Page 27 of Knight Watch

Chapter Twelve

The road triphad been exhausting, and neither Sydney nor Kingsley wanted to stop, so they switched places several times, driving through the night and taking turns behind the wheel so they could catch some sleep. Time was of the essence. Her evil uncle would realize she wasn’t in Miami anymore, even if their decoy was as good as they said she was.

Since last the text from Mercy telling them that she and James had been tailed and were under surveillance by her uncle’s men, Sydney was on edge, her body tense and wired. She hated the thought of anybody risking their lives for her. Kingsley kept telling her the members of the Alliance Agency had extensive training, and it was their job to take risks, but it didn’t soothe her frayed nerves. An entire team of people were in the line of fire because of her. Was she worth it?

That was a ridiculous thought and was only fed by self-hatred from what her uncle had done to her. When she thought of her parents and her early childhood and the happy times they’d had, she knew she deserved to be happy, to find peace. Of course she was worthy of living and being happy. It was what her parents had told her over and over. She could almost hear their voices in her head. She was ready to honor their memory and fight for what she wanted, for what she deserved.

Sydney glanced at the slumbering man beside her as she drove, and a surge of power and belief flooded her. He believed in her. Kingsley Knight had seen something in her from the start and was willing to stay by her side until the end. He’d broken all her preconceptions, challenged all her future expectations. And scariest of all, he made her hope. She needed to tell him what her uncle had done to her. Hiding it from him was unfair. He was going into the situation blind, didn’t fully understand her uncle’s evil. She needed to trust someone, and this man had shown her nothing but kindness.

As she drove, the landscape became more and more familiar. They had crossed the Indiana state line a while ago and were heading to Hobart, Lake County and would arrive early to mid-morning. Her great-aunt’s farm had been in the family for as long as she could remember, but when she’d died, it had been sold to a local. It had broken Sydney’s heart, but her father had no inclination or desire for farming and their lives were in Florida. The emotion she felt was attached to fond childhood memories of family and life moved on.

The sight of the endless forest increased her anticipation. The view, the scent, the feel was so different from Florida. Everything was lush, abundant, fertile. When she saw the sign announcing Hobart was less than a mile away, Sydney gently touched Kingsley’s knee. He came awake with a start, was fully aware in less than a second.

“Everything all right?” His voice was so deep, his British accent thick and sexy and so full of concern, it made her heart flutter.

“Everything is fine, we’ll be in Hobart in a few minutes. Do you want me to stop or should we go straight to the farm?”

Rubbing his face, he looked at his watch before settling his eyes on her. “How do you feel about it? Do you want to take a break, go grab a coffee or get it over with?”

Once more, she was deeply touched by his solicitude. “If you don’t mind, I’d rather go straight there now. I don’t want to put it off. Plus, I’d rather keep the edge over Raymond as he doesn’t know where we are right now.”

His approval was instantaneous. “Excellent thinking. Let’s do it. You want me to drive?”

Sydney shook her head. “No, I’d rather keep myself occupied. And we’re only fifteen minutes away.” She drove for a few more minutes wrestling with herself and what she knew she needed to do, but she struggled to get the words to form. She knew it was a chicken shit thing to do, to blindside him like she was about to with no warning, but she knew it was the only way. Similar to ripping off a band-aid. It had to be done fast. Determined not to overthink it and talk herself out of saying anything, she took a deep breath and spoke. “When I was fifteen, my uncle raped me.”

There was a second of stunned silence before Sydney heard Kingsley’s swift intake of breath as her words registered, but he remained silent. Encouraged, she kept her eyes on the road as she told him the details. How Troy had held her down while her uncle raped her. She blocked all emotion from her voice, retelling it as if it had happened to someone else and not her.

When she was finished the car was silent for another beat. She sighed inwardly and cast a glance at Kingsley to see his reaction. She expected to see disgust and pity on his face, but instead, she saw compassion and pride in his eyes as he looked at her.

“Shit, Sydney, I’m so, so sorry that happened to you. No one should ever have to go through something like that, especially not at the hands of a family member.” His words were filled with compassion, but his jaw was tight, and his fists were clenched where they rested on his thighs, proving he wasn’t as unaffected as he wanted her to believe with his words. “I will find him and when I do, I’ll make sure he pays for what he did to you.”

The emotion in his voice made it gruff and she gave him a small smile. “I survived,” she said, realizing she didn’t want to just survive anymore. She wanted to thrive, to live, to love, and she wanted this man to be a part of her life.

“You did more than that, you built a life and you fought back. You should be proud of yourself.”

Both were silent for a beat.

“Can we keep this between us for now?”

Kingsley nodded and stretched his tall body as much as he could in the small space before checking his phone, obviously sensing she didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

“Nothing from Mercy or the others?”

“Same old, same old. Mercy and James are acting as if they’re searching for something and leading Rutherford’s men all over Miami, making sure they keep them in sight at all times. The rest of the team are still digging. I think solving the next piece of the puzzle falls to us.”

She shot a quick prayer the good lord for the missing puzzle piece to fall into her lap. The riddle her father left her had been cryptic at best. She recognized her great-aunt’s farm and the hazel tree, but what if it wasn’t what her father meant? She shook off the negative thoughts knowing they would do no good.

When she took the turn onto a small dirt road, the sun shone above the trees, and Sydney felt as if a weight had lifted from her shoulders, replaced by a certainty she couldn’t explain. She’d had to come here. It was what her father had wanted her to do.

Swallowing hard when she turned into the entrance, her heart seized when she saw the small cottage and barn. It had never been a big farm, but it had been perfect, and as she looked around she saw it was identical to her memory.

“Breathe, Sydney.”

Kingsley had been looking around, but he must have noticed her becoming overwhelmed as memories and emotions flooded her brain. She took a few deep cleansing breaths that helped her spinning head. She parked near the barn, stepping out of the car slowly.

Kingsley came to her side, took her hand in his, hiding her body with his own as he looked around. Always watching for any threats, his guard never down. A woman appeared at the door to the cottage, wiping her hands on a white dishcloth.

“Let me do the talking,” he murmured.