Colt was inside my cell at first light, and I stared up at him from the itchy mattress. He told me he had been there all night, but they wouldn’t let him speak to me until I had given my statement, and only when he told Wilder Bowie, the police chief, that he would beat him up, so they had a reason to lock him up too did they let him in.I smiled then, still unable to say a word.His hand came up to his mouth, his eyes bright with pain and breaking for me.“Don’t shut me out, Sonsy,” he said, moving close to me for the first time. I just stared at him. What was there to say? I couldn’t even articulate my thoughts to my own self, they lay scattered on the floor like a broken string of pearls and I did not know which one to pick up first. When he wrapped his arms around me, I let him hug me, leaning my chin on his shoulder but kept my hands by my side.“Olivia.”“I have claustrophobia from my time with the Iron Rose,” I said finally, and felt his shoulder tremble beneath my chin. T
Last Updated : 2025-11-26 Read more