Taggart sat on the end of the bed, his expression more serious than she’d seen before. “They won’t stop. I’m sorry. I wish I could make this world better. There is a time for you to work and a time to call me in. That’s what Henry understands. You think I live for this, and deep down maybe I do, but I admire what you do, too. You do the work to make the world a better place, to make sure my kids have clean water and a government that gives a shit about them. I do what I do to make it safer for you and that sweet girl you have there.”
He navigated the dark stuff so she could work in the light. It was what Henry had done for so very long. “Thank you, Ian. And you, too, Mr. Smith.”
“Kay is on her way,” Ten assured her. “She’s on a plane, and I’ll head back to Alamosa to pick her up. Mr. Novack, I’ve read your record. You’re solid. Do you need backup? We can have a couple of guards up here tomorrow morning.”
Michael shook his head. “No. I’m going to move her to the Talbot Manor this evening, and I want to keep a low profile. She’s high value now.”
Nell frowned. “I was high value before, too. I don’t like my value being predicated on my ability to force my husband to talk. That seems demeaning.”
Taggart snorted. “I can’t wait for you to meet Kay. She’s going to love you.” He sobered. “Nell, you have the hardest job of all.”
The room seemed to close in on her because she knew what he was going to say. “I have to wait. I have to be patient.”
Taggart nodded. “Yes. I’m sorry, but I need you to know that I will do everything in my power to bring your husband home to you. I’ve been assured the Agency won’t stop me from doing what I need to do, but they also won’t actively help me. As far as they’re concerned, John Bishop died and Henry Flanders is on his own.”
But he wasn’t. Henry had a family. John had a family.
And they would bring him home.
It was late in the night when Michael drove her to the Talbot Manor. She sat in the back of his SUV, Poppy tucked safely in the car seat she and Henry had selected after weeks of research.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. They were supposed to go home as a family, and Henry had promised he had a surprise for her. They were supposed to spend their first night in their cabin together as a family.
“We’re back to the same protocols we had before.” Michael put the SUV in park. “You go nowhere without me. I mean it. You want to go for a walk around the grounds, I’m with you. This is more serious than it was before.”
“I won’t fight you. I can’t even run.” She’d never felt more vulnerable. She was recovering from a surgery and she had a baby to protect, and she didn’t have Henry by her side.
“You won’t have to. I promise I won’t let anyone close,” Michael vowed. He sat there for a few seconds as though trying to decide what to say. Or whether to say it. “Spending those weeks with you…they made me realize I have to move forward. I don’t know how it’s going to go, but I’m looking for a better place, and I’ve been told by my boss that I can work out here. I’m coming off my leave and starting my life again. I’m thinking of asking Lucy if she wants to go out with me.”
“That’s wonderful.”
“I’m telling you because you should know how much you affect people.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I’m afraid I annoy a lot of them.”
“Only the ones who don’t see why you do the things you do,” Michael explained. “Why you do all those kooky protests and all that letter writing. You care about things other people don’t. Or you care about them enough to do something. I just want you to know that I admire you. You let go of the hurt, and I want to do the same. I like Lucy.”
At least one good thing had come from all of this. “I’m glad to hear it.”
“And that damn Ty better understand that he doesn’t own her.” Michael opened the door and slid out. He opened hers, his face frowning in the moonlight. “I’ll put that kid in his place if I have to.”
“And if his place is on the other side of Lucy?” She felt compelled to make the argument. After all, it was Bliss.
Michael froze for a second. “Not happening. Not. Happening. Come on. Let’s get you inside. I’ll carry the baby. And take my hand. It’s still icy out here.”
“No need. I’ve got her.” Laura was outside the SUV, wrapped in a parka.
That was when Nell noticed there were a lot of cars in Stef’s big circular drive. “What’s going on? Am I disturbing a party?”
Laura reached a hand out. “No, silly. We’re here for you. You don’t need to be alone. It’s me and Holly on duty tonight. We’re going to stay in case you need anything. We’ll be here every night. The day shift is going to alternate between Rachel and Callie one day, and Hope and Beth other days. But Holly and I will be here every night until Henry’s home.”
She might feel vulnerable but she wasn’t alone.
She took Laura’s hand and eased out of the car, every movement painful but less than it had been the day before.
“But tonight pretty much everyone’s here,” Laura said. “We thought we would get you through the first night. We’re going to have a sharing circle and everything.”
Tears had started to fall
