"Fuck," he shouts at no one in particular. "I'm coming back to get you."

"No way. Aren't you like two hours away by now? I'll just come to you."

"It's not safe for you to come here."

"Well, it wasn't safe for me at the house, either."

I regret the words as soon as they come out of my mouth. I know Oliver is already feeling so much guilt for leaving me here with this stranger, blaming himself for not being able to control every little detail of this world.

"Camden, now is not the fucking time to argue with me," he growls. "Go to my parents' house. Joe and Morgan should still be there. That's your safest bet right now. I'll send a clean up crew to the house. Are you sure he's dead?"

I scowl at the phone in my hands, feeling a panic attack bubbling to the surface at the mention of the body in front of me. I really killed someone. Of course it was for self- defense, but the weight of taking someone else's life, no matter how evil he was, was still heavy.

"He's definitely dead. You can burn this house to the ground with him in it for all I care. And I'm not going to my parents. They won't ever let me out of their sight again if they see me like this and you know it. I'm coming to you."

He sighs heavily and I hear something in the background shatter. I roll my eyes, knowing his temper isn't going to do him any good right now.

"Fine. Head to the warehouse, I'll have Freya meet you there. I should have just let her stay with you. I'm so fucking st-"

"Relax," I cut him off. "Despite what you seem to think, you're not the master of the universe. Shit happens, and there's no way you could have known. You can't keep track of everyone all the time."

"Maybe not, but I could have paid closer attention to the person I put in charge of keeping you safe. Fuck, Camden!" He yells again.

I get off the floor on shaky legs and start searching for my car keys. I'm still a little dizzy, but I power through. There's no way I'm staying in this house any longer.

"I'm leaving now. I'll be at the warehouse in twenty. Just stay focused on what you're doing and make sure Jasper gets what he deserves," I tell him as I start the car.

I'm surprised by the relief I feel when the engine hums to life. I know part of it is just from being away from the blood bath inside, but another part of me half expected Smith to have tampered with it to keep my trapped.

"Are you sure you're okay to drive right now?" Oliver eventually asks.

"I'm fine, honestly. I'll text you when I get to the warehouse."

I make it there slower than anticipated, but the paranoia grew stronger with each turn. I try to convince myself that I'm not walking into another trap, but I don't know what to expect anymore.

The parking lot is empty when I arrive and I can't tell if it's a good thing or cause for more worry. I catch my reflection in the rearview mirror as I back into a parking spot and I'm appalled by what I see.

My hair is a knotted mess at this point. My skin is stark white, completely devoid of the usual blush that warms my cheeks, and the dried-up blood splattered across my face certainly isn't my best look.

I'm a complete mess. As much as I so desperately want to give in to the mental breakdown I'm very much owed, I can't let Freya pull up and see me crying. While I consider her a friend by now, she's still Oliver's employee first and she'd report back to him if I couldn't get my shit together.

A knock on the window causes me to jump in my seat, making my seatbelt lock against my chest. I pull at it, frustrated and on the verge of tears, before rolling my window down.

"Girl, you look like shit," Freya grins.

I glower at her, still fighting with the seatbelt.

"Oh thanks, today's been a real treat for me."

"Move over, I'm driving."

She unbuckles the seatbelt before I can protest and starts to pull me out of my seat. Her motorcycle is parked haphazardly across two spots next to me.

"I'm fin, I can drive myself. Just take your bike and I'll follow you."

She barks out a laugh and pushes me over to the passenger side.

"You might be able to convince Oliver of that over the phone, but I'm not blind. You haven't stopped shaking since I showed up, you're more pale than my ass right now, which is quite the accomplishment, I have to admit. Oh, and your little fight with the seatbelt just proves you're one second away from completely losing your shit."

I couldn't argue with that.

We ride in near silence for a majority of the ride, the only sound coming from Freya softly humming along with the radio. She had tossed some makeup wipes into my lap so I could clean myself up, and I discarded the bloodied sweater into the back seat to burn later.

I try to fall asleep to pass the time, but each time I'd drift off, images of that guy's lifeless stare would surface. I just had to wait it out anxiously until we reached our destination.

When we finally pull up to another lot and I see Oliver's car, my stomach starts churning.

"Listen. Hopefully they've got everything handled and Jasper and his guys are all burning in hell by now, but things could still be messy in there. Take this."

She hands me another small gun and I groan.

"I'm so sick of this shit, Freya. When does all the killing and turf war bullshit end?"

"Never," she responds sincerely. "There will always be more men like Jasper."

"Great. Looking forward to it," I mumble under my breath.

"Look, I like you, but you need to decide right now if you're in this with us or not. I know you came in to this thinking it was some fun game, that you'd get to pretend you're some little badass joining daddy's business, but this shit is real. I'm not going to lose any more of my friends because you keep sticking yourself into trouble you're not ready for. And that includes Oliver. He may be willing to throw himself in front of a bullet to save you, but maybe you should stop charging head first into the line of fire."

My eyes widen at her, but she keeps going.

"No one will judge you if you can't cut it. We've already forgiven you for the disaster on the ship, but it won't happen again. This life isn't for just anyone and that's okay, but for a lot of us, it's all we have. You will pay the consequences if anyone gets hurt because of you though."

Her words are harsh, but they're true. I came into this thinking I could ease my way to the top because of who my family is and what I mean to Oliver, but this is real. It's not a game to play when I feel like proving myself.

I can't bear the thought of someone getting hurt because of me. This is what I signed up for, sticking with Oliver, and that includes handling days like today with composure and strength. Oliver can't always protect me, and he shouldn't have to.

I nod at her and take a deep breath.

"You're right. But I can do this. I will do this."

"Good."