Page 24 of Giving Up the Ring
“We’re almost there,” he assured.
“Where exactly are we going?” Luna asked.
Jonesy answered from the passenger seat. “To a cabin outside the city.”
“A safehouse?” she asked incredulously.
Luca snorted softly. “You say that like it’s a dirty word.”
“It’s just weird. I never thought that I’d have to go to a safehouse for any reason,” she admitted.
Tony grinned slightly. “You date fighters long enough, weird becomes normal.” Rocco stayed quiet beside her—too quiet. Luna watched him carefully now, picking apart all the tiny details she usually noticed automatically in patients. His clenched jaw, hyper vigilance, and the way he constantly scanned the area for any threats. He was experiencing an adrenaline crash, fighting against survival instincts. But underneath all of that, she could still see the guilt in his eyes. She could practically feel it radiating off him.
“Talk to me,” she murmured quietly. Rocco’s eyes flicked toward hers.
“What?” he asked.
“You’re disappearing into your head again.” His mouth tightened slightly because he knew she was right. The SUV turned off the highway onto a narrow wooded road while silence settled heavily again.
Finally, Rocco spoke. “He used to call me brother.”
Luna’s chest tightened. “Gunner?” she asked.
He nodded. “He was the closest thing I had to family over there.” His voice roughened slightly. “We watched each other’s backs for years.” And now the man was threatening him—threatening them.
“How did nobody know he survived?” Luna asked quietly.
Rocco laughed bitterly beside her. “You really think the military doesn’t lose people?” Nobody answered that, but apparently, they all knew the answer. Trees thickened around the road as Luca finally slowed near a small cabin hidden deep in the woods. It looked isolated, quiet, and best of all—safe. Or at least safer than her apartment.
The second the SUV stopped, Rocco got out first automatically, scanning the area before opening Luna’s door himself. He was still protecting her, even out here in the middle of nowhere. Luna stepped out slowly, staring at the cabin while cold air wrapped around her.
“This is insane,” she whispered.
Jonesy grunted. “Welcome to our lives.” Tony started unloading bags from the back while Luca checked the perimeter of the property, as if this was second nature to him, and maybe it was.
Rocco touched Luna’s lower back gently, guiding her toward the cabin steps. “You warm enough?” The softness in his voice caught her off guard after seeing how hard he’d been all morning. Luna looked up at him, and suddenly she saw it clearly. Rocco wasn’t afraid of Gunner hurting him; he was afraid of Gunner hurting her. That realization settled heavily in her chest.
“You don’t have to carry this alone,” she said quietly. Something flickered across his face then—pain or maybe exhaustion.
“Yeah,” he said softly. “I kinda do.” Before she could answer, Tony suddenly swore near the SUV. Everybody turned instantly.
“What?” Luca barked. Tony held up a small object carefully between two fingers. It was a photo. Luna’s stomach dropped immediately, because even from where she stood, she recognized the picture. It was from this morning at her apartment. Only this time, written across the bottom in thick black marker were four words.
FOUND YOU AGAIN, BROTHER.
ROCCO
Rocco stared at the photograph in Tony’s hand and felt something cold settle into his bones. It wasn’t fear, not exactly, but recognition, because this was Gunner. He wasn’t the man that he used to know. He wasn’t the same guy who shoved him toward the mess hall food and laughed too loudly during late-night patrols. This was the version war created, and somehow, that made the guilt even worse.
“Where the hell did you find it?” Rocco asked quietly.
Tony held the photo up carefully. “It was pinned to that tree over there.”
Luca swore under his breath. “Which means he was already here.” Luna stiffened beside him instantly. Rocco felt it happen through the hand he still had on her lower back. Her body went tight, and he could feel her heart racing. Fear finally caught up to her, and that snapped something protective loose inside him hard enough to hurt.
Rocco took the photo from Tony and looked at it again. FOUND YOU AGAIN, BROTHER. The handwriting looked rushed and angry. Like the marker had nearly torn through the paper.
Jonesy muttered a curse. “How the hell did he follow us?”
