'Deep inside me, I'm fading to black, I'm fading

Took an oath by the blood on my hand, won't break it

I can taste it, the end is upon us, I swear

Gonna make it

I'm gonna make it'

*DOROTHY'S POV*

"Remember, from now on, there's only one true version."

Blade had already repeated those words a thousand times, yet the whisper echoed differently in this early afternoon, cutting through the center's faint hum of cars, tittle-tattle, and today, also shushed gasps.

Even Spencer's smooth words sounded sharper as I lifted my gaze to the large building in front of us. "Are you ready, DD?"

"Yes, I am."

No, I wasn't. The shaky exhale that followed was enough to outweigh my determined answer, without even considering the rest of my body: my trembling hands as I took in the familiar beige facade, my wobbly nerves at the sight of the starry flag, and my wavering heart as my eyes followed the bold letters above the door: SUBROSE POLICE.

However, it was the date we'd fixed, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, when the holiday spirit of giving and forgiving was arising, and the Thorntons were still in custody in the state police department, from what we'd read in the news in Montana.

Yes, the story had traveled as far, and Spencer's article too, as his fantastic words had been quoted and re-quoted in every newspaper we'd found.

I'd never had a doubt about that, but it still exceeded our expectations, as the attention had triggered a police investigation almost immediately by the FBI, which had already arrested lots of people mentioned in the article, including members of the Carrion gang.

Thus, it was the perfect time to drop a certain name. It was what we'd planned. Spencer and Blade had done their part perfectly. Now, it was my turn, and they were by my side for it.

As my gaze passed from anxious blue to worried brown, I knew I could do it with them, and as I squeezed their hands in mine, I knew I could do it for them.

Together, no matter what... Like the three musketeers, and D'Artagnan was the little badass growing inside my belly, the one leading me to take a step forward.

"We can't get away forever," I murmured, as much for Blade's sideway glances and the bad intentions there inviting me to escape forever, and for the shakes of Spencer's hand, as to fight the surge tingling my restless legs as I took another slow step and another heavy breath.

Another step, another breath... until we had climbed the short stair, and I wasn't breathing when Blade opened the door, muttering,

"If someone told me, I'd come here willingly..."

He was trying to distract me, and it worked for a second before the voice of the receptionist paralyzed me. Though not as much as the brown-haired woman froze when she lifted her gaze from her papers.

"Good afternoon, Police of Subrose, in what may we help–"

She already had pale skin, but she turned whiter than her sweater as she gaped at us like... three outlaws.

"Hello." I offered her my most innocent smile, not sure what to say next as she jumped at the sound of my cracky voice.

But thankfully, Spencer always had the words, and walking slowly to her front desk, he put up his polite smile, which looked way smoother than the reflection of my tense rictus I caught on the glass separating us from her.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Myers. How are you? We're here to do a deposition."

She didn't start at his words. Yet she blinked at him as if she was wondering how this 'outlaw' knew her name and was so courteous, as if she didn't remember he was Spencer Colt, the sheriff's son and her son's teammate in the football team, and I couldn't even imagine what she was thinking about Blade and me then. Well, I had an idea as she kept throwing wary glances between us and our pictures on the left wall.

To think about all the efforts we'd made to look more innocent, and just a little 'wanted' over our photos was destroying them all. It was so unfair, especially considering the time it had taken me to make my chignon.

I'd tamed my hair for the first time in months. Spencer had shaved his stubble, and Blade... well, he'd shaved closely too and even traded his leather jacket for a 'penguin' coat, but no matter what, nothing could dim his gangster aura as he was standing there unaffected, his inked fingers playing with the flyers on the edge of the desk.

No one could ever guess how tight his other hand was squeezing my hand when Spencer continued,

"Um, can you maybe inform an officer?"

"Oh, yes, follow me." Mrs. Myers nodded, and either it was thanks to Spencer's smooth words or just because of how terrified she was of us, she was up in less than a second and walking to the double doors on the right, while we followed hesitantly.

