Page 68 of Hard Heart

“Relax, man. We’ll take care of the problem.”

Relax? How the hell could Levi relax? His world was spiralling out of control, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

CHAPTER 21

SERAFINA

“I actually agree with Levi,” Heidi said. “You should be studying for the bar exam and nothing else.”

“I’m multitasking. Some of these statutes might come up in the questions. And if I’m working in criminal law, then I need to understand every aspect of law enforcement in Virginia.”

Right before he had me practically orgasming from a foot massage, Sykes had shut down my idea of going to the state police, but I still had options. The Commonwealth’s Attorney for the county, the State Attorney General’s office—which had a civil rights division—or even the Virginia Bar Association, if any aspect happened to involve misconduct by a lawyer. I’d have to check into that.

And I’d also need to gather actual evidence, something beyond hearsay from two locals, one of whom was several sandwiches short of a picnic. I wished I could ask Raelene for advice, but I was fairly sure I’d be fired if I tried that, and I wasn’t ready to lose my job just yet. In a couple of months, I’d be more prepared. At this stage, I figured getting the sack was close to inevitable.

On Wednesday, I got one small piece of good news—I’d set up an account with Redding’s Hill’s contracted phone provider, and I’d been approved to receive calls. The better news? Sykes rang just in time for me to yell at him.

Okay, “yell” was perhaps too strong a word because he’d warned me this call was being recorded, but I definitely injected a hint of venom into my voice.

“There is a man sitting in the parking lot,” I snapped.

“Is he wearing leather?”

“You know full well he is.”

“Good.”

“That’s all you have to say for yourself? Good? You didn’t trust me to keep my word about studying, so you had to assign me a minder?”

“I didn’t trust the hornets you stirred up not to sting you, so a friend of a friend agreed to keep an eye out until the heat simmers down.” He lowered his voice to the deep rumble that did funny things to my insides. “I just want you to be safe, Sera.”

“Whatever. I still don’t need a babysitter. I’m only going to work and the grocery store.”

“Well, I need peace of mind, so this is the way it’s going to be.”

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re an asshole?”

“Many times, my darling. Many, many times.”

Why did he have to sound so damn reasonable about it? Ugh.

“This is only until the bar exam, right?”

“It’s until we’re satisfied there’s no longer a threat.”

Okay, we were back to overprotective. Normal service: resumed.

“And who, exactly, is assessing this threat level?”

“An acquaintance.”

I took the hint—he didn’t want to use any names in this discussion. I’d have to interrogate him further during my next in-person visit.

“This sucks.”

“Yes, I’m well aware of that. How’s the studying going?”

“I hate Rudd with the power of a thousand suns. I’ve already done this twice. Twice! Every time I think I’m done with exams, life throws me another curveball.”