Serenity and the twins have moved everything inside by the time I leave Mila’s room. “If my sister so much as sniffles, call me and we’ll head right home.”
Both men salute.
Serenity yawns into the back of her hand. Maybe I’ll skip going to the Cage and head right to Janet’s trailer. She needs to go to bed early tonight, and I’ll admit I could use a bit of shut eye myself.
“We won’t be gone long,” I tell the guys as I usher Serenity into the garage. “We’ll take the truck.”
She doesn’t say anything as she slips into the passenger seat. When we get a few miles down the road, I notice how quiet she’s been.
“You’re awfully quiet.”
“Same.”
It makes me chuckle, which seems to surprise her.
She crosses her arms over her chest when I turn the opposite way of town. “I thought you were going to the Cage.”
“Change of plans. I saw your yawn, so I thought we’d head over to the trailer.”
A long, drawn-out sigh leaves her lips. “I still think this is a bad idea.”
“She lived it every day. I think I can sit with it for a few minutes.”
Her head falls against the seat. “You know what else is a bad idea?”
“No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
“This game you’re playing. It’s not fair to Mila. I’m not her mom. We need to be honest with her about what is really going on, or she’s going to be even more confused.”
I pull into the driveway and shut the engine off. “What’s really going on?”
Serenity’s gaze snaps to mine. “You know what’s going on. My brother left a debt unpaid. I came here to gather the currency to pay it, but I couldn’t go through with it, and now …”
When she turns away from me, I reach behind the seat and grab the gift I have for her.
“What’s this?” she asks, taking it from me.
“It’s a small thank you for saving my sister.”
Her brow cocks at a skeptical angle. “Just so you know, I’m not easily bribed,” she says. “I don’t care about material things.”
She’s not lying. The guys looked through her belongings, and it was pretty much all essentials. Clothes, toiletries, blankets, and a few kitchen items. If I’m right, I know why.
“I’m not trying to bribe you. It’s truly just a gift.”
Hesitantly, she peeks inside the bag. Slowly her eyes widen, and her mouth falls open.
“I saw you on the security footage. It seemed to have moved you.” When she goes back to staring inside the bag, I explain further. “Most of the stuff we use at the Cage are items left over from garage or estate sales. You know, the stuff nobody wants.”
Shit, maybe this was a bad idea. I mean, I don’t know the first fucking thing about women. I suppose admitting that my gift was someone else’s trash isn’t the best thought I’ve had. “I’m sorry, maybe I misread the situation. You just had this look on your face like you wanted to save it,” I continue, digging myself a bigger hole.
Her hands shake as she lifts it from the bag. “I did … I just …” She runs her thumb over the smooth lake. “You saved this for me before I rescued Mila.”
“Yeah.” I run my hand over my head. “We’ve been a tad bit busy. When you and Mila were down by the lake today, I remembered I hadn’t given it to you yet.”
“So, it wasn’t originally a thank you gift then?”
“I guess not.”