When I opened my eyes, I felt exhausted.
But it was not the usual kind of exhaustion.
It was not the pain that came after fighting. Not the exhaustion of forcing my body to move after getting beaten nearly to death. Not the dull ache in my ribs from Gaspar’s attacks or the lingering pressure in my head from the anti-Symbiote blast.
This was different.
It was the kind of fatigue I had almost forgotten existed.
The kind that came after deep, peaceful sleep, when you woke up briefly and immediately wanted to close your eyes again. My body felt heavy, but in a good way.
Relaxed, satisfied and safe.
For once, my mind was not racing through every problem waiting for me outside.
I felt exhausted, but strangely good.
How long had it been since I slept this well?
Maybe it was because of the sex.
I raised one hand slightly, trying to see the room.
It was almost completely dark.
The curtains were closed, and only a thin line of light slipped through the gap near the window. For one terrifying second, I thought I had slept through the entire evening.
Fuck.
What time was it?
I started to push myself up.
Then a hand pressed lightly against my chest.
"Relax."
Sydney’s voice came from beside me.
I turned my head.
Even in the darkness, I could make out the smile on her face.
"It’s only nine," she said. "Still evening."
I let out a slow breath and fell back against the bed.
"You’re still here?" I asked.
Sydney smiled wider.
"Yep."
I glanced around the room.
Cindy was gone.
"Cindy left earlier," Sydney explained. "She was too embarrassed to wake up in the same bed with both of us."
I laughed softly.
"You’d think she wouldn’t be embarrassed anymore after today."
"Well," Sydney said, resting her head lightly against my shoulder, "she was driven by lust."
She sounded far too pleased with herself.
"Even I let loose more than usual."
I raised a brow.
"Honestly, you seemed pretty normal to me."
Sydney stared at me.
Then she punched my chest.
"That’s rude!"
I laughed again, though the movement made my ribs protest.
Sydney noticed immediately and frowned.
"You’re still hurt."
"I’m fine."
"You say that every time."
"And I’m still alive every time."
"That is not a proper defense."
I smiled and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer.
Sydney relaxed against me almost immediately.
"So," Sydney asked after a moment, clinging lightly to my chest. "You liked it, right?"
I looked down at her.
"I think liked is too weak a word for what I experienced."
Sydney’s smile turned smug.
"I knew you’d love it."
A threesome with Sydney and Cindy.
Yeah.
It had definitely been something else.
Something I had not expected to happen before a dangerous rescue mission.
Something I probably should not have allowed myself to enjoy as much as I did.
But I was tired of pretending I did not want things just because wanting them made my life more complicated.
Sydney laughed quietly.
"Next time, we’ll add Rachel."
I stared at her.
"You really are something, aren’t you?"
"What?"
"You already managed to convince Cindy."
Sydney looked proud of that.
"And now you want Rachel too?"
"I think she would have fun."
"You think everyone would have fun."
"That is because I have a positive outlook on life."
I shook my head.
Sydney laughed again, then moved one hand down teasingly.
"You’re already thinking about it," she said. "I can tell."
I quickly caught her wrist.
Sydney only smiled.
Then her expression softened.
"Now you have a reason to make sure you come back alive and see another day, right?"
I frowned slightly.
"What?"
Sydney looked directly at me.
"Don’t you want another threesome?"
I stared at her for a second.
Then I gave her an honest answer.
"Definitely."
Sydney laughed.
"Then you better stay alive."
The teasing in her voice was still there.
But I could hear what she actually meant underneath it.
"I won’t miss that," I said.
For once, I meant it without hesitation.
I would come back.
Not only for Mei and Emily.
Not only because I had to defeat Callighan and Gaspar.
But because there were people here waiting for me.
People I wanted to see again.
People I wanted to stay with.
Sydney smiled against my chest.
"Good."
After that, we finally got up.
We dressed quickly, though Sydney spent far too long fixing her hair while looking completely unashamed of everything that had happened.
I was still tired, but the deep sleep had helped more than I expected. My body felt lighter.
Tonight was the rescue.
There was no room left for hesitation.
