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Actually, scratch that. I wanted him to pay, but then I learned he had nothing to do with the people who kidnapped me. It was all related to Kristoff’s cousin and her boyfriend’s crazy ex-wife who wanted to punish her.

“I’m so sorry,” I croaked, my insides trembling with fear. Deep down, I was terrified. My mom was the courageous and strong one of our family, not me. “I could meet with the Callahans and tell them it was just me,” I suggested slowly.

“Absolutely not.” Kristoff straightened in his chair. “Your mother would be heartbroken, and so would I. You’re our child and our responsibility. I have another idea. One that should keep you safe.”

“Will it keep my siblings, Mom, and you safe too?”

He nodded. “It will, but for now, let’s focus on protecting you from the Callahans.”

TWO

SIENNA

Five Years Later

Careful what you wish for, little blondie, or you might just get it.

Those were Tyran Callahan’s words to me right before I gave him my last kiss of betrayal. Of course he didn’t know at the time that I was betraying him, but he sure as fuck learned.

Ironic, really, how often those words came to mind now. I even recalled them often in my sleep. It was what woke me up so darn early.

I stared up at the ceiling of my dark cottage bedroom in the coastal village of Roundstone in Ireland.

My cottage was tucked away in this quiet village along the rugged Irish coast and it seemed to belong to another time. Its whitewashed stone walls were softened by climbing ivy while weathered blue shutters framed small windows that caught the changing light of the sea. A low stone wall surrounded the garden, where wildflowers swayed in the salty breeze and lavender spilled lazily over the edges of an old wooden gate.

From the cottage, a narrow lane wound down toward the shore, passing moss-covered walls, tiny gardens, and a handful of charming village homes. Beyond them, the sea stretched endlessly toward the horizon, its waves rolling onto a secluded stretch of pebbled beach. On misty mornings, the sea disappeared into a veil of silver, while at sunset, the whole coastline glowed in shades of rose, amber, and soft gold.

The village itself was only a short stroll away, filled with scattered, colorful cottages, a tiny harbor, a centuries-old church, and a cozy little pub where locals gathered almost every night. There were no grand attractions or hurried crowds, only winding lanes, local faces, the cry of gulls, and the ever-present music of the sea waves.

It was a quiet and beautiful little place in the heart of Connemara in Galway County. Yes, it was a charming village with some stunning views and beautiful white-sand beaches, but after five years, it had started to feel like a prison. The idea of never leaving here—or this country—was slowly suffocating me with every passing day.

The clock on the wall kept on ticking, almost like my internal clock warning me that my time on the run was about to expire.

But then, I’d been thinking that every day for the past five years.

I wondered every day whether Tyran had finally told his brothers that I was behind his imprisonment. I feared every day that my family would pay the price for my betrayal.

If it weren’t for my stepfather, I would have lost my mind long ago.

Kristoff sent daily updates that all was good. In the beginning, he set up weekly FaceTime calls through secure, untraceable channels, but those got harder and harder, and eventually, I started delaying them. The stretch between each time I heard from my family grew longer and longer until it became a once-a-year event.

And still, Kristoff continued to send daily updates without fail.

After I confessed to my stepfather that I was the one who had engineered Tyran’s arrest and sent him to jail, he went to extraordinary lengths to keep me hidden from the Callahans.

He got me a passport under a new name. He bought this cottage in that name too, giving me an entirely new identity to disappear into.

Sienna Rose Baldwin no longer existed. In her place, Sienna Callahan was born.

I could appreciate the irony, even if it wasn’t exactly funny. The Callahans had spent years building their criminal empire, and my stepfather’s solution was to hide me right in the middle of it.

His reasoning was simple: hiding in plain sight was the safest place to disappear. And what better name to give me than one of the most common Irish surnames? No one would think to look for me under that name, because who would use the last name of her hunter?

At least, that was the theory.

So, I became Sienna Callahan.

I was living under a name that belonged to the one I never wanted to see again and hiding in the very place I was supposed to be running from.