Wasn't she supposed to call an officer through the phone rather than turning her back on three outlaws like that? Didn't they have a special procedure in this case? Maybe not, as it surely didn't happen often that wanted criminals turned in willingly here, and as I glanced at Blade and Spencer, they appeared as clueless.

Though we quickly understood as we stepped into the wide room.

Procedure or not, everything was upside-down, and if I'd thought it couldn't be more agitated than the day I'd come here after Douglas's death, I'd been so wrong.

It was the power of words, their impact a thousand times stronger than a gunshot, and we could glimpse it around with the number of people bustling, the yellow tape isolating a third of the room filled with drawers, storage furniture, and piles of files, and the loud atmosphere.

A phone ringing among all the others resounding around wouldn't have been heard, and even less Mrs. Myers's voice.

"Mr. Lawson? Miss Duncan and–"

She didn't even have to finish as one policeman noticed us, and then, it was like a chain reaction of stressed frowns leaping into more or less thick hairlines and hands jumping to belts, bringing the silence in three seconds.

I wasn't sure if the phones were still ringing, but all I could hear were the deafening bangs of my heart as I took in all those wide and unknown eyes, all those guns, all pointed at us.

Spencer and Blade had prepared me for this instant, Spencer repeating that even if the article had been a success and the Thorntons were proven to be crooked, a homicide was still a homicide, no matter what, and we would have to prove that we weren't dangerous, while Blade had set the scene with the help of Saturn, Jupiter, and Moonlight to play the 'pigs'.

Yet it still didn't prevent the chill sneaking along my thinnest nerve endings, and if it hadn't been for Blade and Spencer's tight grips on my hands as they slowly raised theirs in surrender, I probably would have been frozen – or have run away.

It still took everything in me to fight the instincts prickling until the tip of my fingers to shelter my baby bump as the movement opened the side of my coat and exposed the roundness of my belly, the pale pink sweater I was wearing not hiding anything.

Daisy had bought it on her way to see us, ten days ago, before knowing I was pregnant, so it was obviously a little too tight now. That was why we'd chosen it for today, actually.

Nevertheless, as all the attention in the room switched there, easily seeping through the fine meshes to form cold goosebumps on my skin, I'd never felt such powerlessness. It was suffocating, even if I was frozen, numbing to the point of being painful, and everything happened in slow motion while my heart was thundering, more out of control than an open-field, and my gaze kept running around the room for a sign of movement. Was I hoping for it or not, though?

I wasn't sure when it could be either to lower their guns or to pull a trigger, and although it was just a few seconds, they were the longest of my life, until something finally broke the endless loop of bangs and silence: a string of curse words that attracted my gaze to a familiar pair of eyes in the opposite corner of the room. Raymond.

Even if it was just a glimpse of his dumbfounded expression, it appeared like a glimmer of hope in all those unknown faces and weapons. He was a glimmer of hope that our evil genius plan could make things right, and it was what I needed as time seemed to resume its normal speed, and a tall man appeared in front of us.

"Miss Duncan?" The man in his mid-thirties put one hand up, gesturing for the policemen around to not move, and thus, allowing my chest to deflate slightly with a breath. Though it didn't last long, as his other hand pulled a badge from the inside pocket of his jacket. "I'm Agent Lawson from the FBI. I'm in charge of the station, following the recent events."

In other words, he was replacing Kenneth Thornton, who had taken Raymond's place.

At least, his eyes didn't hold the revengeful glint of Kenneth's dark gaze, but the shine from his badge did make me look down.

"Are you here to admit your crimes?"

"No," Blade and Spencer replied at the same time as me, their tight voices echoing louder than the cracks of mine.

Yet as much as I wanted to lean on them, figuratively and literally, it was my part of the plan, my turn to speak, and from the narrowed glance the agent Lawson was throwing them, I didn't have much choice.

So tightening my grip on their hands, I silently let them know I could do it, and although my voice was quiet, it was unwavering as I declared, "I'm here to tell the only true version."

With these words, there was no turning back, and everything accelerated: the movements around the room as the agent Lawson ordered to lead us into the interrogation rooms and for everyone to lower their weapons, the thumps of my heart as Blade and Spencer were torn away from me, the seconds ticking into minutes and hours to retell my version, and the questions that followed.

