Caged By His Love のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 61 - チャプター 70

MELANIE'S POVThe fear didn't leave, even after the full briefing, even after understanding the shape of the danger instead of just its shadow. If anything, knowing everything made certain nights harder, not easier — my mind now had actual details to circle instead of vague dread, actual addresses and faces and numbers to turn over long after Jethro had fallen asleep beside me.I woke that night from a dream I couldn't fully remember, only the lingering sensation of running, of a hallway that wouldn't end, and found myself reaching for Jethro before I'd even fully surfaced from sleep.He woke instantly, the way he always did now, some part of him permanently alert even in rest. "Melanie?""I'm okay." My voice came out shakier than I intended. "Bad dream. I don't even remember what it was, just—""Just the fear," he finished quietly, pulling me against him. "I understand.""Do you dream about it too?""Every night." He said it simply, without shame, and something about his honesty made

MELANIE'S POVDana called on a Tuesday, her voice bright and familiar in a way that briefly transported me back to a version of my life that felt impossibly distant now — the violin world, competitions, the particular camaraderie of people who understood exactly how much sacrifice a career like mine demanded."Melanie! It's been forever. I saw the wedding photos online — you looked stunning.""Dana." I felt myself smiling despite everything, genuinely happy to hear from someone who'd known me before Jethro, before Rodrigo, before any of the danger currently reshaping my every waking hour. "How have you been? It has been forever.""Busy, mostly. I'm actually in the city for a few weeks, doing some session work. I'd love to catch up, if you have time. I know you're probably swamped being Mrs. Blackstone and all."I hesitated, some new instinct — born from weeks of careful vigilance — making me pause before agreeing to anything spontaneous. "I'd love to see you. Let me check with my husb

MELANIE'S POVThe restaurant was crowded, the kind of busy Thursday lunch rush that made Jethro's security detail visibly tense, spreading out to cover more angles than usual. I'd insisted on the outing myself, tired of feeling like a prisoner in my own life even with everything Dana had revealed weeks before."Ten more minutes," Jethro said, checking his watch for what felt like the tenth time since we'd sat down. "Then we head back.""You said that fifteen minutes ago.""The threat assessment changes constantly. Humor me."I smiled despite the tension still simmering beneath every outing we took together now, reaching for his hand across the table. "I appreciate you humoring me, too. I know crowded restaurants aren't your favorite security scenario.""Nothing about loving you has ever been simple," he said, though his tone carried more warmth than complaint. "I've made my peace with that."We finished lunch without incident, and I felt myself finally relaxing as we walked toward the

MELANIE'S POVMy father’s old contacts proved more useful than any of us had initially expected, feeding Jethro information about Rodrigo's likely movements that Brandon's team hadn't managed to uncover on their own.I sat in on one of the planning sessions, watching my father point to a photograph spread across Jethro's desk. "This man worked logistics for Rodrigo years ago, before I distanced myself from that world entirely. If Rodrigo's still using similar methods, this man's old contacts might know how he'll likely respond to news of a high-visibility event like the gala.""Can you reach him?" Jethro asked."I can try. It's been years, and my name isn't exactly welcome in those circles anymore. But I'm willing to attempt it, if it helps."I watched my father gather his materials afterward, still adjusting to this newly earnest version of him — a man who'd spent thirty years protecting his own comfort now apparently willing to risk his remaining reputation for my safety. It didn't

MELANIE'S POVThe day before the gala moved strangely, time stretching thin in some moments and compressing sharply in others, every ordinary task carrying the particular weight of last preparations before something irreversible.I spent the morning with the security team, walking through my exact route one final time — where I'd enter, where I'd be expected to stand, the careful choreography of a night that needed to look effortless while actually being meticulously controlled down to the minute."You're doing well," Brandon told me, after we'd run through the sequence a third time. "Most people freeze up under this kind of pressure. You're adapting faster than I expected.""I've had practice," I said, thinking of everything the past months had already demanded of me. "Fear's not exactly new territory anymore."By evening, exhausted from the day's preparations, I found Jethro in our bedroom, already dressed down from his suit, staring at nothing in particular the way he did when his