Giving up on the idea of opening it, I turn my back toward them and start running. Their quickening steps in the otherwise empty lot echo in my ears, making me sprint faster. A drop of moisture falls to my cheek, and I realize I’m crying. My throat constricts as hopelessness slowly swallows me. There’s no way for me to escape. There’s two of them. They are larger and faster. Still, I run as fast as my legs carry me, adrenaline pumping through my veins. My vision is blurry with tears, so I don’t see a body right in front of me until I crash into him. In that very moment, a gunshot fills the air, followed by a second one. My reflex reaction is panic, my fists clenching and hitting the wall of muscle before me. Huge arms wrap around me as a voice breaks through the noise. “Alex.” I continue punching as hard as I can. “Alex. It’s okay. You’re safe.”
Istare out the window of Leon’s car, my shoulders wrapped in his jacket. I’m sitting as far away as possible, tucked into the corner of the backseat, but even with the expansive interior I still feel like he’s right next to me. Dominik, the security guy who hates me, is in the driver’s seat.
After the initial shock, my heart is now heavy, my eyes brimming with tears. I have no idea how Leon found me, but I’m gladhe did. Seeing him again was like a breath of fresh air, but it was just a physiological reaction of feeling safe. My brain knows better.
I clear my throat, trying to rid it of the lump that formed what seems like hours ago. “Where are you taking me?”
My voice is barely audible, but Leon obviously hears me because he responds, “Home.” He is texting someone at the speed of light, his fingers flying over the screen of his phone. I wait for him to say more, but he doesn’t.
“Wh-whose home?” I eventually ask.
He lifts his gaze up to mine, and my breath hitches. Those dark eyes bore into me, their intensity pouring over me like molasses. It’s like he can see straight through me, and I hate it. “Mine.”
“Why would I go to your place? I haven’t forgotten the last time I was there.”
He sighs, dropping his phone onto his lap. “Do you have a better place to be?” His hand runs through his hair. “Look, we have a lot to talk about. I have a lot to say to you, but not now. Not tonight.” He returns his attention to the screen.
I stare at him for a second longer before bringing my gaze back to the window.
“The windows are bulletproof,” he says, as if reading my mind.
“What happened to the guys that were after me?”
“You won’t have to worry about them again.”
I hear his words loud and clear. They killed them. The knowledge should fill me with unease, but it doesn’t; it helps me release a breath that was stuck in my throat. My mind is jumbled, but my body is starting to relax, exhaustion overtaking me.
CHAPTER 30
Leon
Dom does a sweep of the garage before I help Alex out of the car. She hasn’t stopped shivering, and I can barely recognize her as the girl I saw just two weeks ago. Her jeans and hoodie are nothing like the dresses she typically wears, and her face is makeup-free. She’s still absolutely gorgeous, but fear is etched into every pore on her face, every muscle on her body. She seems small and weak, the opposite of the powerhouse she was not too long ago.
We rescued her in time, but it was a close call. A too fucking close call. What if we weren’t so lucky for Sophie and Alex to have a shared family group in the Find my Phone App? What if we didn’t get there in time? Photos of her lying in a hospital bed flash through my brain, and I dig my teeth into my bottom lip hard enough to draw blood. The pain pulls me back to reality, where there’s only one priority on my mind.
Keeping her safe.
Even though we killed the two cops who tried to do God knows what to her, her scumbag ex is still after her. Considering how I acted the last time, she has every right to send me to hell and not agree to stay in my home, but I don’t think I’m matureenough to give her a choice. She’s not safe. This is the only place I can oversee enough to make sure she is.
I unlock the door, and the excited thuds of Persephone’s paws race across my hardwood floors. Like the last two weeks of ignoring me never happened, my dog wags her tail, squealing with joy at seeing her friend. Alex drops to her knees, wrapping Persephone in a giant hug. A few sniffles break free, and I know that she’s getting the comfort she needs. The comfort I would love to give her, but I can’t.
In a desperate attempt to keep my cool, I turn to Dom. “You’ll stay here. Give her everything she needs. Keep her safe.” I emphasize the last sentence with my index finger.
“And you? You can’t be out there alone? Not right now.”
“Believe it or not, Dom. I led a whole dangerous life before hiring you and I did it all alone. Just keep her safe.” I tap his chest twice and, with a parting look at Alex and my rottweiler, leave the apartment.
Time to take back control.
My first stop is a little chat with the mayor. I call him on my ride over to his house. The man can barely stand me or my family, but fear keeps him in check. His campaigns depend on our financial support, and it tends to be useful for us to keep him in our pockets. His security lets me in, and I walk into his office, finding him pacing while holding a phone to his ear.
“No, no! Keep it under wraps. The public will go into a frenzy if they find out two cops were shot dead.” He’s silent for a second, before adding, “I don’t care how. Just keep it quiet.”
He ends the call, running a hand through his thinning hair. I’m used to his polished, not a hair out-of-place look, so this — his unbuttoned shirt and messy hair — is unusual. His office screams old money, with dark, polished woods and a collection of books he most likely never touched.
He doesn’t look at me as he pours expensive whiskey into a crystal glass and downs it in one sip. “Let me guess. You’re here for the same reason that phone call was about.”
“Something like that.” My tongue darts out to wet my bottom lip. “It was us who killed them. I expect your men to cover it up.”