"Why are you telling this only now?"

"Well, because we were threatened to keep silent."

"To be honest, we saw the news that many criminals from the Carrion gang have been arrested and that Kenneth Thornton too. So we saw this as our only hope."

"Do you think that bastard of Thornton would have protected us before?"

"Who killed Douglas Thornton then?"

"I've already told you I didn't see his face, but his eyes were dark and wrinkled."

"He was from Carrion's gang. I can recognize the white shoelace of their boots anywhere, and only a Carrion member's coward enough to run when Spencer and I arrived."

"I didn't get the time to see much in the chaos, but he was around Dorothy's height."

"What a nice coincidence..."

"My life has been a series of coincidences since six months. You wouldn't believe it... But I'd rather call it bad luck."

"Fucking bad luck, that's what it is! And that's why Dorothy's the perfect scapegoat."

"Except that I'm a girl, and how could I shoot better than a gangster in this dark room?"

"Where did that mysterious man get Mr. Colt's gun then?"

"From my hand. I think he had his own, but he snatched mine when I... well, ran into him."

"It's Spencer, her ex, who came with it first because he wanted to 'kill me', but you've seen him. He couldn't even hold the gun without shaking."

"I just wanted to scare Blade away, and I don't know... prove my love to Dorothy. I wasn't thinking when I took it. I know I shouldn't have, but... have you never been in love?"

"When the police came to arrest Dorothy, you got away all three together, though?"

"Believe me, I would have rather not, but it wasn't my priority when we'd just found out Dorothy was pregnant."

"A baby! A fucking baby! That's a fucking reason to freak out, and when the cops popped up, we didn't know what to do."

"I couldn't risk going to jail with a baby growing inside me, and I couldn't tell the truth when we were watched closely and threatened. I know it was stupid and illegal and careless, but I was so scared. I still am."

"One last question, how would you have described Douglas Thornton in one word?"

"Unreadable."

"Ambitious, like his father, I guess, because I didn't know him more than what I'd heard from him."

"I have three: a daddy's boy."

And those were only a few of the questions we had. Well, for Spencer and Blade, I could only guess, like I imagined their answers, as we'd each been taken into different rooms.

However, they were with me at each second, with every beat of my heart, and in all my thoughts, as I kept my hands still over my stomach, and my voice was calm like Lucy Lucas.

No, even better, I was Dorothy Duncan, and I let the cracks of emotions seep through to sound more truthful.

Was it working? I could only wish, as Agent Lawson's expression was as demonstrative as the four walls of the room where I was left in custody afterward.

Both were hard as concrete, not answering my questions, and in a pale beige shade, though one had at least a hue of color that gave me some hope: the painting of a sunset on the wall across from me. It reminded me of the sky the day I'd met Blade, when I'd tasted freedom... the wind in our hair, his Cheshire cat grin, the sound of his laugh, Lucy Lucas and Ford Wels, and the life-changing thrill of his lips on mine. I replayed the memories again and again like they could bring me a little spark of that magic.

Maybe it did, as I'd forgotten how much time had passed when the door opened again, and I had to blink my eyes at the large figure walking in.

"Miss Dorothea Duncan?"

"Raymond?!" I jumped from my seat, and I stopped myself just in time before crashing into his arms.

After all, I was still a criminal in custody, and his hands were full with a tray.

"Yes, I came in with some snacks because you must be hungry. Since how long haven't you eaten?" His gaze traveled between my face and my stomach, his inquisitive look so different from Agent Lawson's, and that was why my fingers were twisting together.

We'd had a quick lunch before coming to the station, but I hadn't been able to eat anything since this morning, and I couldn't even count how long it had been, when the last time I'd checked the clock it had been 10 p.m.

Still, it wasn't what was tugging at my insides at this instant.

"Where are they? Are they okay?" I repeated the questions no one and nothing had answered since the moment we'd been separated.

Okay, I'd got a 'they're fine with my colleagues, following the same procedure as you are'. Yet it could mean anything, especially as the last images I'd had were Blade struggling against the aforesaid colleagues and protesting against the procedure when Agent Lawson had mentioned 'body-searching' me.

