Dad nodded slowly.“You did good, kid.”
Cameras focused on Clove as she was ushered inside, hands still on her, people afraid to let go.
And I stood there, quiet and still, knowing one thing with absolute certainty.
Getting Clove back hadn’t ended anything.
It had started something I wasn’t sure I could stop.
Chapter Eleven
Clove
I didn’t realize how many people were watching me until I stopped moving.
The moment we crossed into the clubhouse, it was like the world slowed down just enough for me to feel it.Not in a threatening way, in athank God she’s hereway.
Mom never let go of my arm.Her fingers stayed curled around my forearm like if she loosened her grip, I might evaporate into thin air.Every time someone stepped too close, she shifted instinctively, her body angling between me and the room.
It was a lot.
But I didn’t pull away.
They’d thought I was dead.
That realization kept coming back in waves, knocking the air out of my chest all over again.Somewhere between the woods and the road and Ender’s arms, the club had already begun grieving me.Somewhere in that space, my mom had imagined a future without me in it.
So if she needed to keep touching me, needed to keep me within reach?I understood.
People gathered slowly at first, hesitant, like they didn’t want to overwhelm me.That lasted maybe thirty seconds before restraint gave way to relief.
Karmen hugged me gently, careful like I might break.“I’m so glad you’re home,” she whispered.Her voice shook just enough to tell me how close she’d come to losing it.
Nikki was next, buzzing, amped, vibrating with leftover adrenaline that had nowhere to go now that the crisis had passed.“I swear,” she said, gripping my shoulders, “I was ready to burn the whole damn state down.”She stopped herself, then laughed breathlessly.“But you’re here.You’re actually here.”
Alice bounced in after that, her grin wide and unapologetic.“I mean,” she said, eyes flicking over my dirt-streaked face and tangled hair, “you really know how to make an entrance.Kidnapped, dramatic escape, motorcycles?Ten out of ten.”
A laugh burst out of me before I could stop it.It surprised both of us.
Eden stepped forward next, twisting her fingers together.Her eyes were red.“I–I’m s-sorry,” she said, the words catching and stalling the way they always did when she was emotional.“I w-wasn’t th-there f-for you.”
My heart cracked open.“No,” I said immediately, reaching for her hands.“No, Eden.You don’t need to be sorry.None of this was your fault.”
She nodded, tears spilling over as she squeezed my hands once before stepping back.
Wendy hovered close, and her presence was solid.Aunt.Family.Someone who’d known me my entire life and didn’t need explanations.
Raven stepped in next, her mouth already curved into a grin.“I told them,” she said.“I said there was no way you weren’t out there fighting like hell.You’re a badass bitch, Clove.”
I snorted, the sound wet and broken and real.
Basil and Dad stayed on the edges of the room.
Basil tried to pretend he wasn’t hovering, leaning against the wall with forced casualness, but his eyes never left me.He cracked a joke under his breath about me owing him for worrying him sick, and I saw the way his shoulders loosened when I rolled my eyes at him.
Dad didn’t say much.He didn’t need to.I felt his gaze on me constantly, like he was counting breaths and memorizing proof that I was alive.
Eventually, the noise softened.Conversations broke into smaller clusters.The energy shifted from panic to relief.