When Sydney and I left the room and headed downstairs, we ran into Rachel in the hallway.
She was waiting near the staircase with her arms crossed.
"Finally awake, both of you?" She asked.
"Yeah," I said. "Sorry about that."
Rachel’s face turned a little red before I even finished the sentence.
"I guess Sydney told you?"
"She did," Rachel replied.
Sydney smiled brightly beside me.
Rachel looked directly at me.
"She told me she was going to have a threesome with you and Cindy," Rachel said. "And that I should make sure nobody disturbed you."
I closed my eyes for a second.
"Right."
I turned toward Sydney.
"Couldn’t have been more direct."
Sydney only shrugged.
"Well, I hoped it would make Rachel jealous enough to join us."
Rachel’s entire face turned beet red.
"As if!"
Sydney sighed dramatically.
"Guess it didn’t work."
"Ignore her," I said quickly.
Rachel looked away, clearly trying to regain control of her expression.
I decided not to make things worse.
"Is everyone getting ready?" I asked.
Rachel nodded.
"Yeah. Everyone is."
"Good."
I looked between Rachel and Sydney.
"Then we should get ready too. Once you’re done, meet me in the Boardwalk."
Sydney tilted her head.
"Why?"
"My things are there."
More specifically, I needed the Resonance Disruptor.
Marlon’s anti-Symbiote weapon.
If Gaspar appeared tonight, I would need every possible advantage.
The thought immediately changed the mood in my head.
The warmth from the bed disappeared beneath the cold reality of what waited for us.
Tonight, we were going into Brigantine.
Tonight, we either brought Mei, Emily, Tommy, and Keith home—
or everything went wrong.
"Got it," Rachel said.
Sydney nodded too.
The three of us headed downstairs.
"I heard what happened with Brad," Rachel said as we reached the hotel lobby. "Was that okay?"
I slowed down slightly.
The memory of Brad, Billy, and Kyle lying on the ground came back to me immediately.
"Yeah," I said. "I guess I just snapped."
Rachel watched me quietly.
"They keep going after Margaret," I continued. "They keep blaming her for helping people, acting like kindness is some kind of weakness."
I let out a breath.
"I just couldn’t stand there and listen anymore."
How could anyone look at Margaret and speak to her like that?
She had given people food when there was not enough to go around. She had sheltered strangers. She had protected children. She had fought to keep Jackson Township alive even after the world gave her every reason to think only about herself.
Did Brad and the others not feel even slightly guilty when they looked at her?
Or had fear made them blind to everything else?
"Oh, fuck," Sydney said with a long sigh. "I would have loved to see that."
I glanced at her.
Sydney had a smirk on her face.
"It’s rare to see you actually get angry and do something about it," she continued. "That would have turned me on immediately."
"Please don’t say things like that in the lobby," I muttered.
Sydney looked around.
There were still people nearby, carrying supplies, speaking quietly, and moving between the rooms.
Then she smiled.
"Fine. I’ll say it later."
"Don’t."
"I will."
I sighed.
"I didn’t want to do it in front of everyone," I said. "But I had enough."
Rachel nodded slowly.
"No. It’s fine."
She looked toward the hotel entrance.
"I didn’t like them talking to Margaret like that either."
That made me feel a little better.
Not because I wanted Rachel to approve of me hitting people.
But because I needed to know I had not imagined how wrong Brad and the others had been.
"Hopefully they learned their lesson," I said.
Sydney gave a quiet laugh.
"I doubt it."
She was probably right.
People like Brad rarely learned the first time.
I stopped near the entrance of the Whitesun Hotel and turned toward Rachel and Sydney.
"Get everyone ready," I said. "Take whatever you need. Weapons, supplies, anything that could help if things go wrong."
The casual mood disappeared.
Rachel nodded first.
"Okay."
Sydney’s expression became serious too.
"Got it."
"We need to be prepared," I added. "Just in case."
Both of them nodded again.
Then I turned away.
I left the hotel alone and headed toward the Boardwalk.
I needed to retrieve the Resonance Disruptor.
And after that, there would be no more waiting.
Tonight, we went to Brigantine.