I understood his fear. But Kenneth Thornton wasn't here anymore, and the officers hadn't put their 'filthy hands' anywhere inappropriate, and I'd only stripped in front of a nurse they'd called for a check-up, so Blade didn't have to 'cut any fingers and shove them–' I had stopped him before he could continue with his threat thankfully, reminding him with a pointed look that we were supposed to be innocent.

Still, the distraught crystalline he'd replied with was haunting me.

"They're fine. They're in a cell for the night," Raymond assured me, and I trusted his words completely.

Although they still got stuck in the lump in my throat as I swallowed them harshly. "Together?"

Was this supposed to reassure me? Blade and Spencer together in a cell?

"With the recent arrests, we only had one cell left."

At least, it was better than if one of them had been placed with a gangster from Carrion, wasn't it? They'd already shared the cabin for months without killing each other, only once coming to blows, even if they bickered all the time, and from Raymond's wince, I deduced it hadn't changed.

I was surprised I wasn't hearing them from here, but it was surely because the cells were on the far opposite.

"Is that why I'm here?" I glanced around the room from the painting on the wall to the dark green couch, and from the door leading to a small bathroom to the square table, where Raymond set down his tray full of snacks, sugary, savory, and even a teapot, but no tapioca.

That wasn't how I imagined jail to be, and this room had surely welcomed more police officers on night duty than criminals.

"That, and maybe also because the others have been warned that you're carrying the sheriff's grandchild..." His twinkling gaze flickered to my small belly, shining with so much affection already, even if it had only been a few hours since he'd learned the news.

Not many parents would have been this understanding, in this situation especially. He'd always been an amazing dad for Spencer, and he would be an amazing grandpa, well...

"Um, you know it's not sure..." I averted my eyes down to my belly like the little badass could give me a clue about what I'd kept wondering in the past months, or at least, the words to tell him smoothly and not spoil his joy.

Though Raymond quickly lifted my chin again, making me look at him as his gaze was now on me, still holding the same twinkle of affection, and no judgment. "I've heard, yes. But no matter what, you'll always be like a daughter to me."

He would always be a second dad to me too, and as I didn't know if my own dad would even want to talk to me, I gladly welcomed his hug, savoring the familiar hints of citrus and the warmth of his big figure before he pulled away to ruffle my hair, as though nothing had changed.

He hadn't changed, except for more gray lining his brown hair and his missing insignia.

"Hey, you've said 'sheriff' does it mean they'll take you back?" I focused on the second part and on his blue uniform rather than the familiar voice in the back of my head reminding me that worry makes white hair.

"Yes, well, for now, I'm just on probation as 'officer delegated to tea and snacks'. But they should take me back soon because we're understaffed since all the people linked to the Thorntons' traffic have been dismissed, and with your new declarations, they won't have much to reproach me." He shrugged, turning to the teapot on the tray, and watching him do so, I could really tell he hadn't changed.

He was still taking his job seriously, no matter what it was, as he added cautiously one and a half sugar cubes to the cup, and he was still trying to put a smile on everyone's face, no matter how serious it was.

Yet my smile quickly twitched down, like the knots in my stomach in front of the cookies and crackers he was handing me.

"I'm so sorry for all the trouble I caused." The words were barely above a cracking whisper, but they came straight from my tight chest, without passing by my brain, and I realized my mistake as he set the cup on the table, sitting down and gesturing for me to do the same on the seat beside him.

"Without the trouble you've caused, the Thorntons, father and sons, would still be continuing their crimes at this moment. So it was worth it, and you should be proud of yourself. I know your grandpa would be."

"How– I don't know what you're talking about? I didn't do anything..." I tried to catch my slip, yet my fingers were twisting and trembling, and I couldn't even convince myself when my heart was beating so loudly at the mention of Grandpa.

Raymond already knew anyway. How though? Was I that transparent when I hadn't even said much? If so, I couldn't imagine how much I'd revealed during the long interrogation.

