31. Epilogue

Rylan stood in the parking lot of the sheriff's office, his fists clenched at his sides. He'd given himself a few days before doing this, given himself time to calm down, but his mind was still a whirlwind, his thoughts crashing into one another as anger boiled beneath the surface.

He needed to confront her.

Needed her to explain how she could have done what she did.

The woman who had betrayed them.

The woman who had betrayed his sister .

Izzy emerged from the front doors, flanked by two deputies. She was in civilian clothes and carried a box in her arms, her eyes red-rimmed with tears.

Fuck. He hated seeing her tears.

And that just made the fury burn brighter inside him. The deputies escorted her to her car, an old sedan with a dent in the side door and rust on the bumper.

He waited until they left her there before striding toward her. His boots scraped against the pavement, and she turned at the sound. Her eyes widened in surprise. The box teetered precariously in her arms as she faced him.

"Rylan, I... I can explain."

He stopped a few feet from her. His jaw clenched so tight he was half-afraid he'd break a molar.

"No." He cut her off, taking a step forward, his jaw tight with rage. "You don't get to talk. You don't get to make excuses." His words were clipped, each one sharp like a blade. "You put us in danger, Izzy. My friends. My sister. "

Izzy flinched at the accusation, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "I didn't have a choice," she whispered. "They threatened my family. They had a gun to my mama's head when she called me. I had to protect them."

"You didn't have a choice?" Rylan's voice rose, and the anger he had been holding in for days finally spilled over. "You always have a choice—and you still chose to hand Pierce over, knowing damn well that could've killed us all, your family included."

"I wasn't—" Izzy's voice cracked. "I thought?—"

"You thought what?" His laugh was cold, humorless. "You knew what kind of people you were dealing with. You knew what they were capable of. You've been dealing with the fallout for the last week. But you still gave them what they wanted."

"I was scared." Tears spilled down her cheeks.

He would not let those tears sway him.

He stepped closer, his voice low and dangerous. "We were all scared, Izzy. Every damn one of us. But we didn't sell each other out."

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm so sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it. Because of you, half of Ethan's team is out of commission. By all accounts, Gage should be dead, but by some miracle, he survived. Everyone from Redwood Coast Rescue sustained serious injuries. And Pierce and Rhiannon almost died to protect the world from the weapon. They almost died, Izzy. "

Izzy's shoulders shook as a sob escaped her. She set the box on the roof of her car and pressed trembling hands to her face, but Rylan wasn't moved. He couldn't be. The image of Rhiannon trapped inside that vent as the world exploded around her haunted his dreams. It twisted inside of him, a constant reminder that his sister had come so close to being lost forever for the second time this week.

And it was because of Izzy's betrayal.

"I thought they'd keep their word," she said, her voice trembling. "I thought they'd just take Pierce and let everyone else go. I didn't want any of this to happen. I didn't want anyone to get hurt."

"You should have thought about that before you sold us out," he snapped. "You should have trusted us. Trusted me. That's what hurts the most. You could have told me what was happening, and we would have figured it out together. But instead, you went behind my back and put everyone in danger."

She hung her head, her dark hair falling like a curtain around her face. The sight of her looking so broken, so defeated, stirred something deep inside Rylan. A flicker of the feelings he had been trying so hard to bury.

But he couldn't let himself feel that now. Couldn't let himself be swayed by the anguish in her eyes or the tremor in her voice.

"I know I messed up." Izzy lifted her gaze to meet his, her brown eyes swimming with regret. "I know I can never take back what I did. But please, Rylan, you have to believe me. I never wanted to hurt you or your sister, or anyone else. I was just… I was scared, and I made a mistake."

Part of him wanted to believe her, wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her that everything would be okay.

But the image of Rhiannon trapped, the sound of the explosion, the gut-wrenching fear that had consumed him at that moment—it all came rushing back, drowning out any sympathy he might have felt.

"A mistake? No, Izzy. A mistake is forgetting to lock the door or leaving the stove on. What you did? That was a choice. A selfish, cowardly choice."

She flinched as if he'd struck her, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. "I know, I know. And I hate myself for it. I was weak and stupid, and I'll regret it for the rest of my life. It cost me a job I loved. It cost me—" She stopped short, but he knew exactly what she'd been about to say.

You.

Whatever thing had been… growing between them, whatever future they might have had together, it was gone now. Shattered like glass, the pieces too sharp to ever put back together.

Rylan took a step back, his hands clenching and unclenching at his sides. His chest ached with every ragged breath he took, and he told himself it was because he was angrier than he'd ever been in his life. It wasn't because he was mourning what could have been.

Izzy's shoulders sagged, her whole body seeming to deflate. She reached for the box on the roof of her car, her hands shaking so badly she nearly dropped it.

Rylan fought the instinct to reach out and steady her, to offer some small comfort. She didn't deserve it.

She put the box in her old, beat-up car, then turned to face him. "I just… I need you to know that I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry, Rylan. For everything. I hope… I hope you have a good life. And that, someday, you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

With that, she climbed into her car. The engine coughed before finally catching, and the whole contraption rattled ominously as she backed out of the parking space.

Forgive her?

He'd never forgive her.

Rylan stood motionless, watching as she drove away, her taillights disappearing into the ever-present fog of the California coast.

He wanted to feel vindicated, to take satisfaction in knowing that Izzy was suffering the consequences of her actions. But as he stood there alone in the darkening parking lot, all he felt was hollowed out and empty.

The anger that had been fueling him for days suddenly drained away, leaving behind an ache that felt suspiciously like loss. He scrubbed a hand over his face, his fingers rasping against the stubble on his jaw.

Fuck. He couldn't do this. Couldn't let himself wallow in self-pity or regret. What was done was done, and there was no going back.

Not for Izzy.

And not for him.

He had to pull himself together and move forward.

His people needed him.

He was, after all, their rock.