Caylon exchanges a glance with Trent and the day takes another ominous turn when he nods.
“We could use you as bait to trace him privately and take action to ensure he never bothers you again.”
My head spins, spine tingling like it’s about to lose all feeling. I’m about to protest, I’m not bait for their private game, I’d rather stick with the police, then Trent takes my hand, squeezing. “We’ll make sure he never bothersanyoneagain.” His eyes are stormy, rough seas ready to drag under anybody foolish enough to venture from shore. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”
They’re talking about killing him.
I wait for the guilt to hit me. For my conscience to rise and declare its preference to remain clean. Instead, a thrill of satisfaction wriggles along my spine.
Yes. They’re talking about killing him and I’m glad.
If they find evidence linking back to my uncle, who must surely be behind this, no matter what the police DNA results say, his is another name I’d gratefully add to their list.
“What do I have to do?”
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
TRENT
I’m nothappy about dangling Rosa in front of a malicious stalker like a piece of tasty meat. However, there’s no way I’d turn this task over to the police and without another option occurring to me, I grudgingly accept that it’s the best thing to do.
We remain outside, out of reach of the mics and cameras, while talking through the logistics.
“Don’t do anything out of the ordinary,” Caylon tells her. “The idea is that nothing has changed, nothing has been discovered. Don’t parade about in front of the cameras and don’t hide from them, either. That’ll be a dead giveaway.”
I see the strain of that last request hitting. Her face is so pale she looks ill, her jaw clenched so hard her gums must be groaning.
I understand her worry. It’s the same thing that stops her helping me in the way I need most.
“When we find him, we’ll destroy every recording,” I promise her, easing some shadows from under her eyes. “Caylon will trace every account he’s ever touched upon and wipe them clean. There’ll be nothing left.”
Rosa nods but my words are totally inadequate compared to her worry.
“If my dad has to buy every cloud storage facility under the sun just to wipe them clean as a backup, we’ll do it.”
“Mr Moneybags,” she teases, rolling her eyes, but I’m glad to see some of the despair wash away.
“It could be weeks,” she tells me outside, while waving goodbye to Caylon. “Or never. Just because it feels imminent after discovering all those devices, doesn’t mean it is. Unless they know we’ve discovered them.”
“It better not be,” I growl, instantly trying to sort out how to get there sooner. “Maybe we should muck about with a few of the cameras. It could force them to come forward to attempt a repair.”
I walk inside, feeling far more positive about my spur-of-the-moment suggestion.
“Or you could just stand there, glaring straight at one,” she whispers into my ear with a laugh. “The poor thing’s probably wondering what it did wrong.”
I don’t like anything about the arrangement, but Caylon and Rosa are both a hell of a lot smarter than me, so I defer to their intellect. Once we catch the bastard, I can put myself to better use smashing the fuck out of them until they never terrorise another innocent girl, ever again.
“Oh, good news,” Rosa says, her smile fading to one with less certainty. “I found someone happy to join in with a live show.” She must see something in my face because she adds, “If you still want to do that.”
I reach out to catch hold of her, drawing her into a hug. The scent of her hair is probably cheap shampoo that would smell basic on anyone else but on her, it’s delightful. Especially when I’m nuzzling into the curve of her neck, my mouth salivating to bite at her shoulder.
“Is that a yes?”
The rush of desire overwhelms me, and my response is more of a hum than an answer. When I draw back, she’s frowning, concerned, and I stroke her cheekbone with my thumb, nodding. “That sounds good. Will it happen here?”
“I’d prefer it at work.” She scratches the side of her cheek, hard enough to leave red trails on her skin. “That way I have more control over…” She waves her hand, chewing on her lip as her worry resurfaces.
“I think that’s a great idea,” I say with far more enthusiasm. “You’ll have to give me lots of orders. Otherwise, I won’t know what to do.”