"DD, maybe you can fool Mr. FBI and everyone here, but not me." He offered me a knowing smile, diving his gaze into mine like he could read through me, and he surely saw the jump of my heart as he asked, "Where do you think your grandpa got all these police reports and confidential information?"

"Y-you?" My eyes widened from shock to amazement as I slowly connected the dots.

He'd known about Grandpa's investigation all this time. He'd helped him.

"I may not have always done the right thing, but I've always stood with the right side." Against the Thorntons. "And I may be clueless sometimes, but I can still recognize my son's writing style."

He was the best sheriff. Although he wasn't wearing his inquisitive frown at this instant, and I quickly returned his smile.

"You can be proud of Spencer too because we would have never done it without him."

"I am..."

I'd never witnessed Raymond being speechless, but he was at this moment, and the gleaming shine in his eyes was the loudest. I wished Spencer could have seen it, so it could erase all the times he was trying to change himself to please everyone. I wished he could have felt the warmth filling my chest to melt away all his freezing fears and haunting doubts.

Actually, maybe I could do a little magic myself as my lips pulled together before coming back into a crooked grin, and my fingers reached for the brown bag of chocolates, Spencer's favorites. "You know, you could pay him a little visit too... They could need some snacks in their cells too..."

"I will!" Raymond caught my not-so-subtle hint with a chuckle.

Though the light laugh didn't even get to echo around the four walls as his face turned serious again, and if I could have forgotten it for a second, I was quickly brought back to the reality and to this room where I wouldn't get out as easily as I'd used to sneak through the fence of our backyards.

"But only if you promise me to eat and rest a little because it's getting late..."

"And I won't be released tonight?"

"No, I don't think so."

I had prepared for this, for worse even, as a comfortable couch, blankets, chocolate bars, and Raymond's sorry smile hadn't been part of the evil genius plan. So my heart shouldn't have plummeted. However, it wasn't only the weight of one night of custody that was dragging it down, and Raymond probably heard all those what-ifs in my shaky sigh as he added,

"But don't worry. I've heard they've already found a suspect, and you're lucky that he matches perfectly your descriptions."

It wasn't only about luck though, and we both knew it as I met his knowing gaze.

"With the current drama around the Thorntons, they shouldn't dig too much, and between a criminal already arrested for drug trafficking and a young, respectable lady and future mom, the choice will be easily made. You should be out for Thanksgiving dinner, once the green light is given above."

The best sheriff was always right, wasn't he? Except for the 'respectful lady', which I doubted, I wanted to believe him, and that was what allowed me to find sleep, after a few crackers, cookies, chocolates, and too many spinning what-ifs.

Nevertheless, Raymond was wrong this time, and I realized it when the door opened again, jolting me awake, in the morning, before even breakfast.

"Miss Dorothy Duncan, you're free."

Agent Lawson didn't waste time on hellos, and it was so sudden that after all the nightmares I'd had, I almost expected him to morph into Kenneth or the ghost of Douglas's figure and throw the keys away.

But when the pinch of my nails digging into my skin turned out as real as the opened door, I jumped to my feet, not even caring about the marks of sleep remaining on my face and in black dots before my eyes.

Nothing could stop me. Well, I slowed down in front of Agent Lawson, holding myself from hugging him. Yet my heart was already soaring to another galaxy, past the doorframe to the other side of the station as I asked,

"Really?!"

"Yes, the charges have been dropped." He gestured towards the door, the inviting movement being a contrast with the way I'd been led down that same hallway, and it was even more obvious when we reached the main room, where no weapon was pointed at me, only quick glances before the few policemen here went on with their tasks and coffee cups.

I was just an ordinary girl. I wasn't a dangerous, wanted criminal anymore.

"You'll still have to come back for the declarations and lineup, and nothing is ever certain until a judge's verdict is pronounced," Agent Lawson reminded me at the sight of my widening grin, though I was sure his neutral expression cracked for a second. "But you're lucky."

It wasn't only about luck, and as he used the same words as Raymond, something told me Mr. FBI knew more than he let out. Maybe it was just my imagination, like the flicker of smile I glimpsed, or maybe it was my infallible instincts...

