“You did?” Am I that much of an open book? Can anyone read me?
He holds his palm out. “Can I take your hand?”
After a brief hesitation, I give him my left hand. If he hadn’t been as understanding and patient as he was when he listenedto me tell him all about Derek’s abuse, my hesitation would have been much longer, or I’d have told him no.
Wyatt still has my right hand and shows no sign whatsoever that he’s ready to let go of it yet. I don’t have a problem with it. His touch grounds me in the present when the past wants to drag me into painful memories.
The sheriff takes my palm and squeezes it between his two large, warm hands. “Fear is a powerful motivator to stay with a controlling man. What happened to you and the motel worker in Nevada must have convinced you to keep quiet and always keep moving, but the more people who know, the more we can help. You did a very brave thing by leaving and by talking to me about it. What you trusted me with stays with my men at the station and me, and I will do everything in my power to protect you, Maisie Lucas. You have my word on that.”
My eyes prick with tears. “Thanks, Sheriff.”
There aren’t many people I’ve wanted to hug since Derek turned my life into one filled with pain, but I pull my hand from Wyatt and hug the sheriff for taking care of me even before I felt I could ask for his help.
“Will you be staying here?” he asks me once we’ve pulled apart.
I glance at the four alphas who have stayed by my side and haven’t looked like they will ever leave it. This is their home, and I’m a guest here for however long they want me to stay.
Wyatt takes my hand and squeezes it. “She’s staying with us.”
The sheriff hums. “That’s good. I couldn’t help but notice your security system.”
“What security system?”Inever noticed it. Maybe I’m blind, but outside looks like a perfectly ordinary farmhouse to me.
“We had it installed before you came to stay,” Elias explains. “We asked the landlord if it was okay, and since we were happyto pay for it and install it ourselves, he didn’t have a problem with it.”
Hunter rakes a hand through his hair, wincing when his fingers snag on a tangle. “Knox said it might not be a bad idea to get something set up in case you ever needed a safe place to stay. He had a feeling trouble might follow you here. We all did.”
“That had to be expensive,” I say, touched.
Knox lifts one shoulder in a casual half-shrug. “It was just a few bits and pieces.”
The sheriff’s eyebrows shoot up, and I’m almost scared to ask how much those few bits and pieces cost. From his reaction, we’re not dealing with a cheap security system he picked up from Walmart.
“What exactly is this security system?” I ask.
“Motion sensor lights in case anyone approaches the house,” Knox says. “If someone trips it at night, floodlights will blind them. During the day, we live far enough out of town that we can hear an engine and see a car approaching. Means no one can surprise us.”
Lights can’t be that expensive, can they?
“Oh, that’s not so bad,” I say.
“It’s linked with an alarm that will deafen a person if they try to open the doors and windows.” Knox avoids my shocked gaze as he scratches his jaw. “And an external camera I can view through an app on my phone.”
My jaw drops.
“That’s it.” Knox’s rapid glance at the sheriff reveals it isn’t it at all. There’s something else he doesn’t want the sheriff to know about.
I envision a panic room or a closet filled with an arsenal of weapons. Then I wrinkle my nose and tell myself to stop being ridiculous. This isn’t an action movie.
The sheriff gets to his feet. “I’ll get out of here,” he says, surprising me by not pushing to know if Knox is hiding something illegal from him. “Maisie staying here will encourage Derek to keep his distance.”
I make a face as I ask a question I suspect I already know the answer to. “That means no going back to work, right?”
The smartest thing I can do is to stay away from town and not give Derek a target.
“At least for the next few days,” he says apologetically. “I know you’d like to get back to work. Once Derek shows his face, things can go back to normal around here. I’m not the only one missing your pies, Miss Lucas.”
Smiling at his compliment, I feel confident in saying, “It’s okay. Nico would want me to be safe, even if that means he’s down a waitress for a little while. Maybe I can figure out another way of helping him that isn’t so public.”
