“Where is it?”
“Still in Florida.”
“You’re not taking me.” I knew the answer.
He shifted in his seat, leaning forward. “The only way I can protect you is by doing my job. If I’m lucky, it won’t take more than a few days.” I wanted to argue with him that his job wasn’t to hunt down or demand an arrest, but not only was doing so futile, I wanted him to become more of a vigilante. What did that say about me?
“A few days. I thought your job was to bring justice to the victim’s family.”
“Not any longer. You’ll have protection round the clock until I do come and get you. When I do, you’ll be free.” The catch in his voice caught my full attention. Suddenly, I wasn’t certain if what we’d shared had been real or just a physical need blinded by danger.
An ache formed in my belly.
“Free.” What could I say to that? “Maybe I don’t want to be free.”
His look became even more demanding, but the corners of his mouth slowly uplifted.
Every time he grinned, the butterflies residing in my stomach began to flutter. “Well, then I guess I’ll need to learn how best to cage and control you.”
“Will you use shackles?”
“Absolutely. Little birds tend to try and fly away.”
“You know what they say. Let them free and if they return, they’re eager to be captured and kept.”
He burst into laughter, the sound warming every inch of me. “You’re very special.”
“I’m just me.” I’d teetered around a question that I knew he wouldn’t like. “The case you mentioned that came between you and Camille. It involved her sister and niece. Didn’t it?” Maybe now was the wrong time to ask, yet I’d felt compelled.
For a few seconds, I was certain he wasn’t going to answer me. Then he took a deep breath and was able to look me in the eyes. “Yes. They were killed by another monster, someone her sister had fought hard to keep from her life. She did all the right things. A restraining order. Ensuring her child would never be able to see her father without court supervision. She’d finally started to live again, protected by her big sister.”
“But the system failed her.”
“Yes. Even after Camille had gone to great lengths to keep the three of them protected, even moving to another part of the city, purchasing a security system and keeping tabs on the man, somehow, he found them. On a day when Camille was at work, he struck, killing both his ex-girlfriend and his own flesh and blood. With no remorse.”
“Oh, my God.” My thoughts immediately drifted to my little princess. “He wasn’t convicted.”
“No. He had an alibi and with the evidence of the crime scene inadmissible, there was nothing that could be done. The guy had cleaned up his act, a model citizen with a good job and a nice house. The jury didn’t buy it.”
“So, he’s a free man.”
“Yes, he is, although he was smart enough to move out of town. If not, Camille would have done something she would have regretted for the rest of her life. Maybe now you can understandwhy I’m not going to allow history to repeat itself. Not now. Not ever.”
“You’re worried about Bruno.”
“I’m concerned about the reason he’s back in town.”
“And you think he’s working with this cartel.”
His sigh was heavy, another weight needing to be shed. “I know he is and I’m determined to discover his intentions. But I assure you that he won’t touch you or Bella.”
I believed him.
“Are you going to do something you’ll regret for the rest of your life?”
He chuckled, the look in his eyes entirely different. His answer should chill me, but it didn’t.
“No.”
