One too Many

Chapter 44

Asher

The car ride home was thick with silence, the kind that clung to the skin and crawled down the back of your neck like cold sweat. I watched the road pass in a blur, but my mind wasn't on the concrete stretch ahead of us.

It was on her.

Samara hadn't said a word since we left the hospital and picked Johan up from Hope. Not since that man, that doctor,  had looked at her like she was a prize he already owned.

My fingers twitched against my thigh. Rage simmered quietly just beneath the surface. I wasn't the only one.

I could feel Cole's arm pressed against the back of the seat, his body tensed like he was preparing for a fight. Cale's jaw was locked, his hand resting on her knee, thumb brushing slow circles, like he was trying to soothe her without drawing attention.

Ian gripped the wheel harder than necessary. The leather creaked beneath his fingers every time he turned slightly. He hadn't spoken since he started driving.

Dominic was dead silent in the far back, but I could see his reflection in the rearview, those eyes, sharp and calculating, watching her.

And Samara... she just stared ahead. Her hands were folded tightly in her lap, knuckles white. Her breathing was shallow. Like she was trying not to make a sound. Like making one would unravel her completely.

I reached up and rubbed the bridge of my nose, forcing down the growl in my throat.

That man looked at her like he knew things about her, things he shouldn't. Like he was watching something he believed belonged to him. The way he moved toward her, like he was used to being close. The way she stepped back, not just physically, but mentally. Like her soul was trying to leave her body and escape through the floor.

And when she saw him?

Her whole body went rigid. I'd seen her calm in situations that would make grown men break down. But that moment... that shook her. And it shook me. She definitely wasn't expecting to see him there.

We pulled into the garage, Ian navigating the security system just like our girl showed him, the sensors clicking softly as the heavy steel door lowered behind us. The headlights swept over a line of figures standing near the elevator.

I didn't even have to ask. My body tensed before my brain caught up.

Oscar. Oliver. Frank. Michael. Paul. Adam. And somebody else I didn't know.

Waiting for us in the garage like a firing squad dressed in civilian clothing. Grim faces, heavy shoulders. Not a single smile. Just the storm before the thunder.

"Shit," Samara muttered under her breath, just loud enough for us to hear.

Yeah. That about summed it up.

She knew what this was.

This wasn't just a casual garage welcome. This was an intervention. A reckoning.

As soon as Ian killed the engine, Johan chirped from the backseat. "We home, Sasa?"

"Yeah, baby," she said softly, brushing his hair back with a trembling hand.

Adam's voice came from the side door. "Hey, champ! Want to help me feed the puppies?"

Johan squealed and climbed over Cole. "Yesss!"

I exhaled through my nose. Thank God for Adam. He didn't even look at us, just gave Samara a small nod and took Johan's hand like they were on some grand puppy-feeding adventure. Johan bounced happily out of the garage, completely unaware.