Dedicated Deliverance

My legs felt like lead as Edison guided me past the kitchen island, stepping carefully over the floor. The heavy wool of my sweater couldn't keep out the sudden, bone-chilling realization that the bodyguards stationed outside the ones Nico swore were locked in and invisible were gone blood staning the snow.

As the reality of the breached perimeter and dead men settled over me, my panicked gaze darted toward the front entryway, looking out past the shattered glass of the foyer.

"Wait," I breathed, my voice trembling as I planted my feet, pulling back against his grip. My heart hammered wildly against my ribs as I looked up at him, fear and confusion warring in my chest. "How... how did you find me? And where is everyone else?"

Edison paused, his arm remaining securely around my waist to keep me steady as I swayed slightly. He knew exactly what and who I meant.

"We tracked Nico's movements," Edison answered, his jaw tightening as his dark eyes met mine with unyielding intensity. "Nico thought he covered his tracks, but we found the pattern leading straight out here to Colorado. We've been lingering in the shadows the whole time, giving you distance and making sure you were safe. But Donnie's team isn't stupid. They tracked Nico, too. Donnie hates Nico, and when he figured out Nico was hiding you—the woman we all care for just as fiercely—he saw it as the ultimate revenge against both of us."

He didn't give me time to process the twisted betrayal of Donnie finding me.

"As for everyone else," Edison continued, his voice dropping into a low, fierce murmur. "Alex, Jeremy, Dexter, and Sebastian are right outside with the rest of the extraction team. They tore the country apart looking for you, Meredith, and the second Donnie tried to move in, we struck."

Edison pressed a hesitant, lingering kiss against the top of my head, his grip firm. "Your guards outside are dead, and this place is compromised. You're coming home with me. Come on, Principessa."

I shook my head frantically, taking a sharp step back as the weight of his words hit me. The very thought of going back stepping straight back into the chaotic, suffocating world I had just spent weeks running from made my chest seize up.

"No," I choked out, wrapping my arms defensively over my stomach, my voice rising in panic. "No, Edison, I'm not going back with you. I can't—"

Edison didn't flinch. He closed the distance between us in a single stride, his expression hardening into absolute, unyielding resolve as he caught my shoulders.

"Yes, you are," Edison interrupted, his tone brooking zero argument. "It is not safe here, Meredith. Look around you—the lodge is breached, your guards are dead on the property, and Donnie just tried to kill you out of spite."

He paused, his dark eyes softening with a fierce, protective urgency as he gestured down toward my midsection.

"More importantly, you're pregnant with triplets, and you haven't even seen a doctor in weeks,"

Edison pressed on, his voice dropping into a firm, non-negotiable decree. "You need proper medical care, you need a safe environment, and you are coming home with us. That's final."

Edison's gaze dropped from my eyes, slowly sweeping over me taking in the oversized, rumpled sweater I had practically lived in, the pale exhaustion etched into my skin, and the wild, tangled state of my hair. A heavy, conflicted look crossed his face.

"I'm not arguing with you about this," he murmured, his tone softening just a fraction, though his jaw remained set. "Besides... when was the last time you actually had a shower, Meredith?"

I bristled, crossing my arms defensively over my chest as a bitter, defensive laugh slipped out.

"That's been a while," I snapped back, my voice tight. "Probably since I was waterboarded for information at Christian disappearance I didn't have. And just so you know, I'm really not a fan of water at the moment."

Edison went completely still, the air instantly thickening between us. A dark, dangerous shadow passed over his eyes, his expression tightening into something lethal.

"We couldn't find them to get them to tell us everything they did to you," Edison said, his voice dropping into a low, gravelly hum filled with a quiet, suppressed fury. "But we will take care of it. Christian's brother and the men who were in the truck with you... we will take care of all of them."

He stepped closer, his dark eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my breath catch.

