Page 78 of Beg Me Angel

Cupping my mouth, my eyes widened as I listened. Joy had an identical story, only she hadn't been drugged. They hadn't given her the same sympathy potion they had let Sara and myself share. The poor woman was beaten, raped, and left for dead in the woods off Thirty-Seven.

It was a miracle she had survived. It was a miracle we had survived.

If Sara hadn't taken off, if Pax hadn't found me. . . This ending might be very different. We were lucky Joy hadn't been drugged, we were lucky that we didn't have to endure the same torture that she did.

For how lucky I should have felt, I was saddened to know that poor woman had gone through so much more than we had. It didn't seem fair, it didn't seem right.

For all the bruises and pain I went through, for all the healing I had done. . . She had far more to work through.

“She knew the men, she had known them for years, and it was good for us—and you, that she could give us their names. When we went to their apartment with a search warrant, we found something.” Rifling around in the drawer in his desk, he pulled out two clear bags, both labeled evidence. “Do these look familiar?”

My purse, it's my purse and my phone.

Reaching out for the bags, I flipped them over and upside-down, turning them sideways and running my fingers over the clear barrier. “This is mine, they're both mine.”

“We got the men who did this to you and Sara, they've been arrested and are going to be charged with aggravated kidnapping, rape, and attempted murder.” His hand found mine, squeezing it hard. “We got them, Vera, they're going away for the rest of their lives.”

Tears had started to pool in my eyes, making the room go fuzzy. Wiping my face, I sniffled. “And what about Pax? What happens to him?”

Clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth, he tapped the desk with his fingertips. “We sent him home yesterday. I was going to come out and talk to you this afternoon, let you know the new developments and tell you that you were really safe now.”

I was already safe. I was safe when I was with him, when I was in his arms, when I was in his bed.

The detective could try and steal his thunder, he could stand tall and hold his arms against his hips like he had just saved the world. But I knew better, I knew who the real hero was.

“I was already safe, Detective, long before your men found me.”

Tilting his head into his shoulder, he eyed me curiously. “You realize he still kept you in his home even though he knew we were looking for you? We brought you home, Vera.”

“I understand that, but there's a difference.”

“And what's that?” he asked, tucking his elbows into his ribs and holding his jaw.

“He found me first, he brought me home.”

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