The ridge had cost us too much. Cyclone’s arm was still bleeding under that bandage. Gideon looked like he’d been awake for days. River was steady, but even he couldn’t carry the whole fight. And me—I was running on grit and love, and both had their limits.
I looked down at Harper, at the way she tucked herselftighter against me even in sleep. She trusted me. Completely. And that terrified me more than Redwood ever could.
Because what if I failed her?
I clenched my jaw, shutting the thought down before it could root. Failure wasn’t an option. Not with her.
Redwood thought they had leverage. They thought Harper was weakness.
They were wrong.
She was the reason I’d keep going, no matter how deep this fight ran.
I bent my head, pressing my lips to her temple, whispering words I hadn’t said to anyone before. “You’re my strength, Harper. And I’ll burn Redwood to the ground before they ever touch you again.”
Her lashes fluttered, her breath catching as if part of her had heard me even in sleep.
I tightened my arm around her and let the vow settle deeper in my chest.
This wasn’t just survival anymore.
It was war.
111
Carter
By the time Harper stirred awake, I was already out of bed. I stood at the window, mug in hand, watching the fog lift off the treeline. My rifle leaned against the wall beside me, never more than an arm’s reach away.
Her soft voice carried across the room. “You didn’t sleep.”
I turned, and even through exhaustion, something in me eased just seeing her sitting up in the sheets, hair mussed, eyes still heavy with sleep. “I slept enough,” I said. It wasn’t true, but it didn’t matter.
What mattered was the list forming sharp in my head. Sable’s transfer. Securing a safe location. Shoring up comms with the team. Locking down every exit and entrance to this place until Redwood broke their teeth on steel trying to get through.
Harper pulled the blanket around her shoulders, watching me with those eyes that saw too much. “You’re already thinking about what’s next.”
“Can’t afford not to.” I set the mug down, rubbed a hand across my jaw. “Redwood won’t stop. Not after last night.They’ll want Sable back, or they’ll want blood. Probably both.”
She swallowed, quiet for a beat. “And me.”
The words hit like a blade. I closed the distance, crouching at the edge of the bed so we were eye level. “They don’t get you, Harper. Not now, not ever.”
Her fingers brushed mine, hesitant but steady. “You can’t keep carrying all of this alone.”
“I don’t know any other way,” I admitted. The words tasted strange on my tongue—too raw, too honest. But she deserved nothing less.
Her hand tightened around mine, her voice soft but unyielding. “Then let me carry it with you.”
Something in my chest cracked, sharp and unfamiliar. I wanted to argue, to shield her from everything. But looking into her eyes, I knew the truth—she was already carrying it. She had been since the first night Redwood marked her.
I drew a slow breath, nodding once. “Then we fight together.”
And for the first time, saying it didn’t feel like failure. It felt like strength.
112
Harper