"We didn't know the details of what they put you through," Edison continued, his voice steady and harsh. "We did know they dropped you off at a Walmart with three hundred dollars. We will find them and kill them. They're not going to hurt you anymore. You need to take care of yourself now."

I stared up at him, the weight of his words pressing down on my chest alongside the phantom, terrifying burn of water I had tried so hard to outrun. My shoulders trembled, a fresh wave of exhaustion and helplessness crashing over me.

"Edison..." I whispered, my voice breaking as tears pricked at my eyes. "I'm scared of water. But like... what more do you want from me?"

Edison's face fell, the hard, unyielding wall he had put up instantly fracturing at the raw terror in my voice. The anger in his dark eyes melted into a profound, suffocating wave of regret at his words.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, his voice cracking with a rare, naked vulnerability as he reached out, his hand hesitating just inches from my cheek before letting it fall back. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart... I swear to God, I didn't know. It's okay... it's going to be okay."

He swallowed hard, pulling himself back together as the reality of our surroundings and the freezing mountain air crashing through the shattered doorway reminded him where we were.

"God, I'm sorry," he repeated softly, shaking his head. "But we're still going home, Meredith. Let's go."

Before I could dig my heels in or argue again, he scooped me up into his arms, shielding me completely from Donnie's body on the floor. I didn't fight him; my body was entirely out of adrenaline, heavy and drained down to the bone.

He carried me out through the shattered foyer, stepping past the wreckage of the front porch and down the snow-packed path. The frigid mountain wind bit at my face, but Edison buried me against his chest, keeping me warm until we reached a large, heavy-duty black cargo van parked off the side of the drive.

Edison pulled open the back doors and carefully lifted me inside before climbing in after me and sliding the heavy door shut, instantly cutting off the howling wind.

The interior of the van was dim, heated, and smelled faintly of leather, coffee, and gunpowder. Sitting inside on the cushioned benches were Alex, Jeremy, Dexter, and Sebastian.

Every single one of them looked like absolute hell. They were gaunt, their eyes ringed with dark circles of exhaustion, their clothes rumpled and dusted with snow from weeks of relentless tracking. The moment the door slid shut and they saw me wrapped in Edison's arms, an audible wave of tension broke through the cabin.

Alex let out a long, shuddering breath, burying his face in his hands, while Jeremy slumped back against the wall, looking physically sick with relief. Dexter and Sebastian were shifting restlessly on the opposite bench, their postures tight and antsy from weeks of high-stakes panic and sleepless nights, their eyes locked onto me as if making sure I wasn't just a ghost.

"Meredith..." Sebastian breathed, his voice rough and thick with emotion as he started to lean forward.

Sebastian's movement froze halfway, his eyes widening slightly as the full weight of my glare hit him.

I pulled the thick fleece blanket tighter around my shoulders, my voice flat, cold, and utterly exhausted as I looked right past him.

"Don't," I snapped, cutting him off before he could even start. "You have no idea what your lies did to me. Just save your breath. I don't want to talk to any of you."

I let out a shaky, bitter breath, leaning my head back against Edison's chest as I stared blankly at the floor of the van.

"Let's just go home."

For a long, agonizing moment, absolute silence filled the back of the van. The raw, desperate apologies and the flood of relief dying on their lips evaporated, replaced by the crushing weight of guilt. None of them dared to speak or move closer.

Finally, Alex swallowed hard, his jaw tight as he traded a grim, heavy look with the others. Without a word, he turned around and tapped sharply on the partition separating the back from the front cab.

"Drive," Alex muttered, his voice rough and strained.

The engine roared to life beneath us, and the heavy cargo van smoothly pulled away from the blood-stained lodge, carrying us out of the mountains and into the long, silent drive ahead.

The van settled into a heavy, suffocating silence as the tires crunched over the snow-packed mountain road. The weight of my words hung in the air like lead, and none of the men dared to break it.

