Teach Me (18+)

Chapter Forty Three

Eden's Point Of View

My heart beat out of my chest. I finally got Lily back safely, now all I needed was to find Gianna.

Artemis rolled up to my driveway, and my mom immediately ran out the front door.

Lily had fallen asleep on our ride back home, her small snores filling the backseat. I got out of the passenger seat and went back to her seat, where I picked her up and carried her inside.

"Eden-," My mother started, but stopped her sentence as soon as she saw I wasn't up for talking.

"Raine," was all I could say as I walked past both of them and headed inside.

I carried Lily upstairs as if she were made of light and memory. Her curls tickled my jaw as I lay her on the bed, her little arms automatically curling around the stuffed butterfly Gianna gave her for her birthday. That broke something in me.

I stood for a moment, watching her chest rise and fall. Like the world hadn't just tried to shatter her, and like innocence still had a chance.

A knock came soft at the door. Artemis leaned in, voice low. "My men are en route. They'll have the building surrounded in no time."

I nodded. "Okay, I'll be right there."

She lingered in the doorway. "You sure you're okay?"

I blinked at her. "You ever seen me okay?"

She didn't answer, just gave that unreadable Artemis stare, then turned and disappeared down the hall.

I kissed Lily before tucking her in and backing out of her room. I stepped out of Lily's room and closed the door gently behind me. For a moment, I leaned my forehead against the wood, breathing in silence.

Downstairs, I found my mother sitting on the edge of the couch, her hands clutched together as if she wanted to ask more but didn't dare. Her eyes met mine, and I saw the question swimming there.

I passed her without a word.

Artemis stood by the front door, already geared up. A black duffel bag was resting near her feet.

"You ready?" she asked.

I nodded, grabbing the keys off the counter. "Let's end this."

Let's bring the love of my life home.

We stepped outside, leaving behind the soft hum of the house. My mother watched us from the doorway, her eyes filled with fear. But she didn't stop me. She knew better.

Artemis's car purred to life as we climbed inside. This time, the silence felt different. Purposeful. The kind of silence that came before a reckoning.

I stared out the window as we pulled out. Raine thought she'd taken everything. She thought Eden was buried beneath regret and rage.

She didn't realize I'd already clawed my way back.

Gianna was out there.

And I wasn't coming back without her.

The drive was filled with thick silence. My fingernails tapped against the armrest at a fast pace. My head throbbed viciously. The throbbing in my head grew sharper the closer we got. Artemis didn't speak, but her grip on the steering wheel told me everything—she was ready to break bones if it came down to it. This wasn't just a mission. It was a retrieval.

The streetlights blurred past until we arrived.

"Slow down," I muttered, eyes scanning every shadow.

She slowly turned onto a gravel road, headlights cutting through the fog like knives. The warehouse loomed ahead—an old, crumbling monolith of rust and decay, its skeletal frame silhouetted against the moonlight.