Chapter 199

Maya's POV I’d noticed all day that Mom had been unusually quiet. There was something in the air, an unease that neither of us could shake. We’d felt something similar the day Wade was assaulted by Vera. It wasn’t just intuition, it was instinct. When the knock finally came, Henry descended from his office and stood at the top of the stairs as Joan approached the door. Gabriel was already in place, standing silently behind it in case of danger. But it wasn’t an enemy, it was Oliver, Wade, Darius, and Ashton. Alex remained parked at the tree line, a hundred feet away, keeping watch. Oliver wasn’t supposed to be back so soon. He had dropped me off at ten and gone straight to work. His early return sent a ripple of unease through me, but it eased the moment Tatiana leapt into Darius’s arms. He might be a deadly warrior, but he became nothing but warmth when she was in his arms. “We need to talk,” Oliver said as he stepped inside. Henry wasted no time joining us. Tessa and Raya quickly gat