Beside me, Edison kept his arm locked firmly around my waist, his body a solid, unmoving anchor. He felt the tremor running through my shoulders the lingering chill and the sheer exhaustion of carrying the triplets taking a toll on my weakened frame.

Slowly, Edison lifted his gaze from the floor, his dark eyes sweeping over the exhausted, tense faces of Alex, Jeremy, Dexter, and Sebastian across from us. The guilt etched into their expressions made his jaw tighten, his voice thick with a shared, crushing burden.

"She's not going to talk to us," Edison said, his voice dropping into a low, gravelly hum that cut sharply through the hum of the engine. "And I would not blame her. We messed up. All of us."

Alex looked up, his brow furrowing with sudden, sharp confusion and dread. "Edison, what—"

"Christian's brother," Edison interrupted, his tone laced with venom. "And the animals he had with him in that truck. They didn't just take her. They didn't just drop her off at a Walmart and leave."

The air inside the van instantly froze. Dexter and Sebastian stiffened, their restless energy vanishing, replaced by a sudden, terrifying stillness as they stared at Edison.

"We will track down Christian's brother and his crew, we make sure they paid for it," Edison continued, his voice steady, cold, and deadened with suppressed rage. "She just told me... they waterboarded her for information about Christian."

A sharp intake of breath hissed through Jeremy's teeth. Sebastian slammed a fist silently against the metal wall of the van, his face turning an ash-gray color, while Alex buried his face in his hands, a low, tortured sound breaking from his throat.

"She's terrified of water now," Edison said quietly, his arm tightening around me as he pulled me just a fraction closer against his chest. "She hasn't had a proper shower in weeks because of the phantom panic of it. She's been hiding out in that freezing lodge, pregnant with triplets, terrified, sick, and entirely alone."

Edison paused, his jaw clenching tighter as he looked back across the aisle at the other men.

"She is not talking to us because she doesn't trust us anymore, or because we failed to protect her,"

Edison rasped, his voice heavy with self-loathing. "I don't know. But whatever Christians brother waterboarded her for, she thinks that we're responsible. So I'm assuming it has something to do with Christan and the fact that we didn't tell her that we killed him."

A suffocating hush fell over the cabin. The brutal truth of what our secrets had cost me settled into the bones of every single man in the van.

"So save your apologies. Save your questions,"

Edison finished, his voice dropping to a harsh, final whisper. "We broke her trust, and clearly she nearly broke under what they did to her. Just sit there, keep your mouths shut, and let her breathe until we get her home."

Nobody spoke. The only sound in the van was the heavy, rhythmic thrum of the tires eating up the miles, and the quiet, uneven hitch of my breath as I stared blankly ahead, watching the snowy pines blur past the window.

The heavy, suffocating silence of the van stretched on, broken only by the hum of the engine and the relentless slap of the tires against the snow. But the armor I had tried so hard to keep up the cold, numb fury that had carried me through the lodge finally splintered slightly.

A choked gasp slipped past my lips, tearing its way out before I could stop it.

The dam broke. Sobs tore through my chest, ragged and violent, shaking my entire body as the heavy fleece blanket wrapped around my shoulders couldn't block out the cold memory of what happened in that warehouse.

Edison instantly dropped all talk, his arms wrapping tightly around me, pulling me hard against his chest while I buried my face in his jacket, crying harder than I had in weeks.

"Hey, hey... I've got you, I've got you," Edison murmured fiercely, pressing his lips to my hair as his hands rubbed soothing circles down my back.

Between my ragged gasps and the desperate effort to pull air into my lungs, the words spilled out of me, broken and trembling.

"I—I tried to tell them," I sobbed out, my hands clutching blindly at the fabric of Edison's coat.

"When Christian's brother... when he cornered me, I tried to tell him. They wouldn't listen. I told him what you guys told me—I told him that you paid him money to leave town and go away."

Across the aisle, the men went completely rigid. Alex and Jeremy snapped their heads up, their eyes widening in sudden, sharp shock.

