He glanced at the screen, his expression darkening as he read the name flashing across it.
Without hesitation, he picked up, his gaze still fixed on Vaughn, who lay motionless in his arms.
His voice dropped low, a murmur of harsh whispers that Amara couldn’t quite catch.
She watched him with curiosity but the icy intensity in Rowan’s eyes told her that whatever the caller had said was serious and urgent..
When he finally hung up, Rowan moved and leaned forward to pick Vaughn up from his place on the couch.
Amara’s confusion deepened, her heart pounding as she tried to understand what he wanted to do.. She opened her mouth to question him, but Rowan’s eyes met hers.
“Let’s go,” he said simply, his tone giving her no room to argue.
Despite her confusion, something in Rowan’s voice quieted her doubts.
She felt that instinctive trust take over, the kind of trust that was as terrifying as it was liberating.
She didn’t understand when she even started to trust him..
Without a word, she nodded and followed him out, her hands clenched tightly as she trailed behind, her gaze fixed on Vaughn, who remained lost in his own world, seemingly untouched by the urgency around him.
Rowan strapped Vaughn carefully into the backseat, and Amara slid in beside him, her hand instinctively resting on her son’s knee.
She tried once more to reach him, to coax some response from the vacant stare in his eyes.
“Vaughn, we’re going somewhere special,” she said softly, leaning close to him.
But her words seemed to drift into an empty void, falling flat against the silence that had taken root within him.
She swallowed hard, forcing herself to stay composed.
As Rowan slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine, the hum of the car felt like the only sound in a world that had become silent.
For an hour, they drove through the city, the bustling streets gradually giving way to the winding roads that led them away from civilization.
Amara kept trying to engage Vaughn, talking about memories they had shared, recounting the times he had laughed..
But nothing broke through the wall of silence.
Vaughn remained oblivious, a shadow of the vibrant son she once knew, and each word she spoke felt like it was being swallowed by the growing emptiness between them.
Finally, the car came to a halt, and Amara looked out to see the familiar waters of Lake Las Vegas stretching before them.
The sky was overcast, casting a muted light over the landscape, adding to the somber weight of the moment.
Rowan got out of the car and walked around to Amara’s side, opening the door for her with a soft expression.
He then turned his attention to Vaughn, unbuckling him and lifting him into his arms with the kind of care that made Amara’s chest tighten.
She stepped out, feeling the cool wind brush against her skin, carrying with it the scent of the lake.
She followed Rowan, each step feeling heavier than the last as they walked toward the large estate that loomed on the hill, its dark exterior blending into the stormy sky above.
Rowan led them inside, his movements steady, and Amara found herself clutching her arms, feeling the silence press down on them as they entered the expansive living room.
The space was dimly lit, the large windows offering a view of the lake beyond, its surface rippling under the gathering storm clouds.
Rowan set Vaughn down on a plush couch, kneeling in front of him. He looked at the boy with an expression that Amara couldn’t quite decipher.. something fierce, yet filled with a tenderness that she rarely saw.
She felt her breath hitch as she watched him reach out, his hands cupping Vaughn’s face gently, as if he were trying to draw him back from whatever dark place he had retreated to.
“Vaughn,” Rowan’s voice was low, almost a whisper. “Look at me.”
For a brief moment, Amara thought she saw Vaughn’s eyes flicker, a faint spark beneath the emptiness.
But then, like a dying ember, it faded, leaving only that hollow, distant gaze. Rowan clenched his jaw, his hands dropping to his sides in quiet frustration.
Rowan turned to Amara, his expression steady but serious. “Wait here for a minute. I’ll be right back.”
Amara nodded, she watched as he walked out, his figure disappearing through the heavy wooden doors of his private residence. She glanced down at Vaughn, who remained unresponsive, his small hand still clutching the polished stone Rowan had given him.
The minutes felt like an eternity, stretching out in silence as Amara’s heart thudded with a mixture of hope and fear.
She was trying to stay strong, willing herself to hold on to any scrap of faith she could muster.
Just as the waiting started to crush her, she heard footsteps approaching. She looked up, her breath catching in her throat.
Rowan stepped back into the room, but he wasn’t alone.
At his side was the small, striped figure of a baby tiger, its round eyes curious and alert as it padded alongside him.
The sight of the creature made Amara’s chest tighten. She remembered the way Vaughn’s face had lit up the last time he’d seen this tiger, a fleeting moment of joy breaking through the clouds of his silence.
Amara felt a wave of gratitude and a pang of sorrow all at once. Rowan had remembered..
He had gone to lengths she hadn’t expected, bringing back this little piece of happiness for Vaughn in a desperate attempt to reach him. Her eyes stung as tears slipped down her cheeks, unbidden but unstoppable.
Rowan guided the tiger closer to Vaughn, moving with a gentle, cautious grace. He knelt beside Vaughn, positioning the small tiger directly in front of him.
The white tiger cocked its head, regarding Vaughn with a curious gaze, and let out a soft, playful growl, nudging its nose toward him.
“Look who came to see you, Vaughn,” Rowan said softly, his voice gentle but edged with hope. “Remember? You liked him last time.”