Page 156 of Jay Bird

And he loved her mother just as much.

That was the part tearing him apart now. Jay Bird had almost told Willow several times. The words had been right there, but every time he had held them back because he hadn’t wanted to rush her.

She had spent three years with a man who controlled every aspect of her life, and Jay Bird refused to become another person telling her what she should feel or expecting something from her before she was ready to give it.

He had thought they had time. Now he wished like hell he had told her.

Lily’s fingers moved faintly against his palm, and Jay Bird immediately leaned closer.

“Hey, peanut. You thinking about joining me anytime soon?”

Her eyelids didn’t move, but her fingers curled slightly before relaxing again. It wasn’t much, yet it was enough to ease some of the pressure sitting on his chest.

“That’s okay,” he murmured, smoothing a few strands of hair away from her forehead. “You sleep. You’ve had a shitty day.”

His gaze drifted toward the darkened window across the room, and the moment it did, his thoughts returned to Willow.

He couldn’t stop thinking about what she must be going through.

The image from the security footage had burned itself into his head. Willow had fought those men with everything she had, even after she was knocked to the ground. She had taken hits, broken holds, and kept trying to reach Lily until the drug they had injected into her finally took away her ability to fight.

She had done exactly what she had promised herself she would do. She hadn’t frozen or surrendered.

She had fought with everything she had in her.

But now she was alone with the monster responsible for three years of nightmares, and she had no way of knowing that the little girl she had fought so desperately to protect was lying safely in a hospital bed with Jay Bird beside her.

Chen was probably filling Willow’s head with lies about Lily and using those lies to control her.

Jay Bird’s jaw tightened as he looked back at Lily.

“Your momma’s tough as hell, you know that?”

He lifted her little hand and pressed it against his forehead for a moment, allowing himself to close his eyes.

“I saw her fight for you today. She didn’t give those bastards an inch without making them work for it.” His throat tightened enough that he had to stop for a second before continuing. “Now it’s our turn.”

He lowered Lily’s hand and carefully tucked it beneath the blanket, then leaned over and kissed her forehead.

“I’m bringing your momma home, peanut. I swear to you. I don’t care what it takes or where that bastard took her. We’re bringing her home.”

Jay Bird remained beside her for several minutes after that, listening to the steady rhythm of the monitor and forcing himself to take comfort in every beep. Each one meant Lily was safe. Each one meant he had gotten part of his family back.

Now he needed the other half.

A soft knock sounded at the door sometime later, and Jay Bird glanced up expecting another nurse. Instead, Tink stood in the doorway with Derek behind him.

The moment Jay Bird saw their expressions, something inside him shifted.

Neither man looked defeated. That was enough to make him sit straighter in the chair.

Tink stepped into the room first, while Derek quietly closed the door behind them. They both glanced toward Lily before looking back at Jay Bird.

“How’s she doing?” Derek asked.

“Still sleeping, but the doctors aren’t worried. They’re waiting for the full tox screen, but everything else looks good.”

Derek nodded, visibly relieved. “Good.”