"And he... he was so insistent that you didn't," I cried, my voice cracking with a fresh wave of panic and confusion as the memory rushed back. "He laughed at me. He swore you were lying, that you didn't pay him off at all. And I didn't know what to think, Edison! I didn't know what to tell him, because I believed what you told me—I believed that you sent him away safely."

I let out a high, distressed sob, pressing my palms against my face as the horrific uncertainty clawed at my throat.

"I don't even know how long they did it for," I whispered, the words getting lost in a fresh wave of tears. "It felt like hours. And every time I couldn't breathe, every time they demanded answers, I kept thinking you were gonna come and save me. I kept thinking that he had everything wrong, and that he was crazy, and he was deranged because he missed his brother."

Edison's body went deathly still beneath me, his jaw clenching so hard a muscle twitched violently in his cheek. The dark, lethal fury in his eyes mirrored the profound agony tearing through him.

"Shh, shh, I know, Principessa, I know," Edison choked out, his voice thick with unshed tears as he held me tighter, burying his face in my hair. "It's okay. You're safe now. You don't have to explain anything else right now."

Across from us, the van was swallowed in a heavy, devastated stillness. None of the men dared to breathe, the crushing weight of my tears and the horrific truth of what my father's absence and their secrets had subjected me to hanging like a ghost over every single one of them.

My shoulders shuddered, the confession dragging out of me in gaspy, broken fragments as the full, overwhelming weight of everything I had kept locked inside finally poured out.

"I haven't told Nico," I sobbed, my voice dropping to a raw, ragged whisper against Edison's chest. "I haven't been able to shower since he's been gone. I know it's gross... I know how bad it sounds. But it just scares me so much—the sounds, the feeling of water rushing down over my head..."

Edison's arms tightened around me instantly, his hands pressing me closer as a low, broken sound caught in his throat.

"And when it happened..." I choked out, a fresh wave of tears spilling over my lashes as I looked up at him through my blurred vision. "The very first person I wanted to call, the first person I wanted to tell, was you. But when I first told Nico first not to tell you—because I knew you were going to do something crazy, because I knew you'd tear the world apart—he told me..."

I swallowed hard, my breath hitching painfully.

"...he told me that you already knew. That you killed him. So Nico knew, too. And the second he said that, everything broke. I knew I couldn't tell you what they did to me. I knew I needed to come to terms with the fact that your lies caused me to get hurt... that all of this, that it could've been prevented."

The words hung in the suffocating quiet of the van, sharp and devastating.

Across the aisle, the sound of Alex swallowing hard cut through the silence. Sebastian dropped his head entirely into his hands, his broad shoulders shaking slightly, while Jeremy and Dexter sat frozen, paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of their collective failure. Every lie, every omission, every secret they had kept to protect me had instead served as the exact trap that let Christian's brother break me.

Edison didn't try to defend them. He didn't try to excuse what they had done. Instead, he pressed his face into my hair, his own breath hitching as a single, hot tear slipped from his eye and soaked into my temple.

"I know," Edison whispered, his voice cracking entirely as he pulled me as close to his heart as humanly possible, rocking me gently as the van carried us through the dark. "I know, sweetheart. I am so, so sorry. Let us fix it... just let us try."

A fresh tear slipped down my cheek, catching on the fabric of his jacket as I let out a hollow, exhausted laugh that had no humor in it at all.

"I don't know if you can," I whispered, the words trembling against his chest. "It's going to be a lot more than words."

Edison didn't try to argue. He didn't offer any hollow reassurances or empty promises to make it all magically go away. Instead, his arms only tightened around me, his hands splaying protectively over my back and the slight curve of my stomach, holding me as if he were terrified that if he let go, I would shatter completely.

Across the aisle, the silence from the other men was heavy and absolute. Nobody breathed. Nobody dared to offer a counterargument or a plea for forgiveness. They sat in the dim, rolling light of the van, trapped by the unvarnished truth of my words and the agonizing reality of the damage their lies had wrought.

