I usually looked away. That’s what I did. Everyone liked Carter at school. All the girls talked about him, and when he looked at me, sometimes it was too much. I was no one. But that night, feeling brave for some reason, I stared back at him.

There was a bruise on the side of his jaw. He’d been hit at the corner of his eye too. My eyes fell to his hands, and I didn’t know if I should be relieved or not, but I was. His knuckles were swollen and red. He’d fought back. Whoever had hit him, Carter had stood up for himself.

Good.

He smiled, still holding my gaze, as my brother began talking about something else.

I wasn’t listening. I don’t think Carter was either.

I could hear what was happening around me now, but I stayed in my memory. I was happy there. I was safe.

They were in the car.

Two men were saying my name and cursing because I was unconscious. But I wasn’t. I was hiding. I was pretending.

A seatbelt unclicked, and I heard a thud. Then they were gone.

I could hear them running away.

There were more shouts.

More gunshots.

I could hear the cars careening away.

Then more shouts.

More people running.

And someone was back in the car. He yelled, “In here!”

“Come on, Carter.” AJ laughed. “You can’t tell me you’re not interested in Molly Hobalt. That girl is hot, man.”

Thomas’ body was lifted. I sucked in my breath. I was exposed.

Carter stared at me as he responded. “You’re right, AJ. She’s very beautiful.”

I knew he wasn’t talking about Molly Hobalt. I blushed and looked away, but I still felt the weight of his gaze.

“Oh my god,” a man exclaimed above me.

Carter watched me the rest of the night, instead of the movie. I had never felt more beautiful.

I opened my eyes. The man was pale as he stared at me, his mouth hanging open. Then he snapped to attention and yelled again, “In here! Now! Cole!”

Cole…

A second later, Carter’s friend popped his head around the door, and relief flooded over his face. “Holy shit. Emma.”

I looked for my sister, but she was gone.

It was time.

My insides were stretched thin. My fury billowed inside me. It had become my friend again. As I moved, it went with me. It filled me up and it remained just under my surface. For now.

As soon as I stepped off the elevator, I saw her on the floor. A pillow had been stuffed under her head and a blanket covered her. Cole had sent me directions to an abandoned building, but no one knew I was there. I could hear their voices in a back room, but for that moment, it was only her and me. I couldn’t look away.

She looked peaceful. I reached out. A strand of her hair had fallen into her face, but I caught myself. I wanted to tuck it back, but no. She needed to sleep. God. She’d been through too much already.

“Carter?”

Cole stood in the doorway. The voices halted behind him, and I looked up. His eyes widened, and he shifted back on his heel before he caught himself. He stuffed his hand into his pocket and straightened up. “The men didn’t notify me you were on your way. I would’ve met you, if I’d known.”

“That’s because they didn’t see me.”

Emma was on the cement floor. She shouldn’t be there; she should be home and in bed. But I couldn’t demand for him to do better. There was no furniture. They were hiding. I recognized the men who filed into the room behind Cole. He’d gone back to the streets. He’d brought in the men he grew up with. He trusted them.

“We were following—”

“Who was it?” The storm raged in me, ready to strike. I contained it. Barely.

“We were following the Bartels' crew.”

I nodded and bent down to scoop up Emma.

“Carter.” Cole got into the elevator with me.

His men moved to come with us, but he held a hand out, stopping them. They looked at me, and I saw their concern. But those weren’t my men. They were his, and they didn’t know me. They only knew of me, and they thought I was a danger to him. No, not Cole. Not him.

“We didn’t know who they were following. We saw the attack from behind, and once your guards began shooting back, we went in to help.”

My men were dead.

My woman could’ve been.

I didn’t care about the details.

The elevator doors slid open, and I walked out, cradling Emma in my arms. His men were guarding the bottom floor, and at the sight of me, their hands went to their guns.

He barked out. “Stop! Put ‘em away.”

I strode past them.

“Wait, Carter.” Cole jogged to keep up with me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop.

I looked over his shoulder. His men could hear us, and I said, “Leave.”

They melted backward.

“Look—”

“I’m not in the Mauricio family,” I said, stopping him. Emma was hurt. She was bruised. She had bled. I would not let them break her. “This is me, only me—”

He shot a hand up. “Would you shut up? I’m trying to tell you something. I’m trying to tell you it’s fine. Whatever you’re going to do, I will back you. And I know the elders will, too. It’s you. They went after your woman. You can go and do whatever you want to do.”

When I said nothing, he rolled his eyes. “I’m sorry, Carter. I know we talked about you being my secret weapon against them, and yeah, a part of me was considering just waiting for them to piss you off enough so you could do the dirty work. But after we talked, I changed my mind. I realized that was wrong. So I got these men. These are guys I grew up with. I went to school with them, and I trust them. They’ll do whatever I tell them, and they’re yours. If you need them, let me know.”

He glanced away, his voice softening, “I know you had most of your men guarding her. They knew that. They had other cars with them. Shit, Carter. They had a fucking army to go against yours, and I know you still have a few men, but they can’t be enough.”

Emma moaned in my arms. I held her tighter, wishing I hadn’t let her go this morning. “You’re not using the Mauricio soldiers?” I asked.

“I can’t. Not until I know who to trust. And that’s the other thing I needed to tell you. Those men will follow you too. The elders will follow you. They might not trust me yet, but they do trust you. You’re the glue in our family right now. Whatever you need, we’ll help you.”