Page 51 of Absolution

“Take your phone from the bedside counter and grab the robe I left on the back of the bathroom door.” His hand found hers in the darkness. “I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

She bit back her tears as she nodded, allowing him to guide her around the bed to collect her device. The last words that left her lips as he ushered her into the en suite were the same ones that filled her head as she locked the door and slid down the wooden frame to cry.

“I love you, Tucker. Please come back to me.”

***

Tucker

He could make out her muffled sobs as he headed for the bedroom door, but Tucker had no time to dwell on his little girl’s pain. If she was right about hearing footsteps then the prophecy of the note left with her damaged blooms had come true. Kenner, or more likely one of his pawns, had come calling.

Collins.

His jaw tightened as he found his pants in the darkness and yanked them on before he grabbed his phone and stashed it in his pocket. The idea of that traitorous bastard lurking anywhere near Ella was nauseating enough, but his blood boiled at the notion that he’d returned to harm her.

I won’t let that happen.

Of course, he’d really come to kill him, but Tucker couldn’t risk her getting caught in the crossfire.

Opening the door as quietly as he could, the cooler air of the hall rushed to meet him. Flashbacks of the last time Collinshad broken into the place at night flooded his senses, making it difficult to focus as he edged out into the corridor.

His every sense was heightened as he inched sideways toward his office and the gun he’d kept stowed away. He’d considered keeping it in the bedroom after the last home invasion but couldn’t sleep comfortably knowing such a vile weapon was so close to his little girl. He’d lost his mother to a bullet and refused to even contemplate Ella facing the same fate. His desire to keep her safe then made his need to defend her now even harder.

No obvious noises were audible as he slid into the office and crept to the safe, but he didn’t linger on where the assailant might be. All that mattered was gaining the means to defend themselves. When he had that, he’d go and find the fucker himself.

Once again, the noise of the safe’s security was excruciating as he punched in the numbers, but as soon as the door opened and he reached in to retrieve the weapon, his anxiety immediately quelled.

With the gun in his hand, Tucker knew he was in control. He’d find Collins, or whoever had dared to intrude, and send him a message that even Kenner could feel from his plush mansion house. He’d almost made it to the office doorway when the black silhouette came into view before him.

“Who are you?” He wasn’t even sure why he asked. Tucker knew who he was, but Collins’ identity didn’t matter, so long as he left in a body bag. “Any final requests before I line your lungs with lead?”

“Bowman.” The stranger’s voice was familiar, but strangely, it hadn’t been the one he’d expected. Fleetingly, Tucker paused, attempting to decide who the mystery man was. “We need to talk.”

“Who. Are. You?” Tucker was losing patience, but as his finger hovered over the trigger, he realized if it wasn’t Collins, he needed to know who the culprit was before he killed him.

His query was answered when the intruder flicked on the office light, the pale illumination blinking on to reveal just about the last man Tucker had expected to find in his apartment. There, leaning against the doorframe, as though he’d been invited for coffee and cake, was Alexander Bennett.

“Bennett?” Tucker shook his head, though still he didn’t flick on the safety. “Why the hell are you here?”

Bennett lifted his chin, as though the words he wanted to speak were painful. When he finally blew out a breath, his expression was grave.

“We need to talk about Ella.”

Chapter Twenty

The Paternal Instinct

Tucker

“Alexander.” Ella stared at the man who’d fathered her blankly, clutching the top of her oversized robe and pulling it closer to her body. “I can’t believe it’s you. You frightened the shit out of us.”

“I’m sorry.”

Bennett looked genuinely contrite as he perched on the edge of one of the sofa’s Tucker housed at the edge of the enormous kitchen, his gaze scanning between the two of them as he gripped his coffee cup. His eyes burned red as though he’d spent the last hour crying, but Tucker found that hard to believe. The last time he’d seen Bennett, he’d offered Tucker his daughter as collateral. Bennett was a monster.

“I didn’t think about the time. I just knew I had to get here before Collins, and he said he was coming tonight.”

“Yeah.” Tucker ran his digits over the gun waiting on the counter where he stood.

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