Page 79 of Joker in the Pack

He pulled me to him and wrapped me up in his arms. “Shh, it’s okay.”

In my cocoon of safety, I wept against his chest, leaving a nice damp patch.

“I’m sorry about your shirt.”

“I don’t give a shit about the shirt. I’m more worried about you.”

“I’ll be okay,” I lied.

Rather than letting me go, he held me tighter and stroked my hair as I began shivering again.

“I should have put a car out there full-time,” he muttered. “Babe, I’m so sorry. I should have foreseen this.”

“How could you?” I leaned back enough to see his face, and his eyes swam with torment. “Nobody’s ever come while I’m here before.”

“I shouldn’t have taken that chance.”

“You’ve already done more to help me than anybody else.” A shout came from downstairs, and I looked towards the door. “Did they catch him?”

“I don’t know. I came straight for you, so I haven’t spoken to the others yet.”

“C-c-can you find out?”

He dropped a kiss on my hair, then let me go. A part of me tore away and went with him as he strode across the room and shoved the bed out of the way as if it weighed nothing.

“Coming?”

He held out his hand, and I hurried over to take it. My lifeline.

Downstairs, the living room was packed with people, all talking amongst themselves. Nine men plus a dog. Twiglet took one look at our four-legged guest and leapt on top of the shelves, hissing.

“Well?” Nye asked.

Everyone turned to face him, and one man stepped forward. They all wore matching uniforms—black with a shield logo on the breast pocket.

“The upshot is, we lost him,” the spokesman for the group said.

“We tracked him through the woods, but he got in a vehicle on the far side,” the guy with the dog added.

“We’ve got photos of the tyre tracks, and we’ll fingerprint the house.”

I shook my head. “There’s no point—he was wearing gloves.”

Nye’s grip tightened, cutting off my circulation. “You saw him?”

“Only his hand. He was right outside the bedroom door when the first car arrived.”

Nye’s mouth set in a hard line, and I was glad someone else was on the receiving end of his fury.

“Did he say anything?”

“Not much. ‘Open up, bitch,’ and when the men arrived, he shouted that I was going to regret this as he ran off.”

“That’s it. You’re not staying here any longer.”

I snatched my hand out of his. “Yes, I am. This is my home.”

Nye’s tone softened. “Babe, there’s a lunatic out there with a grudge against you.”

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