Whatever it was, I would never find out because his professional mask was back, as unquestionable as ever, when we arrived at the end of the room, and he turned to me.

"And if you ever get any other threat or anything suspicious from the Carrion gang or the Thornton family, call the station immediately. Here's my card too just in case."

He slid the rectangle of card stock into my hands at the same time as a small box of my belongings, and although the threats had been an invention for our evil genius plan, I still gripped the small card, almost as tightly as the wooden fidget toy, the moon pendant, and the worn-down photos in the box. Just in case... 

We'd gone against a lot of dangerous people for our plan, accusing a gangster, lying, and revealing the Thorntons' traffic.

All these reasons made my shaky fist tighten against the paper. Yet only Kenneth's gaze flashed through my mind upon Agent Lawson's words, and even if it was just a faraway memory, the revengeful glint in its darkness still sent the same shiver down my spine.

Would it ever dim? Whether it was behind prison bars or in my memories, I doubted those soulless eyes would ever change.

But I had changed. I was stronger now, especially knowing I wasn't alone.

Yes, I was thinking of Agent Lawson and Raymond who had my back, but mostly, of the two best outlaws who were always by my side. Ford Wels and Romeo Darcy? No, better: Blade Sayer and Spencer Colt, the two men that stood from their seats as soon as I stepped into the entrance hall and whose tired yet warm smiles annihilated any possible shiver.

"Shooting star..."

"DD!"

They were so relieved that they didn't even fight it when I wrapped my arms around both their figures, Blade's lips melting with a 'finally' in the crook of my neck while Spencer's shaky's hand slid to my baby bump.

"We were starting to worry that you weren't getting out."

"I thought you said you trusted your dad and 'everything was under control'?!"

Okay, maybe I had talked too soon, as Blade was already tensing away to glare at Spencer who quickly mirrored him.

"I was trying to calm you down because you were threatening to smash the door open and cut the agent Lawson's tongue, 'among a few other things'."

"You?! Calming me down? Who the fuck was freaking–"

"Wait, since how long have you been released?" I cut them off with a sigh, the precious moment already long gone.

"Two hours."

"And twenty minutes."

Two hours and twenty minutes?! I didn't know what time it was exactly, but from the rays of sun barely peaking through the glass door of the station, I would have said it was already early for a Thanksgiving day. So for a release permission to be signed two hours and twenty minutes before, I quickly did the calculation and came to one conclusion, my wide eyes narrowing at Spencer and Blade.

"Was it because they got tired of your bickering?"

They both shrugged innocently, and I hoped it wasn't how they'd replied to the agent Lawson because they looked anything but innocent as Spencer was running his hand through the back of his hair, and Blade's dimple popped up.

"It was part of the plan B to get out."

Of course... And it had worked as a tickle of lightness broke free from my chest and quickly turned into unrestrained laughter when my arms reached for both of them again.

The way they jumped away from each other while still leaning towards my hug, and their faces contorted between a grimace and a smile, it was hilarious. Surely a lot like my expression when the front door opened behind them, and if I couldn't glimpse anything past their tall figures , I immediately recognized the familiar voice.

"My baby!"

Who laughed last laughed the longest, and I heard too well their chuckles as they stepped away, letting me meet my parents' large eyes, and I swallowed my laugh.

"My... baby..."

Her baby was expecting a baby; it was the realization crossing my mom's pale gaze as it traveled from the curve of my belly to my face, my dad's hazel one following the same pattern but passing by the walls on the side where all the wanted signs were displayed, and I didn't dare to check if my photo was still in there.

This definitely wasn't how I'd planned to announce they were going to be grandparents. In fact, I hadn't planned it at all.

I may have just pulled perfectly every step of our evil genius plan to innocent ourselves and expose the Thorntons, but facing my parents, I was speechless, and those few seconds of silence felt as excruciating as the past 20 hours as I found myself waiting for a verdict again.

They may not have held my life or my freedom; however, my parents still held a part of my heart, and I realized how big, when the next second, they pulled me into their arms, and my chest swelled with the smoothness of my mom's perfume and my dad's words.

"We missed you."