The van continued its long, steady descent out of the mountains, cutting through the dark night, carrying us forward into a future none of us knew how to face, but one we finally had to confront together.

The heavy emotional exhaustion that had been keeping me upright finally began to drain out of my veins, leaving me hollowed out and shivering. The fight was gone, replaced by a crushing, bone-deep fatigue that made my eyelids feel like lead.

Edison must have felt the sudden slump of my body, the way my head drifted heavily against his shoulder and my breathing began to slow into shallow, uneven rhythms.

He shifted slightly, adjusting the heavy fleece blanket so it was tucked snugly around my shoulders and over my stomach, shielding me from the chill of the van. His thumb traced a slow, soothing circle against my temple, his touch uncharacteristically gentle.

"You're exhausted, sweetheart," Edison murmured, his voice a low, gravelly hum right against my ear. "You can sleep. Just close your eyes and rest."

I didn't have the energy to fight him anymore. My body felt too heavy, the trauma of the last few weeks pressing down on my chest.

"I'm tired," I whispered, the words barely audible over the hum of the engine.

"I know," Edison answered softly, pressing one last lingering kiss to my hair. "Just rest. We'll be back in Texas soon."

I let my eyes slip shut, the steady, rhythmic beat of his heart beneath my cheek and the relentless forward motion of the van finally lulling me into a dark, dreamless sleep as the miles ticked away toward home.

The steady hum of the engine and the long hours on the road finally blurred together, the dark highway giving way to the familiar, humid warmth of the Texas air. The change in the atmosphere and the slowing of the van as we transitioned from the interstate to local street gently pulled me out of my exhausted sleep.

I didn't open my eyes right away. I just lay there against Edison's chest, the tension in my muscles returning as reality rushed back in.

The van rolled to a complete stop, the engine idling with a low, rumbling vibration. For a moment, nobody moved. The heavy, tentative silence in the cabin made it clear that the men had been dreading this exact moment the moment we had to decide what happened next.

A quiet, hesitant clearing of throats broke the quiet.

"We're here," Alex murmured softly from across the aisle, his voice thick with weariness and caution.

Edison shifted gently beneath me, his arms remaining a steady, protective barrier as he looked down at me, his dark eyes filled with a quiet, agonizing care. He didn't push or pull me toward the door. Instead, his thumb brushed softly over my cheekbone.

"Meredith," Edison said, his voice low and incredibly gentle. "We're back in Texas. We need to figure out where you want to go. Do you want to come to my house... or Sebastian's?"

The words hovered on the tip of my tongue, ready to demand a neutral hotel or some forgotten hideaway, when my mind drifted.

I thought about the last few weeks the freezing, sterile isolation of the mountain lodge, the endless hours of staring at bare wooden walls with nothing in my head except the terrifying echoes of the waterboard. I thought about the crushing emptiness of having nothing to hold onto, nothing to distract the relentless, spiraling panic in my chest.

Then, I remembered.

Sebastian's house. The massive, floor-to-ceiling mahogany bookshelves lining the quiet corner of the east wing more unfinished books. The sprawling collection of rare first editions, thick fantasy novels, and paperbacks I had spent hours losing myself in before all of this madness tore my life apart. It was the only place where I had ever truly felt a sliver of peace surrounded by paper and ink, worlds far away from my own.

I swallowed hard, the fight draining out of me as a quiet, weary resignation settled over my bones. I didn't have the energy to fight for a new place, and the thought of being completely untethered terrified me almost as much as staying with them.

"Sebastian's," I whispered, the word barely audible against the rumble of the engine.

In the dim light of the van, I saw Sebastian's head snap up, his dark eyes widening in a mixture of shock and profound, desperate relief. Across from us, the tense line of his shoulders eased just a fraction, though he didn't dare look arrogant or triumphant. He knew as well as I did that I wasn't choosing him...not really.

