The doctor that cleaned and stitched my arm gave me some pain medicine that made me sleepy. The private jet had a sofa along one wall, and flight attendants had converted it into a bed by the time the doctor left. Nico held me until after takeoff, and then he made them turn off the interior lights and close the window shades. He tucked me into bed and I drifted off to sleep.

I slept fitfully, only partially waking when I heard his voice, all raw, anxious, and angry. I wanted to talk to him, to hold his hand, to assure him I was okay, but he was too far away and my eyelids drooped.

The hard bump of landing jarred me, and this time, Nico was there, sitting next to me, stroking my hair. “Go back to sleep, Cara. It’s okay… just sleep.”

I did.

I was vaguely aware of movement. Of being carried through the darkness. Of the engine of a car.

When I next woke, the lights were dim, and I was in a bed that wasn’t moving—thank god.

“Are we in Falkenberg?”

“No,” A voice came from the darkness. It was Nico, but he wasn’t next to me. He was sitting in a chair in front of the faint outline of a window. “We’re at an airport 150 kilometers away. We’ll drive there in the morning.”

Oh, yeah. I’d forgotten there wasn’t an airport in his country. I sat up, trying to assess how I felt. The pain was muted in my injured arm, probably because of the medicine the doctor had left. Everywhere else just felt a bit stiff and achy. That would likely go away in a day or two. The memories? Those would last longer. I’d never felt that scared in my entire life.

Nico came over and stood in front of me. He looked horrible. He still had on the same clothes as earlier, his shirt half tucked in. He hadn’t shaved and his eyes looked bloodshot. Worst of all was how he was just standing there, not sitting down. Not holding me.

“Can I get you something?”

“Just water.” My throat was dry.

He returned with it and held out two pills for me to take. “Food? More blankets?”

“I’m fine.” Except I still didn’t know why he was hovering over me instead of sitting next to me.

“Do you feel up for talking?”

Yes—god, I wanted to talk to him so badly. About what happened—about how he’d reacted—about the pain I’d heard in his voice when he shouted for me. But when I nodded yes, he handed me a phone. “Your sister’s worried about you.”

I took the phone and murmured my thanks, biting back the questions I wanted to ask him.

Autumn answered right away though I didn’t know what time it was here, let alone in California. There were tears in her voice as she asked me repeatedly how I was feeling. She’d been so strong all my life—it was strange to hear her sound so shaky.

I thought of something. “How’d you know? Did Nico call you?”

“It’s everywhere,” she said, and my stomach dropped at the thought. “The footage is really shaky, but it looked very frightening. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I am, I promise. Or at least I will be—I’m pretty tired right now.”

“Do you want me to come out there?”

“No,” I said, trying to sound as alert as possible. “Thank you, but you’ve got to get ready for my niece or nephew. I’ll be okay.”

“How bad was it?” Autumn asked, her voice solemn.

I lowered my voice so Nico wouldn’t hear. “Terrifying.”

“God… I wish I were there to hug you.”

“Me too. Hey, wait, why did you text me right before?”

“Ford saw something online. They mentioned Nico and a blonde girl with an engagement ring.”

“That was fake—part of the disguises Frankie made for us.”

“Oh,” Autumn said. “I figured it must’ve been something like that.”

I tried not to think of it—too many hopes, dreams, and fears swirled around in my head when the words Nico and ring were used in the same conversation.

“You sound tired. You should get some rest. But Cara, call me tomorrow, okay?”

“Of course.”

“Love you,” she said, her voice breaking again.

“Love you, too.” I hung up the phone—I’d had all the strong emotions I could handle for one evening.

I put the phone on the nightstand and slowly made my way to the bathroom. I felt a little better when my face and teeth were clean, but still so tired. Those pills the doctor left must’ve made me extra sleepy.

Nico was at my side when I emerged. “Can you sleep more?”

“I think so.” Actually, I knew so—my eyelids were already drooping.

Nico helped me over to the bed and then pulled back the covers. I sat down on the edge, and he scooped up my feet and tucked them under the blankets as if I were a child. “Get some sleep.”

I nodded, my eyes already closing. I wanted to stay awake until I felt him climb into bed next to me, but my thoughts were already drifting and sleep was closing in. I only woke a few times during the night, and each time I only stayed alert long enough to realize that I was alone in the bed.