Page 102 of Unlocking Ruin

Alister was right. I need to stop expecting things from the world that won’t be given to me.

I turn away instead of stepping inside and head straight for the car. The passenger door swings open, and Alister steps out, his polished mask slipping—eyes narrowed, brow furrowed. He buttons his jacket, ready to stride past me, but I move to block his way.

“She’s not worth it. Let’s go.”

He licks his lips, his gaze darts above my head and back to the front door.

“I’m done searching for what she will never give. Lesson learned.” My voice is firm as I adjust my collar. I do not wait for his answer. I do not expect one. This is not his territory, and he will not let his guard down here.

I slip back into the car, sliding across the leather, anger burning hotter at myself than at the woman who failed me.

Alister climbs in and takes the passenger seat. We pull away. I watch the trees smear past the window, feeling his gaze on me in the rearview mirror.

At last, I break the silence. “Can you do me a favor, Alister? Can you get me a teacher?”

“What kind of teacher?”

“I wanna learn how to fly a plane,” I admit, clearly shocking him.

He snaps his seatbelt into place and turns, pinning me with a stare that dares me to flinch.

“I’m done living caged by fear.” My voice is flat, cold. “Flying was never the problem. It’s control. I need to take it back.” The words taste like steel. I want my hands on the controls, my fate in my grip, no one else steering.

He nods, no questions, his eyes locked on mine until I break away and stare into the trees. I hear the click of his phone, his voice low and efficient as he sets things in motion—flight instructor, therapist, everything shifting at my word.

I sink into the seat, spine curling, not in defeat but in release. The weight that’s crushed me for years slips away. I’m done clawing through the past. The future is mine to seize.

CHAPTER 27

Rylan

This might just top the list of my most reckless decisions.

Not for lack of preparation. I treated this like a job interview, ticking off every box, studying, infiltrating—until I slammed into a wall. Hacking into Anders’s lair was impossible, which only fueled my obsession to break in.

From the instant my small plane touched down, I knew Anders was onto me. Every step up to his bizarre, secluded cabin felt like prey crossing a predator’s path.

Making it through his front door unscathed—without his ax embedded somewhere in me—feels like a miracle.

I hear Anders’s footsteps, then the sound of him disarming his alarm. I draw in a shaky breath, sit tall, and try to mimic Alister’s posture.

Alister doesn’t know what I’m doing; if he did he’d caution me, but he has learned not to stop me.

When Steffen first hunted me down, I was a confused woman who had just broken free from the cage her mother had kept her in. I was brave, yet I still let fear hold me back. I wasn’t sure what was worth the risk.

Then Steffen stormed in and forced the taste of being wanted and loved onto my tongue. The flavor clung, stubborn and sweet. I tried to spit it out, to erase him. I hate him, yet he stalks my dreams and nightmares alike, always the one dragging me from the shadows, demanding I wake up.

Does that mean I forgive him? No, I never will.

He will spend a lifetime making it up to me.

How do I know that? Because the one thing Steffen craves and needs to live his life again—revenge—he was willing to give up for me. For a single phone call.

Ever since Alister told me that, I have been processing it, trapped in the eye of the storm.

I know my next step will hurl me straight into that storm, but I can’t linger in the calm forever. I need to let the chaos tear through, to chase the sunlight waiting beyond.

How do I reach the sun when I’m tangled in longing for the man who shattered me with kisses and empty vows?