Page 53 of Vicious Temptation

Confirmations come through my comms as the team secures the bank.

“All clear.”

“Front secure.”

“No additional contacts.”

Ryan falls into step beside me as I carry Zara toward the exit. A female officer approaches and reaches for her, but her arms lock around my neck. Protocol tells me to hand her over and let the officers outside get her to EMS. But I find myself holding her a little closer.

Maybe it’s because she recognized me, and I’m the only familiar face in a room full of armed strangers, or maybe seeing her like this made the whole thing personal in a way I wasn’t prepared for. Whatever the reason, I can’t bring myself to pass her off yet.

“Come with me, sweetie,” the officer says, resting a gentle hand on her back.

Zara recoils and buries her face deeper against me.

“No,” she whispers, clinging tighter. “No, don’t leave me, Officer Thiago. Please, don’t leave me.”

“I’ve got her,” I tell the woman. “I’ll take her to EMS.”

The officer nods and steps aside.

“You know her?” Ryan asks, clearing a path as we move.

Before I can answer, a familiar pair of blue eyes meets mine across the street.

Remi.

She has a phone pressed to her ear, but her hand slowly falls to her side as she stares at the little girl in my arms. Then she runs, ducks beneath the barricade before the officer beside her can stop her, and races across the street toward us. Several cops move to intercept, blocking her path as one reaches for her arm.

“Let her through,” I call out.

“She can’t be in here,” one of them shouts back.

“She’s family.”

Ryan steps forward. “Let her through.”

The officers hesitate before stepping aside.

Zara lifts her head at the sound of the commotion, and the second she sees Remi, her fingers twist even harder into my vest.

“She’s not hurt,” I say quickly, reading the panic in Remi’s eyes. “The blood isn’t hers.”

Remi looks at Zara from head to toe, taking in every inch of her, then her gaze shifts past us toward the bank. She doesn’t ask. Her lips tremble, and I know she understands.

“Zara! Oh, God, you’re okay.”

Matteo reaches us and pulls her against his chest, his hands moving over her hair and face as he checks her himself.

“She still needs to be medically assessed,” I tell him. “I’ll walk you over.”

He looks at me, emotion breaking through the hard expression I remember from the range, and places a hand on my shoulder.

“Thank you.”

I nod, but my attention returns to Remi. She hasn’t moved or spoken a word.

Her eyes meet mine. A week ago, she looked at my badge and saw everything she hated. She told me that what I do for a living told her everything she needed to know about me. Now she’s looking at me like she doesn’t know what to see. And maybe I don’t either.