Somewhere Between the Depths

Chapter Twenty-Two

Silas

My blood chills and then stops pumping altogether as my ears begin to ring. Cash stares at me sympathetically, leaning against the island in my kitchen as he pulverizes me with this news.

"What?"

"Nora's in town, Si." He says again, voice softer.

I fight to absorb what he's saying, but it can't be true. She can't be back here. Why would she come back here? Is she actively trying to torture me? I sit at my table, hands fisted in my hair as I rest my elbows on my knees, trying to breathe around the ache in my chest. She's here... My girl is here... Except she's not my girl anymore. She left and didn't want anything to do with me, but she's here now. I don't know how to navigate these uncharted waters. She shared my bed, she loved me at one time, how the fuck do I keep sitting here? How do I not run to her and beg her to give us one more chance?

Because she left you to die.

That one rational thought sizzles through the mushy bullshit clouding my brain and I sober up instantly, shoving everything to the bottom as I glare up at Cash.

"What the fuck does she want?" I snap.

Cash's eyes narrow on me, gaze drifting only long enough to slip a cigarette in his mouth before it's locked on me again, and he lays it all out there. I sit dumbfounded for a few moments, trying to piece together why Nora would know anything about a surprise ATF visit and why she would warn us about it. If the visit isn't for us, then who... All the air exits my lungs at the same time, and I stand from my chair so abruptly it topples backwards.

"ATF is coming for the Royals. She's going after them."

I don't pose it as a question but Cash nods all the same.

"She said something about righting the wrongs. Fixing things the only way she can... Silas, she's going to get herself killed."

If Nora is cozying up to Sloane to gather info on their dealings and he finds out... He won't think twice before ripping her apart. He's never been a kind man to the ladies, just ask his last two girlfriends, if you can find them. He won't have any patience for a woman that openly double crosses him. Not that any have previously dared, but Nora was a different breed of woman. Still, why go to all this trouble just because he burned her Gran's house down? It didn't make sense. All this time, and she comes back to town for petty revenge?

"What is she thinking?" I bark, slamming my fist into my dining table.

"I couldn't tell you, but you need to find her. I think you're the only one who will be able to talk some sense into her."

My chest seizes at the thought of seeking Nora out. I both want nothing more than to wrap her up in my arms, and to never see her ever again, to forget about her and that summer we shared together. I wish I could pretend it meant nothing, that it was just puppy love and something I'll move on from eventually, but no matter how many women I try to lose myself in, it's always Nora I dream about. After all this time, it's still her I think of when I picture my future. Her on my bike behind me, her with my ring on her finger, my girl, my old lady.

Despite her betrayal, I just want it all back. I want to press rewind on the last three years and close this unbearable distance between us. But I can't. Because of a choice she made in the heat of the moment, every beautiful thing between us is ruined. Being shot hurt less than her abandonment.

#

I'm elbows deep in the engine of some dude's Jeep when Enzo steps into the garage and barks at everyone.