Page 16 of Rescued By the SEAL

One day, Dad will just have to get used to that. Somehow, he needs to figure it out.

14

LANDON

“Max, I don’t think you get it.” I pace furiously up and down the office floor. “I’m trying to protect Heather, I’m trying to keep her alive. Officer Buchan can’t just put a stop to that. It doesn’t work that way. He hired us to do a job and he has to let us do it. We couldn’t just stop him from doing his police work if we wanted to. We couldn’t ruin things for him.”

“Landon, you need to stop getting so wound up about this,” Max tries. “You can’t control everything about this situation, you must understand that. And getting annoyed about something you can’t control is a waste of energy. Why don’t we think of better ways in which we can put that energy to good use? Weneedto find out more about what your father is involved in.”

“Fuck my father,” I yell while throwing my hands in the air in frustration. “He’s just some junkie trying to find a way to score more stuff. He isn’t some hardened criminal. Sure, he might know some, but he’s out of jail for a reason.”

“If you would just take a minute to see what the research team have found out, you might understand.”

“Fuck the research team too!” I hate this. Why does no one understand what I’m saying here? The present threat is Officer fucking Buchan. He’s in the middle of some kind of breakdown and we need to get Heather out. I don’t even think that my opinion is based on my deep feelings for Heather, either. I think it’s just common sense.

“Isn’t one of those the guy who told Heather’s father that it was me looking out for her? That led to his nearly breaking my goddamn door down, threatening to throw me in jail and also threatening my life too? Excuse me if I don’t give a shit about all of that right now.”

Max leans back and stares at me intently. “What exactly was your relationship with Heather when you lived next door to one another? Was there something deeper there between you? Because I have to tell you, you arenotacting like a cool, confident Navy SEAL who is able to keep his head in any situation. You’re acting like an irrational man in love to assume that Heather’s father is the danger when there are criminals running around out there who actually might harm her.”

“What difference does it make?” This accusation only serves to irritate me further. I don’t understand why he would think it right to have any kind of opinion on my past, thank you very much. And this isn’t irrational, not one bit. I won’t accept that. “What difference does any of that make? I’m telling you Iknowthat her father is being crazy right now and we shouldnotjust sit back and let that happen. We have a duty to our clients to ensure that nothing bad happens to them.”

“But Officer Buchan is our client,” Max argues back. “Since he’s the one who hired us, so if he has now officially cut ties with us, which it’s safe to say that he definitely has, then there isn’t anything that any of us can do about it.” He narrows his eyesalmost suspiciously at me. “You know, I knew that you were going to be close to this case, which is why I hired you for it. But I thought that was only going to be when it came to your father. If I had known about this deep connection with Lola Rose?—”

“That would have made a difference?” I snap back furiously. “I know her, which means I put more of myself into it.”

“You know her, which means you have an emotional investment. You know her, which means you can’t have a clear head.”

“I saved her, didn’t I?” Why is Max acting like this? I’ve never let him down and I don’t believe I have here, either. I shouldn’t have let Heather go with her father, but then he seems to think that was the right thing to do. I’m the only one who believes otherwise. “I did what you asked of me and no emotions got in the way of that. You can’t say that.”

“But look at the way you’re acting now.” Max waves his hands out in front of him. “This isn’t how you would normally behave. You are a great agent, Landon. You have always made me very proud, and I believe that you will here too—by forgetting about where Heather is, since she’s being looked after by her father, the great police officer, and focusing on working to track down these criminals. I would have thought that would interest you more, anyway, since it’s related to your father.”

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Honestly, this is driving me insane.I’mthe only one who can get Heather out of this mess, clearly, since I’m the only one who can see what’s really going on here, and Max is trying to keep me locked in a room.

“Can I not just have Officer Buchan’s address? Or maybe Heather’s? Just so I can check on her?”

“You don’t need that,” Max insists while shaking his head no. “I’ve spoken to him and I know that they’re fine.”

“According to him, yes, but he could be lying. Don’t you think that we should go and see with our own eyes?”

“Landon, youneedto listen to me,” he says calmly in a cool and collected way. “You need to hear me out. This is where you have to be right now. This is what you need to be doing. You need to be at a computer and researching.”

I could fucking scream, but I don’t think that will help things. I need to make Max see me as in control here so he can trust me. Right now, he’s looking at me like I’m the one spiraling out of control, like I’m acting like an insane person.

“Okay, fine, I’ll do it.” I nod slowly. “I’ll do some research, see what’s going on with the criminal gang.”

“And before you even think of searching out the person who spoke to Officer Buchan, they’re gone, okay? Like I said to you before, I won’t tolerate that. I do believe it was a mistake, but this business is too important and fragile for errors.”

God, I wasn’t even thinking about that. I wasn’t even considering speaking to anyone in the research department, but it seems that Max has picked up on that vibe anyway. He can sense it surging through me regardless. So, I simply nod.

“Sure, I understand that. Look, all I want to do is keep Heather safe. You know what you’re doing, and if you think that the best thing to do is focus on the criminals, then that’s what I’ll do, alright? I’ll work beside you on this.”

Max’s expression floods with relief as he rises up from his seat behind his desk. “Thank you, Landon. That means a lot.”

Honestly, I do believe that about Max too. I’ve never felt any doubt for him at all. Not even once. He’s a great boss as far as I’m concerned, and he runs his business really well, but with this one job, I feel like my insider knowledge wins out. There is a deep and burning sensation inside me, a need to keep Heather away from danger that I fear might swallow me up whole.

“Right, well if you need me, I’ll be at my desk seeing what I can find out,” I inform him. “I also might contact the research department to see where they are up to on things, but mostly, I’ll be working by myself. I think I need the space.”

Max’s mind is already somewhere else. He considers me as an issue dealt with now. He feels like I’m back on the right path, so I’m sorted. Little does he know that I’m going to be working alone because I’m going to figure this out by myself. I’ll see what I can find out about Heather and her father. Who knows what information is online? Because I’ve never looked back into the past for years because I haven’t wanted to be hurt again. I’ve never searched for her, but now it’s time for me to open that can of worms and to see what’s going on inside. It leaves me nervous, and I don’t know why.

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