Page 31 of Mine to Protect

“Lady, I want to know. Tell me. Now.”

Inside the long sleeves of Cas’s coat, I worked the edges of both thumbs with my index fingers. Other than my family and the officers who’d handled my case, and my friend Beth, no one else knew the truth of how Lance died. It wasn’t something I wanted to advertise because of what I did to her. Not me technically, but what she did to save me. She took a life to protect my own, and now she was the one who had to live with it. Not me. I had scars of my own, but Beth, she was never the same either.

I cleared my throat. “It’s nothing.”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

An older model navy pickup truck sped into the parking lot before screeching into a spot.

“I’ve seen firsthand what the weight of taking someone's life can do to someone. Even if it was justifiable.”

Before he could press for details, I shoved off the brick and shrugged out of his coat. “The other husband is here. Thanks for this.” Without the swaddling warmth of the oversized jacket, a shiver shook down my spine as I walked to meet the husband halfway.

“Hi, Mr. Brandon, I’m sure you remember me—”

“Yep, the woman who couldn’t do anything, so they had to call in the FBI. Sure, I remember you.”

I stumbled on the flat black asphalt. “Sir, that’s not—”

“And you know what, I’m fucking pissed that this didn’t happen sooner,” he roared in my face, sending a waft of alcohol up my nose. “If you hadn’t dicked around when my wife first went missing, maybe she’d be here now instead of still fucking missing.” The man stood tall, towering over me with his large build that probably took hours in the gym to maintain.

Instead of backing away, I straightened my spine, prepared to stand my ground against anything else he had to say.

“Step back. Now.” Cas’s dark, meddlesome voice at my back made my heart rate pick up.

The enraged man’s violent gaze lifted from mine and froze. A spike of fear shined in his bloodshot eyes. One step, then another, he backed away until he was well outside my personal space.

“The others are inside. Tell them who you’re here to meet with, and they’ll show you to the division director,” Cas demanded.

I held my breath. Not until the crunch of the dead leaves beneath tennis shoes faded did I turn. Immediately I stumbled backward a step. Shoulders back, pushed-up sleeves exposing the one full sleeve of tattoos, and head slightly bowed, dark eyes peering down, Cas looked as menacing as he sounded.

“Don’t youeverdo that again,” he stated, his teeth clenched in his tight jaw.

“Do what? My job?” I protested, even though my voice was no more than a whisper. Somehow the ‘I’m a stone-cold killer’ look was a turn-on. Every inch of my skin lit on fire with the want for him to reach out and touch me. To have those long, thick fingers wrapped around my throat again, taking from me what I would willingly give.

“He was twice your size, Alta. When dealing with men like him, you need someone else with you, especially when they're emotionally unstable. He just lost his fucking wife—who knows what he’ll do. Hell, he could’ve had a gun, for God’s sake.”

“So do I.”

One small step from him put us nose-to-nose. “Don’t. Do it. Again.”

Tipping my head back, I stared into his dark eyes. The bright sun illuminated his features, shining flecks of light brown amongst the dark irises. Something he said worried me.

“Size,” I whispered, hoping it would help piece everything together faster. “They were both massive men.”

Cas stood silent, his eyes searching mine like he could see the wheels of my mind turning.

Maybe….

“Where’s Chandler’s iPad with the other crime scene and case photos?” I rushed out, a hint of excitement in my trembling voice.

Cas’s eyebrows narrowed in confusion. “At the cabin—”

That was all I needed to hear. Turning on the balls of my feet, I took off running across the parking lot toward the exit.

“What are you doing?” Cas yelled after me.

“I think… I might’ve figured something out. Something we can profile about this guy,” I shouted back. At the edge of the road, I turned to see him still standing in the parking lot, hands on his hips.

---