"I missed you too," I sniffed, the relief washing over me like the tears over my mom's scarf, though I realized they weren't only mine as I met my dad's eyes, shining with an emotion I could have never imagined.

And yet, I'd thought of many what-ifs in the past 20 hours, in the past months.

Never could I have dreamed of such a happy ending where, as my mom was saying, cupping my wet cheeks and my shaky hands...

"You're safe. You're free, and..." Her fingers stopped in their course, hovering over my belly. "You're pregnant?"

Oh right, it wasn't over yet. I still had a lot of explaining to do, and the 'Dorothea' that followed still awakened my instincts to run away.

"From whom? I hope it's not from that criminal, lo–"

"I don't know," I interrupted her, making her gasp, surely as much from my answer as from my sharp, protective tone because none of that was in the perfect lady and future mom's guidebooks, but those were burned since long already.

I was a mess, a shooting star, and I was proud of the magical people around me. They would have to accept it and start calling them by their name – 'especially the 'criminal' – which I reminded them intently, although they couldn't have forgotten with all the wanted signs and news they'd seen in the past months.

"The baby is either Spencer's or Blade's."

That way they had no reason to use degrading names, even in shushing whispers behind his back, because despite his back being turned to us and Raymond's loud voice filling the room, I knew Blade could hear us.

Contrary to Spencer and I, he had nothing to distract him except the piece of white fabric he was fiddling absent-mindedly with. No family that could suggest a special bowling game to celebrate or pester him with another interrogation – no blood family, but sadly the administrative system didn't take this nuance into consideration when 'calling the family'.

Well, it was okay because I was sure Pete and Meteorite were impatiently waiting for him. I was there too, and if not to share fun activities, I gladly shared the awkwardness of my family as I tugged him by the hand.

"By the way, I haven't introduced you yet."

I would have to do it sooner or later. So as my mom was already choking on her gasps and my dad's eyes were bulging out of their sockets, might as well give them more reason to be shocked.

Just like pulling a trigger, I didn't breathe; I didn't think, only following my instincts.

"Mom, Dad, this is Blade, my boyfriend. Blade, here are my parents."

And only after, did I take in damages as I pulled Blade's hand towards my parents – his tattooed hand, holding my panties.

It barely lasted a split-second, as Blade's criminal fingers were luckily used to make proofs disappear.

Yet it was too late, and not even the most polite 'nice to meet you' I'd ever heard him pronounce could smoothen the awkward atmosphere.

We were far from the 'they lived happily ever after', and closer to the moment we'd walked through the station as wanted outlaws, as my dad was staring at us like we'd just committed a crime before their eyes, and my mom was aiming daggers at our linked hands.

And this time, there was nothing to save us, as the heavy silence was extending, not even a breath or a thud of my heart to break it, while my parents didn't move a finger towards Blade's other hand.

We were all frozen, well, all except for someone who decided to move for the first time and make a faint pop inside my belly.

"The baby! The baby is moving!" I exclaimed as happened again, another flutter that restarted my heart and everything around.

"What?"

"Fuck!"

"Really?"

"It's the first time."

The silence was broken from every side, my parents' hands meeting Blade's tattooed one over my belly, along with mine, Spencer's, and Raymond's, who quickly joined.

The little badass had saved the day, and even some police officers and the agent Lawson gathered around to witness the precious scene.

It wasn't a happy ending yet. But it was a new beginning.

A new beginning 😭😭 But the end is nearing, as there's only one chapter left before the epilogue 😭

Who's crying with me? Who's celebrating with me because the evil genius plan worked, and they're free? 🥳 If so, don't forget to vote ⭐ and comment!

It was a long chapter, so tell me, what's your favorite part?

For me, it's definitely the end with the little badass moving, and the awkward introduction of Dorothy's boyfriend 😉 lol only Dorothy and Blade can do that! They're so messy, and that's why I love them so much 😂😍

That's also why I'm gonna miss them so much, but as Dorothy said, it's just a new beginning, and I'm excited for next chapter! Blade has some business to finish, and his POV should be interesting... 😈🤫

Until then, I love you my little Shooting stars! 😘🌠✨💕