"My library," I added quietly, keeping my gaze fixed on the floor. "My books are still there."

Sebastian let out a slow, unsteady breath, nodding once, his voice thick when he finally spoke. "They're untouched, Meredith. Exactly where you left them. Everything you had is still there."

Edison looked down at me, reading the exhaustion and the silent reasoning in my eyes. He didn't push or question it. He just gave a slow, solemn nod, tightening his grip around me one last time before gently helping me shift.

"Okay," Edison murmured softly against my hair. "Sebastian's house it is."

The silence in the van shattered just a fraction as Jeremy shifted in his seat across from us. His hands, usually so steady and lethal, were clenched tightly together in his lap, his knuckles stark white.

He didn't look up right away. The guilt of everything the lies, the danger, the failure to protect me hung heavy over him, making his voice rough and hesitant when he finally spoke.

"Meredith..." Jeremy started, his voice cracking slightly as he finally raised his eyes to meet mine, the raw plea in them unmistakable.

He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing as he held my gaze, terrified of pushing too hard, yet desperate to offer whatever reassurance he had left.

"When we get to Sebastian's... will you allow me to check on the babies?" Jeremy asked, his voice dropping to a harsh, quiet whisper. "I know I don't have the right to ask, and I know you don't trust any of us right now. But please... let me make sure they're okay."

The weight of Jeremy's question hung in the confined space of the van, more fragile and desperate than anything he had ever asked me.

Carrying triplets after weeks of freezing isolation, starvation-level stress, and absolute terror made every phantom twinge in my abdomen feel like a terrifying warning. The fear for my babies had been a cold stone sitting at the bottom of my stomach this entire time, whispering that the trauma might have harmed them.

I looked across the aisle at him. I saw the hollow circles under his eyes, the absolute agony etched into his features, and the terrifying realization that for all his medical training, his lies had nearly cost him the very lives he was sworn to protect.

My throat tightened, and for a long moment, I couldn't find my voice. I just stared at him, the hurt and the anger warring with the raw, consuming terror of a mother needing to know her children were safe.

Slowly, almost imperceptibly, I gave a single, rigid nod.

"Okay," I whispered, the word barely carrying over the hum of the engine. "When we get inside."

Jeremy let out a long, shuddering breath, the tension in his broad shoulders collapsing all at once as he bowed his head, rubbing a hand over his face to hide the sudden, thick moisture in his eyes.

Beside me, Edison gave my waist a soft, grounding squeeze, offering a silent acknowledgment of the heavy compromise.

The van rolled forward, turning down the long, private drive toward Sebastian's sprawling estate. The iron gates parted automatically, welcoming us into the dark shadows of the property, but as the tires crunched on the gravel driveway and finally came to a halt, I knew nothing about our world would ever be the same again.

The van shifted into park, the low, powerful rumble of the engine finally dying away, leaving behind a profound, ringing quiet.

For a long moment, nobody reached for the door handle. The physical journey was over, but the emotional chasm stretching out in front of us felt infinitely wider than the miles we had just crossed.

Edison was the first to move, though he did it with painstaking care, keeping his arm securely around me as he pushed the heavy side door open. The cool, damp night air of Texas rushed into the cabin, carrying the scent of damp earth and blooming jasmine a stark, jarring contrast to the bitter, frozen pines of the mountain lodge.

Sebastian stepped out first, his movements tight and controlled, walking around to open the door wider and shield me from the chill with his own broad frame. He didn't offer a hand, knowing better than to crowd me, but his eyes were burning with a desperate, silent plea as he looked down at the stone steps leading up to his front doors.

"I've got you," Edison murmured softly, shifting his weight to help me slide across the leather seat.

My legs felt heavy, entirely uncooperative beneath the weight of the fleece blanket and the sheer, bone-deep exhaustion dragging me down. When my boots finally touched the gravel driveway, a sharp wave of dizziness made me sway, but Edison caught me instantly, sweeping me up effortlessly into his arms before I could hit the ground.

