Page 105 of More Than Nothing
Roman took a few long strides further into the cell. Fury pounding in his bloodstream, he itched to wrap his hands around Athena’s scrawny neck.
“You’ve made the wrong choice. I don’t care where you go or what you do now, but don’t even think of trying to have any further contact with Elenie. You’ve screwed with her enough. Unless she reaches out to you, you will leave her alone. Or I swear you’ll regret it.” The words were low and deadly, danger radiating from him like a forcefield.
Athena broke eye contact first. Roman turned away, finding grim satisfaction in the sound of the cell door closing behind him as he left. Belltower turned the key. Grateful for the support the detective had shown Elenie in his own absence, Roman offered him a handshake.
He paced outside while waiting for Elenie to be processed and released. Self-disgust blistered his throat at having let her down so badly, pain for her pain twisted his insides. The presence of Deputy Chief Shawn Booth in the parking lot, leaning against the hood of Dorsey’s car, had Roman grinding his teeth even as he crossed the asphalt.
Booth took a leisurely sip from a takeout coffee cup and lifted a cavalier shoulder. “She came good in the end, eh? I had my doubts for a while. The data extracted from Dax’s phone is pure gold.”
A red mist spread through Roman’s chest, the image of Elenie—shattered, frozen, and alone in the cell—branded on his mind.
He stalked closer. “You left her in the system all night. Where were your flags? Her backup? We trusted you had it under control.” His eyes blazed from Booth to Dorsey and back again.
“Christ, Martinez, if I cut my shuteye short every time a CI got locked up, I’d never get my eight hours in.” The chief deputy actually smirked.
Dorsey’s lips curled with distaste, though she didn’t speak.
Composure shredding, Roman clenched his fists. “I had to hear she’d been arrested from my own fucking deputy. Neither of you called me.”
“We don’t answer to you,” Booth bit back. Dorsey tried to speak, but the chief deputy talked over her. “And Elenie Dax isn’t new to spending time in police custody. It’s practically ingrained in her DNA.”
He couldn’t have picked a more inflammatory comment to make. Roman, his rage begging for an outlet, had him pinned against the car before he’d finished speaking. Knuckles bone white, Roman was seconds from plowing his fist into the chief deputy’s face.
“You hit me and I’ll fucking bury you,” snarled Booth.
“No, you won’t,” Dorsey snapped. “You are out of order.” She turned to Roman. “Elenie did well. I know what it cost her.”
“She’s a fucking star.” His voice was a deadly growl.
He loomed over Booth for another minute, before unpeeling his fingers from the chief deputy’s shirtfront with reluctance. Booth swiped a hand over the sheen on his top lip.
Dorsey’s eyes flicked over Roman’s shoulder. “Someone needs you.”
He turned. Elenie stood on the steps of the police precinct, looking a little lost and smaller than he’d ever seen her.
His fucking star.
“I’ll be in touch,” Dorsey said.
Roman didn’t hear her. He was already walking away. He forgot Booth. Nothing else was important.
Only Elenie mattered.
Chapter 50
Elenie
Huddled in the soft navy hoodie Roman had given her from his overnight bag, it took half an hour before Elenie could control the shudders that shook her body.
She was aware of him glancing her way with ravaged black eyes, concern written deep into his forehead. He tried a few times to start a conversation but she struggled to produce more than one-word answers, punch-drunk with emotional overload. Elenie was grateful when he fell quiet and let her watch the miles go by in silence. Night had fallen before they hit the Pine Springs limits, the rain long gone, the sky a vivid indigo awash with stars. Roman guided the rental car along the sandy track, winding through the familiar pine trees, and pulled up in front of his house.
“Maybe I should just go home?” She curled her hands inside the cuffs of his sweatshirt. Everything inside her churned. She felt absolutely trashed, lack of sleep jumbling her thoughts.
“That’s not a great idea tonight.” Roman studied her face. “The DEA search was a thorough one. I asked Dougie to get a locksmith out this afternoon to repair the front door but it’s a mess inside. Best to face that tomorrow.”
He flicked the light switch by the front door, and the cabin, so snug and cozy, glowed softly around her as Elenie stumbled inside. The heating must have come on with a timer; the whole house seemed to wrap her up in its warmth. Blinking gritty eyes, she kicked off her filthy sneakers and hugged the hoodie around her, the scent of Roman in her nose. Comfort and torture in one hit. Her stomach was so empty she wouldn’t have been surprised to look down and find a hole right through her middle. Part of it was hunger—although she wasn’t sure she could eat a thing—but most of it was loss and loneliness, corroding her insides and leaving her hollow.
Roman opened the oven, gave a low huff of approval, and turned the temperature dial on. “Ma made us lasagna. Thea brought it round. Shouldn’t take long to warm up.”
