Page 92 of Ash Storm

“You do?” he asked, still afraid to believe.

“I know, because I’ve seen the kind of man you are. So tell me what happened. Tell me why you went to prison for this.”

He looked at her, amazed. She’d already put a lot of the pieces of the puzzle together in her mind, it seemed.

“It’s a long story.”

“We have time.”

So he did. He told her the whole story. Half-way through, she got up and brought him a paper towel, which he used to wipe the snot and tears from his face. And this wasn’t the first time he was telling the story—hell, he’d already told Dark almost everything—but telling Reka was somehow different.

Cathartic.

Reka didn’t say anything until he was done. Then she took one of his large, calloused hands in her own smaller hands.

“Thank you for telling me,” she said.

“That’s it? That’s all you have to say?” he asked. He waited for the other shoe to fall, for her to tell him that she didn’t want to see him again. That even if he wasn’t a rapist, he’d still carry that on his shoulders for the rest of his life.

“What do you want me to say, Ash? That you found yourself in a shitty situation and did the best you could? I think you know that already. That it’s thanks to you that woman and that little girl are alive today? You know that, also. That the shame you’ve been hoarding is untenable and unreasonable?”

He flinched.

His head was spinning.

“Maybe that part you didn’t know. But it is, Ash. It’s unreasonable. And I’m going to make sure you understand that.”

“I … I don’t know what to say.”

“It’s okay,” she said. “We’ll figure it out together.”

“Is that all? You’re not leaving me?”

Reka got up and sat on his lap. He held her to him, her slight weight firm and solid.

“I guess there is one more thing,” she finally said.

Ash forced a neutral expression onto his face. Whatever she had to say, he would take it.

“I didn’t mean to snoop. That’s not who I am, and I’m sorry.”

He let out a choked laugh.

“It’s okay,” he said quickly.

“We’re okay?”

“We’re okay, but I’m not letting you go,” he said, standing up with her in his arms. She made a small sound deep in her throat and tightened her arms around his neck.

“Take me to bed,” she said, her voice tickling his ear.

He was about to do just that when there was a knock on the door. Ash put Reka down and opened it to find Rogue standing there.

“Great. You’re both here,” Rogue said. There was no judgment in his tone. “I have good news, but please don’t get too excited,” he added quickly, seeing Reka’s expression. “Reynolds managed to get the satellite in place. It caught a view of the garden, just as Afsan led a woman matching Chloe’s description into the house.”

Reka’s lip quivered.

“How did she look?”

“She was walking. She looked okay.”

Reka breathed a sigh of relief.

“What happens now?” Reka said, wringing her hands together.

“Trust us, Reka,” Ash said, speaking for the first time. “We’re on it. This is what we do.”

Rogue nodded. “Get some sleep. We’ll all meet at eight a.m. in the conference room.”