She turned toward the crib. “Maybe it will grow out by the time he comes home.”

“I hope not,” I said. She looked at me. “Your hair grows slow.”

She breathed out a laugh. “True.”

I gestured for her to follow me to the living room, and she complied, looking back at Stella once more before padding to the hallway. She swiped the baby monitor receiver off the dresser and then closed the door behind her, leaving it open a crack. Val was in the kitchen, the potato chip sack crinkling as she fished inside it. Agent Hyde was standing by a living room window, always on alert.

“Chill, Hyde,” I said. “You’re making me nervous.” Her dark eyes narrowed, and then she returned to her watch. She pulled the curtain back and then shifted her stance, readying to act. I realized she wasn't just her usual overcautious self. “What is it?”

“I don’t know,” Hyde said.

Travis checked his phone and then patted Hyde on the back. “Calm down. We’ve got a team headed this way.”

“Why?” Hyde asked.

Travis shrugged. “Got some news they want to tell us in person, I guess.”

Hyde and Liis traded glances, and Liis took a step toward Travis. “Is it Thomas? Is it over? How did your trip go?”

“Trip went well. Maybe they’re coming to congratulate me.”

Travis’s ability to lie had increased tenfold during his time with the FBI. The second year of our marriage, the guilt of lying to me was all over his face, but he got better at it. Just before I told him I knew the truth, I could barely discern a meeting from a raid. He had no choice but to learn quickly. Most undercover agents were away from home for months at a time, if not longer. Travis was hiding in plain sight. He’d already been offered a position with Benny, so he just had to say yes. The Carlisis knew that he would come home to Eakins often, but the downside was he also knew Travis had family—and how to control him.

Travis had been careful, but we knew it was only a matter of time before they found out. But the years passed, and Travis seemed to be untouchable. Soon, he was one of Benny’s most trusted men, going from bodyguard, to shaking down local clubs, to advisor. The FBI watched with excitement as Travis climbed the ladder of one of the largest, most dangerous crime families in the nation. Travis got a promotion from within the FBI as well. Five years after his recruitment, Travis went from asset to agent, and five years later, Thomas was sure they’d gained enough evidence to nail Benny. He didn’t factor in Benny’s wife, Giada. She was a paranoid woman, and she didn’t trust Travis. That was when the Carlisis learned the truth, and everything after that happened very fast. Thomas called to inform me that they’d lost contact with Travis, and it was very likely his cover had been blown. That night, Thomas said Travis was taken to an unknown location, but they would find him soon. The next night was our anniversary; the night Benny and a few of his men were killed. It could have been Travis. We were lucky that time, and I wasn’t sure how much longer my luck would hold out.

I’d handed him intel on my father, and in return, Travis promised to never lie to me again. He looked me in the eye the night he came home, his eye swollen, his brow and lip cut, and told me he was okay, and I chose to believe him. It took him being run off the road and nearly murdered to admit that he’d been the one to pull the trigger.

Lying was the hardest habit to break, especially when we believed we were protecting those we loved.

Now, he was standing in our kitchen, skirting around the questions Liis and Agent Hyde were asking. I watched him speak half-truths without blinking an eye, and I wondered just how much he knew that I didn’t. How many times he’d been able to keep secrets because I didn’t want to believe he had any.

“Congratulate you for the trip?” Liis asked. “So it’s done, then?”

“The only suspect we’re missing is Giada. We can’t connect her directly … yet … but we will.”

“Giada Carlisi?” Val asked. “So we’re not done. Because Giada has her own people, and the Bureau killed her husband and sons. She’s a crazy bitch.”

“We’re done,” Travis said.

“What about Giulia? Vittoria? Her bodyguard Chiara? What about Angelo’s new wife?” Val said, her tone bordering accusatory.

“Angelo got married? When?” I asked. He was an uncompromising bachelor, married to the family. He was known to assault his girlfriends, and only one had stuck around more than a year. We had so many pictures of her battered body; I wondered how long she would stay. Then she disappeared. I wasn’t sure if I should fear the woman who had finally tamed him or fear for her.

“We’re currently unable to locate Coco,” Travis said.

“Since when?” Val asked, seeming concerned.

“Since yesterday.”

“Coco is Angelo’s wife?” I asked.

Travis nodded, but he didn’t look at me, a telltale sign he wasn’t being completely honest.

“Then we’re not finished,” Val snapped. “Any loose ends equals unfinished. They are the wives of the Carlisis, and Chiara is a known hitman for Giada. What? They aren’t dangerous because they’re women? Tell me you’re not that stupid.”

Travis bristled. “We have it covered, Val.”

“It’s all or nothing,” Val said, pointing at him. “Those words came from your mouth, Maddox.”

“I know what I said.”

“Then why are you being so careless now? Why would you … oh.” Recognition flashed in her eyes, and she realized the rush. Thomas was in a hurry to get home, and no one could argue with that. Not even the director.

Liis covered her mouth, her eyes glossing over.

Agent Hyde put her hand on her holster, inching back from the kitchen window curtain with two fingers. “Incoming,” she said.

Liis tried to run for the door, but Travis stopped her.

“Just wait,” he said.

Agent Hyde relaxed. “It’s not us.”

Travis’s brows pulled together. “Who is it?”

Hyde nodded toward the door. After two knocks, Trenton pushed through, leading Camille in by the hand. They instantly knew something was up, gazing around to the strange positions of everyone in the room.

“Fuck,” Travis said, glancing out the window, and then tried to herd his brother out the door. “You have to go.”