I didn't protest. I didn't have the strength to fight him off, resting my forehead tiredly against his shoulder as he carried me past Sebastian and up the grand steps of the estate.

The heavy mahogany front doors swung open automatically, revealing the sprawling, dimly lit foyer of Sebastian's home. It looked exactly the same as it had weeks ago immaculate, grand, and entirely suffocating. But past the marble columns and the sweeping staircase, down the long corridor to the east wing, waited the quiet sanctuary of the library.

Sebastian led the way, punching the code into the security panel and pushing the inner doors wide, while Jeremy followed closely behind us, his medical bag clutched in his hand like a lifeline, his expression tight with a mixture of profound relief and terrified anticipation.

Edison carried me past the grand living room, bypassing the main stairs, and headed straight toward the private suite attached to the east wing a quiet, neutral space far away from the echoes of the rest of the house.

"Put me down on the bed," I whispered, my voice cracking slightly as the reality of what was about to happen finally sank in.

Edison gently lowered me onto the edge of the mattress, stepping back just enough to give me air, though his hand lingered protectively on my shoulder.

Jeremy stopped at the foot of the bed, his dark eyes searching my face with agonizing care. He set his bag down on the edge of the mahogany dresser, his fingers hovering over the zippers for a fraction of a second before he looked up.

"Meredith," Jeremy said softly, his voice trembling with a vulnerability none of us had ever seen in him before. "Whenever you're ready. Just tell me what you need."

A heavy, agonizing pause hung in the bedroom. The hum of the sonogram machine booting up filled the silence, a clinical, steady drone that only made my heart hammer harder against my ribs.

I looked down at Jeremy, seeing the raw vulnerability in his eyes, and then over at Edison and Alex, standing close enough to protect me yet far enough not to crowd. The terror clawing at my throat didn't vanish, but the crushing need to know to actually hear that my babies were holding on through all of this finally overrode everything else.

I swallowed hard, my hands gripping the edge of the mattress until my knuckles turned white.

"Okay," I whispered, the word trembling softly in the quiet room. "You can go ahead and start checking the babies."

Jeremy's shoulders dropped in an immense, shuddering wave of relief. He didn't waste any time, though his movements remained slow and treating me with the utmost caution. He reached for the handheld Doppler from the rolling cart, applying the warm ultrasound gel to the probe before gently lifting the hem of my shirt.

The cool gel made me shiver against the warmth of the room, but a second later, Jeremy pressed the probe softly against the lower curve of my abdomen.

For a tense, heart-stopping second, there was only static. The scratchy, rhythmic hiss of the monitor filled the room, amplifying the quiet terror in my chest.

Then, right through the static, a rapid, galloping beat broke through. Thump-thump-thump-thump.

A shaky breath hitched in my throat as a second, slightly different rhythm layered over the first, followed quickly by a third. Three distinct, racing heartbeats, echoing strong and steady in the small bedroom.

Tears immediately spilled over my lashes, hot and fast, slipping down my cheeks as the overwhelming wave of relief crashed over me. They were alive. Despite the cold, despite the terror, despite the waterboarding and all the lies they were still fighting.

Beside the bed, Edison let out a ragged, broken breath, his hand pressing firmly against my shoulder while his eyes shone with unshed tears, staring down at my stomach as if he could see them himself.

"They're strong," Jeremy murmured, his own voice thick with emotion as he adjusted the probe to capture the audio clearly. "All three of them. They're hanging in there."

With the immediate panic of their heartbeats easing, Jeremy gently set the Doppler down and reached for the controls of the rolling sonogram machine. Alex stepped in seamlessly, sliding the main ultrasound probe and the sonic gel into Jeremy's waiting hand, assisting quietly as Jeremy prepared to get a visual look at the babies on the screen.

