Page 81 of Her Protector Daddies

“It can be, but his lawyer will try and twist your motivation against you. Either claim you are lying or that the high stress of the situation was too much for you to make a clear ID on who it was.”

Selena’s eyes narrowed. “That’s ridiculous.”

“It is. But it’s how these lawyers play when it comes to protecting their dirty client.” Sourness washed over my tongue. “I won’t be surprised if Andrés has someone ready to take the fall for him. Some goon loyal enough to claim they were the one that shot you and that you’re mistaken. If they pull that successfully, it’ll throw everything else you say into doubt.”

“But that’s not true!” Upset leaked into Selena’s tones and the breadcrumbs on her plate turned to dust rubbed between anxious fingers.

“I know. This is why you need to be crystal clear on the details while we track down the last few stragglers of men at the party. With any luck, getting them behind bars will lessen the likelihood of someone coming forward like that.”

“Isn’t there like, I don’t know, evidence or something that proves Andrés shot me? If they won’t believe my word, what else is there?”

“There was gunshot residue on Andrés’ hands when he was arrested but the time when he was unaccounted for can be used to create a false story for that. Without the gun, you’re the only person who can persuade the jury that he is guilty.”

Selena’s frustration was clear, and part of me felt like I was working against her by highlighting how easily doubt could be thrown on her statement, but it was for good reason. She needed to be prepared for anything.

“I know it feels unfair,” I said gently.

Selena scoffed and continued to absently worry the remains of the donut into nothing.

“It’s probably the worst feeling when you know the truth deep in your heart but he has enough money to cover his tracks or hide the evidence. My…” I paused, unsure if this was the right time to unload a painful can of worms. Selena looked up at me, her sad eyes brimming with curiosity, so I continued.

“I was in the position you were in once, to a degree. Back when I was a detective, I had a partner. He was a good guy, married with three kids. Liked to drink a little too much but he made up for it in other ways. He was decent. Honest. By some insane stroke of luck, he managed to get a lead on Andrés and we ended up at his house trying to arrest him but Andrés had too many men. Those loyal to him started shooting so that Andrés could get away but my partner followed and?—.”

I paused as pain, old like the ache of an age-old injury, swept through my chest.

“I watched Andrés shoot my partner three times in the chest without a care in the world. He got away because I chose to stay and try and keep him alive. He died in my arms. Worse fucking day of my life – bar the day I thought you were dead.” Puffing out my cheeks, I returned my attention to the papers in front of us.

“The gun was never recovered, and my statement was laughed out of the case because his lawyer claimed we were on Andrés’ estate with illegal intentions, and I was blaming him out of some twisted desire for revenge. Didn’t even make it to court because my partner was shot by a police issue weapon. Andrés stole it from my partner in a scuffle, I know he did, I just couldn’t prove it. Some people even accused me of killing him and blaming Andrés to cover it up. Might have worked if all my fired bullets hadn’t been safely recovered from the scene.”

Selena reached across the table and took my hand. “I’m so, so sorry.”

“Since we couldn’t recover the gun, this shadow hung over me and some days, when I was really low, I wondered if I really was the one that had gotten him killed.” I chuckled dryly. “Andrés has a way of getting in your head like that. Anyway!”

I forced a calming breath and flashed Selena a stronger smile.

“I’ve lived with that guilt for years, put an end to my Detective career because my trust in the system was so badly shaken. Wanted to take things into my own hands as a PI. So… I’m here for you and I’m going to do everything in my power to ensure he doesn’t walk again, not for this.”

“I understand,” Selena said softly. “We have to make sure everything’s perfect because he’s cocky enough to think he can get away with it again.”

“Exactly.” Threading our fingers together, I squeezed her hand gratefully. “He doesn’t have the Chief of Police on his side anymore, so that might work in our favor, assuming the ex-Chief has anything of use to say aside from his admittance of power abuse. Keeping tabs on Tyler with Trask,etc, that kind of thing. There’s so much Andrés deserves to suffer for but if we can seal him away with this, it’ll be a start.”

“No pressure,” Selena joked softly. “So, I have to be prepared for insane dirty tactics and that lawyer dragging up everything and anything to make me look like I deserved it.”

“Exactly.”

“Easy. Sounds like my old boss.” She smiled warmly and squeezed my hand, but before we could return to the next page of the report, rapid knocking at the front door interrupted us.

I reached for my gun immediately and slowly stood. Tyler and Bailey were at work and wouldn’t knock. Dae was at a trusted friend’s house, and we hadn’t ordered anything.

“Stay put,” I said quietly, then I sent a quick text to the others as I approached the door. With the court case looming, I wasn’t taking any chances. A shadow was visible on the other side of the frosted glass, just one by the look of it.

Keeping my gun tucked at my hip and my body tense, I flipped the latch and opened the door.

“Can I help you?” My question died though, as I came face to face with the last person I ever expected to see on my doorstep.

Marcus Hartley.

“Marcus?” A thousand questions flooded forth but before I could ask any of them, Selena pushed past me.

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