Page 46 of Mountain Protector

“Yes.” His expression grows even more somber. “Once we identified Vinnetti, we searched his apartment in Hyde Park. It looks like he was obsessed with her. Photos, information about her home, her work schedule, even her commute.”

Lark clutches my hand. Her pulse flutters at the base of her neck. “He waswatchingme?”

Officer Quillian nods. “Apparently. And some of the photos were… Well. He was angry that you never noticed him. He wanted to punish you.”

Rage swells up inside me so quickly I’m breathless with it. I nearly crack a molar trying to keep it all in.

“But you believe he acted alone?” Enzo asks, as Lark sniffs quietly beside me.

“We’ll interview all of Vinnetti’s friends and family to be sure, but it appears so.”

Clasping Lark’s hand between mine, I meet Officer Quillian’s gaze. “So you believe it’s safe?”

He nods. “We’ll want to finish the investigation to be one-hundred percent sure, but yes. It looks like it.”

“Okay.” Enzo eyes Lark before lifting his chin at me. “I think we’re all set for now, then. Right? We can follow up with more information as needed?”

Officer Quillian stands. “Yes. We’re good for now.Either myself or Officer Nelson will be in touch when we learn more.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Enzo rises from his seat. As he looks at me, understanding darkens his eyes. “We’ll just let ourselves out.”

In an achingly tiny voice, Lark says, “Thank you, Enzo. And Officer Quillian. I’m sorry I’m not—” Her voice cracks.

“It’s fine,” they both reply in unison as they make a beeline for the door. Just before he leaves, Enzo says, “Call me if you need anything.”

I give him a quick chin lift. “Will do.”

As soon as the door closes behind them, I turn all my attention to Lark. Her face is drained of all color, and her teeth are digging roughly into her lower lip. As she looks at me, her eyes are glassy with tears.

“I killed someone,” she whispers, agony twisting her delicate features. “Oh, Knox. Ikilledsomeone.”

“Oh, sweetheart. No.” Lifting her onto my lap, I hug her close as I croon, “No, you didn’t. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

She jerks her head up. “How can you say that? A man is dead because of me.”

The tears finally escape, running silently down her cheeks. She shudders in my arms, shaking as she tries to hold her sobs in.

My chest feels carved out. Aching.

As Lark buries her face in my neck, I stroke her hair, pressing soft kisses to the top of her head. Her voice is tortured as she says, “I feel soguilty.”

Oh.

My poor songbird.

She has nothing to feel guilty about.

I let her cry for a few minutes, until most of her tears have dried up. Then I readjust her in my lap, gently lifting her chin so she looks at me. “Lark. I need you to listen to me, okay?”

Pink-eyed, she blinks at me. “Okay.”

“You know what I did in the Army. Not the details, obviously, but you know the general idea, right?”

Chin quivering, she nods. “Yes.”

“I had to kill people. You know that, too.”

“Yes.”

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