Susanna fell silent, her mind spinning as she digested everything. Somehow, hearing all this actually made her feel a little better.


    She thought about how her mom had always kept her at arm''s length all these years. Probably because people from ck Gate were always lurking around, searching for her. No wonder her mom had been so distant-she was trying to protect her. It still stung, though. Back then, her mom had left in a fury, taking something truly important with her. Serves ck Gate right that things have turned out this way. After all the hell they put her and her mom through, it was only fair they were getting a taste of their own medicine now.


    "I just heard Xander swiped something from those twins, too." Ste''s voice snapped Susanna out of her thoughts.


    Susanna grinned. "Good for him! Tell Yvonne to go all in-whatever she wants, tell her to take it!"


    Thinking about those twins only made Susanna more fired up. It was hard not tough, knowing they''d been robbed.


    Especially when she pictured their smug faces...


    "Star, you know, I''ve never bought that those twins are actually Derek''s kids," Susanna confided.


    Ste snorted. "Who cares whose they are? Doesn''t matter right now. Let''s just focus on taking what we can."


    "Yeah, let Yvonne handle it," Susanna said, her voice lowering. No way was she calling Yvonne herself she had no desire to get chewed out.


    "Got it," Ste replied, understanding. She wasn''t eager to poke the bear either; Yvonne was still seething, and it was best not to test her patience.


    The two chatted a while longer before finally hanging up. Susanna left her room and nearly walked into Hull, who was on the phone in the hallway.


    She caught a snippet of Yvonne''s voiceing through the speaker. "Hull, just tell me what you want me to do!"


    Yvonne soundedpletely frazzled, her nerves stretched thin.


    Susanna shrank back, hesitating at the doorway. Whatever Ste had told her, it was clear now: just hearing Yvonne''s voice was enough to set her on edge.


    Hull nced over at her, then, as if to make a point, said into the phone, "Just keep taking what you can. Don''t stop."


    Susanna''s anxiety spiked. She


    wondered if maybe it wouldn''t be better to just leave Yvonne out of all this At least then, when Yvonne found out she''d been in Hull''s care, she wouldn''t be so furious.


    "Fine," Yvonne snapped, and hung up.


    Hull turned to Susanna and beckoned her over. She padded toward him, looking for all the world like a scolded puppy, lips quivering.


    She looked so miserable, it was almostical. Hull smirked, then pulled her into his arms, tilting her chin up for a lingering kiss.


    When he finally let her go, she was still pouting, eyes watery. "What is it now?" he asked, amused.


    "Yvonne''s going to want to tear me apart when she finds out," Susanna muttered.


    "She might bite your head off, but she won''t kill you," Hull replied with a casual shrug.


    Susanna shuddered. "Honestly, the biting sounds bad enough."


    Hull justughed at her. "Rx. She''s got bigger fish to fry than you. Trust me."


    "Huh?" Susanna blinked.


    "The Schultz family''s been having some troubletely. Once things wrap up here in Litamark, they''ll head back to Ferrond The Schultzes will keep them plen


    busy."


    Susanna''s mouth twitched. She remembered back in Portis City, watching all those feuding families w at each other and thinking how exhausting it all seemed


    Why all the fighting, the scheming, the grabbing for more?


    And yet, here she was right in the thick of it herself. She might not be stealing things personally, but ck Gate''s chaos had started with her, hadn''t it?


    She nced at Hull, her voice timid. "Will you help Yvonne, too, when the timees?"