No One Owns Me

Chapter 10 — Together

The first gunshot slams into the wall, shaking the whole cottage on its foundations. Isabella’s fingers lock tight around mine, her grip so fierce I can feel her nails through my sleeve. For one heartbeat, time freezes.

Then Duncan roars: “DOWN!”

We drop flat just as the front window explodes. Glass showers across the floor like jagged hail. Ward shoves me hard behind the heavy oak sofa, shielding Isabella with his own body. “Stay low. Don’t move.”

I glare up at him. “I’m not hiding while you fight for me.”

“Casey—”

“Together. Remember?”

He stares at me for half a second, then nods sharply. “Together.”

Duncan edges toward the hallway, staying well below the line of fire. “Drake—how many out there?”

Drake risks a quick glance through the gap in the curtain. “At least six vehicles. Fanned out wide. They’re not rushing.”

My stomach lurches. “They didn’t follow us from the road.”

Isabella shakes her head, her face pale. “No. They were already here. Waiting. They knew exactly where I’d lead you.”

Another bullet punches through the wall, sending dust drifting down from the ceiling.

“Back room. Now!” Duncan gestures sharply. “Stick close.”

We scramble toward the rear of the house, Isabella never letting go of my hand for even a second. Ward covers our backs, his weapon raised, while Drake and two Kings hold the hallway to slow anyone breaking through. Every creak of the floorboards, every muffled shout outside, feels amplified tenfold.

I crouch by the back window, peering carefully through the gap in the curtain. Dark shapes move steadily through the garden, spreading in a perfect encircling line. No shouting, no reckless rushing.

“Crown,” I say quietly.

Ward glances over. “You’re certain?”

“The way they move. Controlled. Coordinated. No mistakes.”

He nods. “So what’s the play?”

“Get Isabella out.”

She immediately squeezes tighter. “No. I’m not leaving you. You crossed half the country to find me. I’m not letting them take you now.”

Something tight and cold inside me loosens, just a little. I nod. “Okay. We go together.”

Duncan’s jaw tightens. “Absolutely not—”

“Dad.” My voice is steady. “We can’t stay. And we’re not splitting up.”

He hesitates, then exhales sharply and nods toward the built-in cupboard at the far wall. “There’s a way out. Down there.”

Ward huffs a quiet laugh. “Of course there’s a basement.”

I glance at him. “What’s with you and basements?”

“Every secret worth hiding ends up underground. It’s a rule.”

“Then maybe you’re the one with the secrets,” I tease. Even now, even with bullets thudding into timber, he can pull a smile out of me.

Drake bursts into the room. “They’re at the front door. We’ve got minutes.”

Duncan yanks open the cupboard door to reveal a rusted metal hatch. We haul it open and scramble down the steep steps into the dark. The air smells of damp earth and old stone. At the far end, set into the wall, is another narrow door. He heaves it open, and a low, dark tunnel stretches out beneath the garden.

“Old escape route,” he says. “Built when this place was a safe house.”

We move fast: Duncan leading, then Isabella and me, Ward bringing up the rear. The gunfire fades behind us—until a deafening boom shakes the walls, and dust rains down on our heads. Isabella flinches hard, and I wrap an arm around her shoulders.

“They breached the house,” Drake calls from the back. “They’ll find the tunnel soon. Keep running!”

We burst out into an abandoned underground garage, where two SUVs sit waiting with engines idling.

“Get in!” Drake barks.

I help Isabella into the back first, then slide into the passenger seat beside Ward. Duncan climbs in beside Isabella; Drake takes the second vehicle. The heavy garage door rumbles upward, and we surge out into the dark country lanes.

For a long time, no one speaks. Then Isabella says quietly: “They won’t stop. Not ever.”

I look back at her. “We know who they are now. We know what they want.”

“You don’t know the half of it.” She leans forward between the seats. “They don’t just want me. They need you too.”

My chest tightens. “Why? Because I’m the other twin?”

“Because there are two claims.” She swallows hard. “Mum told me, the last time we spoke. Two bloodlines, two rights. But they don’t know which one carries the true birthright.”

Ward’s eyes flick to the rear-view mirror. “So they need both of you to test it?”

Isabella shakes her head, her voice breaking. “No. They only need one. And they’re willing to kill the other to find out which one matters.”

Silence falls heavy over the car. Duncan’s voice is low and fierce. “They won’t lay a hand on either of you.”

I look at him, and for the first time, I don’t doubt it.

Ward glances sideways at me. “You okay?”

I take a breath. “I’m terrified.”

“Good.”

I blink. “Good?”

“Being scared means you’ve got something worth fighting for.” He gives me a faint smile. “And you’re still the most dangerous person I know.”

“Which is it?” I laugh softly. “Human or dangerous?”

“Both.”

Then static crackles over the dash. “Boss—three fast vehicles closing in from behind.”

I twist round. Headlights flare in the distance, eating up the road.

Ward grins, shifting down a gear. “Want to see if I can lose them?”

“Can you?”

“Hold on tight.”

He slams his foot down. The car surges forward. Isabella grabs my arm; Duncan braces against the seat. Ward throws the wheel into a sharp bend, tyres screaming. One chasing car falls back; another keeps pace; the third sticks right to our bumper.

“Ward—”

“Trust me.” He winks.

He takes a sudden turn onto an overgrown single-track lane. The car behind follows blindly—until the road dead-ends at a heavy iron gate. Ward slams on the brakes, reverses so fast my stomach lurches, then swings the wheel and slams the accelerator. We squeeze past the stunned pursuer in a cloud of dust, before they can react, and vanish into the dark. Behind us, there’s a screech of brakes and a sickening crunch as they slam straight into the gate.

I slump back in my seat, breathless. “You are completely insane.”

He laughs. “You’re welcome.”

I shake my head—but I’m smiling. Really smiling. The tight knot in my chest hasn’t gone, but it doesn’t feel so heavy anymore.

I glance back. Isabella has drifted off, her head resting against Duncan’s shoulder, safe for the first time in her life. Duncan watches the road behind us, his hand resting gently on hers. Ward drives steady, his eyes scanning every shadow.

For so long I thought family was just blood, or names, or secrets buried in files. Now I know better.

Family is the sister who won’t let you face the dark alone. It’s the father who’d burn the world down to keep you safe. It’s the friend who laughs while the bullets fly, who tells you fear is just proof you’re alive.

It’s the people who stay.

Ward catches me watching him. “What?”

“Nothing,” I say.

“Liar.” He grins.

“Maybe.”

I look out at the rushing night, and for the first time in seventeen years, I don’t feel like I’m running away. I feel like I’m finally heading home.