Anton drew his weapon and flew up the stairs two at a time.
“Bandit,” I called, my voice trembling. To my shock, he stopped barking and came down the stairs to stand in front of me. He trembled with fear and adrenaline, but he was still on guard, and his focus never wavered from the top of the stairs.
After a lifetime of waiting, Anton appeared at the top of the stairs. “There’s no one up here.”
I blinked in confusion. “I just saw him. He was standing at the top of the steps. He was looking down at me.”
Anton was already on the phone as he came down the stairs.
Fifteen minutes later,the guard, Anton and I were crowded around a laptop in the kitchen as we played back all the security tapes. So far, despite watching all nine of the camera views, we had yet to see footage of anyone on camera.
“Maybe there’s a blind spot?” I asked, feeling stupid.
“Where are we at?” Axel walked into the house, while the three men who followed him split up and started to search the house.
I gave him a guilty look. “I think it was a false alarm.”
He looked between the three of us. “What happened?”
Neither the guard nor Anton spoke.
I delicately cleared my throat. “Bandit lost it. He was barking up the stairs, and I saw Sergei standing at the top. But we can’t find him on any of the cameras, so now I’m not sure what I saw.”
Axel and Anton exchanged looks. “Roll back the tapes,” Axel instructed the guard. “I want to see.”
“There’s nothing there,” I said mournfully, thinking of my paranoia in the bathroom at school. “I’m obviously seeing ghosts and stressing everyone out.”
“I heard Bandit barking,” Anton replied as consolation. “That’s not nothing.”
“There,” Axel said. He pointed to the feed from the camera that monitored my bedroom door. “Roll that back by about ten seconds, and can you slow it down?”
He did, and we all watched.
The door moved slightly, and then in the background the faintest of shadows was reflected in the hallway mirror. We’d all missed it, but Axel had noticed. There wasn’t enough of an image to prove that it was Sergei, but someone had definitely been upstairs.
“How’d he get in?” Anton asked, confused.
Axel rubbed the back of his neck. “Ask the men to search every inch of this place. I want them on the roof, in the basement, in the garage. I need to know how he got past you and the two guards.”
“I’m on it.” Anton and the guard exited the kitchen, leaving Axel and I alone.
“Was that really Sergei? Is he in Canada?”
He looked concerned. “Your uncle sent him. I didn’t want you to worry about him, and I never thought he’d come near you.He’s been so busy causing shit at work, I didn’t imagine he’d have time to try something with you.”
Which explained why my workaholic husband seemed never to take a break. I should have been shaking in fear over my encounter with Sergei, but standing and talking with Axel, I felt nothing but a sense of security and calm. That was the effect my husband had on me. He made me feel safe.
“Thank you.” I reached for his hand. He willingly grabbed it back and pulled me toward him. He didn’t stop until I was snug against his chest, looking up at him, and his arms were wrapped around my waist.
I studied his face while he studied me back. His expression was a mixture of curiosity, wariness and intense heat.
I loved seeing any kind of emotion on his face. I loved it when he showed me, however small the glimpses, how he felt. It made me smile.
“What?” His tone was slightly impatient but his expression was mild, like he was content simply holding me.
“I just feel better when you’re around. Especially when you’re snuggly.”
That made him smile. “Snuggling? Is that what we’re doing?”
