slid back to the sofa. “Stopped?”

“There was a doctor, Dr. Eva Rossi, on board. She’s the one who’s still here. She was monitoring her. She must have anticipated… there was an AED.”

“AED?”

“Defibrillator.”

“My mother’s heart was shocked?”

He nodded. “It didn’t work at first. We had to perform CPR. She has multiple broken ribs. I’m sorry.”

“She’s alive.”

He nodded again.

“Her ribs will heal. They wouldn’t if she weren’t alive.”

“Dr. Rossi has numerous concerns, her greatest being your mother’s brain.”

“Why?”

“The medication they used can affect the oxygen level to the brain. For some reason, despite the constant use, they didn’t have her on additional oxygen.”

“She is now?” I asked.

“Yes. But that isn’t all. Her heart stopped. I can’t tell you for how long. It seemed like hours, but it wasn’t. Nevertheless, during that time, before the CPR, her brain and organs were deprived of oxygen.”

“No. This isn’t happening.” I stood again. “Take me to her.”

Oren stepped in front of me. “Alexandria, I don’t believe in sugarcoating things. I never have. Dr. Rossi is concerned that she may never wake, and if she does, there could be irreparable damage.”

His words squeezed the muscles of my throat, making any response difficult. “W-when will we know?”

“Time will tell us.”

The warm, welcoming feeling I’d enjoyed upon my arrival disappeared into the cloud of fear his news delivered. I didn’t speak as he led me up the stairs. My only thought was of my momma. I didn’t think about Nox or our past as we passed the door to the room Nox and I had shared. I ran Oren’s words and phrases over again in my mind. With each step they sank deeper and deeper into my psyche. We didn’t stop until we reached a set of double doors.

As Oren reached for the doorknob, I reached for his arm. Something he’d said stood out. “Why do you take responsibility?”

“What?” His voice sounded dazed as if he too had been lost in thought.

“By getting my mother, you were doing what Lennox asked, what I wanted. It was my doing, not yours.”

He stood taller, his chest inflating. “Absolutely not.”

Before I could respond he went on, “Adelaide will wake. She will be the vivacious, beautiful woman she always was. I believe that with everything in me. However, if I’m wrong, which you should take comfort in knowing is rarely the case, but if I am, her fate is not your doing. You did the best you could. You were willing to sacrifice your own soul for her. She didn’t want that, and neither do I. If things don’t go as planned, it is on me.”

“How do you know about what I was willing to do?”

“The responsibility is mine.”

There was a tone of finality in his speech that I recognized, the authority that left little room for argument. He was Nox, or Nox was he. If it weren’t for the thicker accent, I could close my eyes and believe that Oren Demetri was his son.

In that second, I wanted to do what Nox continually asked of me. I wanted to trust. This time it wasn’t Nox I was trusting. It was Oren. It felt wrong, but at the same time it felt right.

Was this what it was like to have someone who shielded me from life’s tragedies and responsibilities? Was this what it was like to have a father? Though I knew he and Nox had their difficulties, I wanted to believe that Oren was sincere.

We’d both been right about the night. It’d been incredibly long, and my emotions were on overdrive. I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around Oren’s waist. “Thank you.”

His reaction was delayed, so much so that for a moment I regretted my show of emotion. And then, his arms surrounded my shoulders as my cheek fell against his chest. I didn’t understand the connection. I didn’t try, but for a moment, I was a little girl finding comfort and security in the arms of a man who somehow understood my difficulties, who shared my fears.

When I stepped back my cheeks were again wet. “You do care about her? It’s not just about Nox and I, is it?”

“I do.” He reached for the handle. “Shall we?”