The screen of the sonogram machine flickered to life, casting a pale, bluish glow across the dark bedroom. Grayscale images blossomed on the monitor indistinct, fuzzy shapes that quickly resolved into unmistakable forms.

I blinked through my tears, staring up at the screen. They had grown so much. Even to my untrained eyes, the three little bodies curled safely inside looked bigger, more defined, their tiny limbs shifting in quiet flurries of movement that I couldn't quite feel yet beneath my exhaustion.

Jeremy stared at the monitor, his professional focus instantly taking over, though the awe in his expression was unmistakable. He carefully adjusted the settings, measuring fluid levels and checking growth markers while the soft, rhythmic whoosh of blood flow filled the room.

"Look at that," Jeremy whispered softly, a faint, emotional smile touching the corners of his mouth as he glanced up at me. "They're getting big. They're growing right on track, Meredith."

The relief that washed over me was so profound it made my knees feel weak, even lying down. But as quickly as the comfort settled in, the clinical reality of what carrying triplets meant crashed back down.

Jeremy froze the image on the screen, turning slightly to face me and Edison, his expression turning serious and cautious.

"Meredith... you're doing amazing, and they look strong," Jeremy said gently, his tone shifting into that of a concerned physician. "But you know this. You're carrying triplets. With everything you've just been through—the physical trauma, the stress—you are high risk before that. You need to be under the regular care of a high-risk pregnancy OB. There's no getting around that."

Edison's jaw tightened instantly, his protective instincts flaring at the reminder of any remaining danger. He looked down at me, his dark eyes softening before he turned his gaze to Jeremy.

"Can we bring a specialist here?" Edison asked, his voice low and uncompromising. "Bring the best high-risk OB to the estate. She doesn't need to be stepping foot in a public hospital or a clinic right now."

Jeremy nodded, anticipating the demand. "We can do that. Or..." He paused, looking back down at me to give me the choice. "Or we can coordinate with a top-tier private practice if you prefer a clinical setting. But you are carrying three babies, and we need to schedule comprehensive monitoring as soon as possible."

Jeremy pulled out his encrypted medical tablet, his fingers hovering over the screen, waiting.

"Do you want them to come here to the house, Meredith? Or do you want to go to them?" Jeremy asked quietly. "Tell me what you want, and I'll schedule the appointment right now sooner the better."

I swallowed hard, my gaze shifting from the glowing, fuzzy shapes of the triplets on the screen back to Jeremy's waiting tablet. The thought of stepping out of the estate of walking into a public clinic or a sterile hospital where whispers, lingering threats, or media attention could find us made my stomach knot with instant anxiety. But being trapped in the house 24/7 felt heavy, too.

Then again, the idea of anyone else tracking my movements, or the risk of running into someone connected to Christian's brother, made the choice clear. I didn't want to leave. I wanted the safety of these walls, surrounded by my books in the east wing, where nobody could reach us.

"Here," I whispered, my voice hoarse and quiet. "I want them to come here."

Edison gave a sharp, approving nod, his hand resting reassuringly against my hip. "Bring the best specialist in the state to the estate," he told Jeremy, his tone flat and absolute. "Discreetly. Have them vetted and brought through the private gates."

Jeremy didn't hesitate. His thumbs flew across the encrypted screen of his tablet, his expression locked in intense, focused determination as he began pulling up files, contacting secure medical networks, and arranging for a top-tier maternal-fetal medicine specialist to make house calls.

"Done," Jeremy said a moment later, locking the tablet and looking back up at me with a soft, steady gaze. "I'm securing the top high-risk OB in Texas. They'll be vetted, NDA-bound, and scheduled to come here to the private suite starting this week. We'll monitor you closely, Meredith. Every step of the way."

The tension in my chest eased just a fraction more. The road to healing was going to be long, and the damage caused by their lies wouldn't vanish overnight, but looking at the tiny heartbeats flickering on the monitor, I knew I had something worth fighting for.