Page 39 of Cruel Ice

“Who put a knife in you?”

Declan clearly had a one-track mind. But shouldn’t he be far more focused on the dead bodies than on her old wounds? She was certainly focused on the dead and trying not to be sick as Parker revealed his chilling details. “It wasn’t a knife,” she whispered. And it hadn’t been. Not exactly. But pretty close.

“If it helps you focus,” Parker offered, “I’ll tell you who left those marks on her. And it’s more than just one, by the way. If you knew yourfiancéebetter, you’d realize she hides quite a few scars beneath her clothes.”

Declan’s head whipped toward him. His fingers remained brushing lightly over the scar on her collarbone, as if he could somehow take away the old pain. Silly man. There were some pains that never ended.

“It was a guy by the name of Sebastian Glass. A man convicted of killing three women and suspected of murdering at least four more. Sebastian developed a bit of an obsession with the Ph.D. candidate who was interviewing him…and one day, when the guards weren’t paying enough attention, he pulled out a shiv he’d carefully made, and he attacked the woman he wanted.”

Declan leapt out of his chair.

“Did that help?” Parker asked politely.

Declan’s hands were fisted at his sides.

“Or did it just make you want to kill someone else?” A careful question from the cop. “Got to say, I knew you were holding back on me, Declan. When we were in this very hospital, I could see it in your eyes. You remembered one hell of a lot more about your abduction than you let on, didn’t you? And like I said, the murders of Hugo Webb and David Berry looked very, very professional. As in, the kind of professional work that a hitman would do. I have to assume that someone with your…connections…would know exactly how to get a hitman to do your dirty work.”

Declan took a step toward the detective.

“And Keith Long? The shot to the head and the heart? Same technique, huh? What did you do…tell your shooter you’d drag the guy outside and have him in position for the attack? Then you could act like you were as stunned as everyone else by thegunshots.” His gaze flickered to Marley. “But you didn’t count on her getting in the way, did you? You probably thought she’d stay out of the line of fire. That she’d never see the shooter until it was too late. After all, she’s just a newbie PI. No real threat to you.”

Marley hauled the hospital gown back up on her shoulder. “Declan absolutely did not do that! Not any of it!”

“You see him as a victim.” Parker nodded. “Because that’s how you met. He was tied up and vulnerable, so you don’t get who he really is. But I know the truth.” He and Declan were practically toe to toe now. “Why don’t you ask him what happened to his dad, Marley? Maybe he’ll give you all the gory details, and you’ll realize he isn’t some lost lamb you need to help. He’s another sadistic killer, just like Broken Glass.”

Broken Glass.The nickname that the press had given to Sebastian Glass.

“And he’ll break you, too, if you aren’t careful. Thanks to him, you’ve already got a new scar to add to your collection.”

“Stop it.”She jumped from the bed.

Declan immediately whirled toward her. “What are you doing?”

Before she could take a step, he scooped her into his arms, holding her ever-so-carefully, and he put her back in the bed. “Donotget up again.”

Marley rolled her eyes. “My legs are fine, Declan. I just have stitches in my arm.” She glared at Parker. “Stop trying to turn us against each other. It’s not happening.”

Parker put one hand on his hip. “Because you trust this jerk?”

“BecauseDeclanwould have gotten shot if I hadn’t saved him! He had no clue what was happening. The shooter might have been aiming for Keith, but he didn’t care at all if the bullet went through Declan in order to make that kill shot. A paid hitman would have been a bit more careful aboutnoteliminating the person who was giving him the cash for thejob.” Her breath heaved out. “Obviously, someone was taking care of loose ends. The two men—Hugo and David—do you have pictures of them? Do they fit the descriptions of the men who pushed Declan into the van?”

“Big and brutal. Yeah, they fit.”

A quick nod from her. “They were the muscle. And Keith got eliminated, too, because he was involved. He admitted to trashing the bottle that he’d opened for Declan. Keith trashed the bottle because heknewthere was evidence left behind in it that could prove his guilt. All three of those men were involved, and now all three are dead.” A shake of her head. “But Declan wasn’t behind their deaths. The man who planned Declan’s abduction was—and youknowthis. You’re just pushing and pushing at him because you think you can make him crack. News flash, it’s not going to happen. Declan isn’t the kind of man who does that. He doesn’t break.”

She felt Declan’s eyes on her. But he didn’t speak.

Marley slanted him a glance. “What? Want to say I’m wrong? Do it. I dare you.”

“You need to get away from him, Marley.”A fierce command from Parker.

Declan settled back into the chair beside her. His expression was cool, almost bored now, and maybe she would have bought that fake mask, if she hadn’t seen the emotion glittering in his eyes. “Marley isn’t getting away from me.” Declan’s cool and controlled voice. “She’s my PI. Our case isn’t over.”

His coolness set off alarm bells in her head.Declan is near exploding.

“Does she have to die before the case is over?” Parker asked softly.

Declan blinked. The set of his jaw hardened. “Marley won’t die. No one will so much as bruise her skin from here on out.” His head turned toward her. “There will be no more jumpingbetween me and bullets for Marley. No more putting herself at any risk. Marley understands our arrangement.”

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