Marc winced.“Any Pride would want that child within its confines.Especially if Joseph stole El from the mother or something like that.”
“You can’t be serious?”
Trip sighed.“I thought you were off your head, Marc, but the abductions are… they’re more than just about the money.You’re right.It’s personal.They want her.And they keep on trying.”
Shawn shook his head, refusing to let them overreact and slide down this particular slippery slope.“You have zero evidence to back this up.None at all.”
Trip shot Shawna look.“Get a DNA sample from Annabel, and we can easily discern if she’s El’s mother or not.Once we know the truth, we can work from there.Either scrapping Marc’s idea totally, or leapfrogging onto it and trying to figure out a way to stop anyone from coming after El again.”
Though all of this was crazy, Shawn pinned El, who was some distance away now and only visible because he had great vision, with a look.“We’re talking about wrecking the foundations of her life.”
“For her safety.And she needn’t know.Not if Annabel is her mother.”
At Marc’s persuasive tone, Shawn blew out a breath.Starting the engine, as he pulled out onto the road and began the short drive back to the compound, he murmured, “I’ll see what I can do.”
Chapter 13
“Can that be fast tracked?”
As Shawn walked into the office the two days later, Ryan and the others caught the tail end of his conversation.
Aware of Marc’s hypothesis, Ryan was sitting firmly on the fence until they had more information.
“I hope that was to do with the DNA sample you sent off?”he asked, having been made cognizant of the situation and wanting Shawn to know it.
Shawn had asked Anita for a hair sample from Annabel’s hairbrush.Because the maid was devoted to El, she’d complied, but Shawn had grumbled, saying the old woman wanted to know why they were asking for hair samples—she was an avid fan of NCIS, apparently.
“Yes.They’re hoping to get it to me by the end of the week.”
“Not a moment too soon, either,” Trip grumbled.“The sooner we can put Marc’s theory to bed, the better.I don’t like this.Not one bit.”
Marc snorted.“Because I love having these whacko ideas, right?”
Trip merely rolled his eyes.“I’m just pissed that she’s elected to sleep with you these past two nights.Again.What’s with that?”
Ryan snorted.“Because you didn’t fuck her the other night?Shawn and I haven’t had a chance to get close to her at all!”
Not that it was about the sex.Although, it was a little bit.They were guys, and there was no escaping that.
Marc shrugged.“She feels safe with me.”
“She should feel safe with all of us.”
Trip’s grumble had Ryan sighing.He was feeling the pinch too, but there was no way to make sense of a mate bond.It manifested how it manifested.“You know that’s not how this works.”
He shrugged.“I don’t care that it’s not how this works.It still sucks.”
Marc snorted.“Yeah.Our mate, sobbing in my arms as she falls asleep, sucks.”
Shawn dragged in a shaky breath.“Christ, if I could take it back, I would.”
“I don’t think it’s just you, Shawn,” Marc tried to appease.“I think it’s more the whole situation is wearing on her.Now I understand her past and how vulnerable she is when it comes to being in bed, it makes a lot more sense.”
Ryan felt the familiar rage flush through him.Whoever the fuck had kidnapped El had more than just stolen her from safety and made her realize that she was constantly vulnerable, but also, they’d robbed her of genuine, deep, and peaceful rest.
Sleep was a person’s most vulnerable time.Those moments where their total defenses were down and they were in danger without even really being aware of it.
For El, sleep was no longer the welcome haven it had once been.Bed wasn’t a comfort after a long day of hard slog.It was a place to be feared.
