Page 12 of His Stakes (His Obsession 2)

I made no move to get out. “You’re sure?”

“I searched the grounds. There’s one set of tire tracks that shows whoever dropped her off turned around there”—he pointed to the beginning of the dirt road—“and left. No one else is around. I made sure of it.”

Then why did my gut still tell me this was a setup?

Enzo got out of the passenger side and headed toward the house, one hand on his gun and his eyes scanning the area all the way to the front door. When he got there, he didn’t immediately knock or go in. Instead, he put his back to the door, scanned the area one more time, then gave me the signal that it was safe for me to get out. Tristan walked with me, watching my back.

When I reached Enzo, he moved out of the way, the two of them acting as human shields behind me, just in case. But it was eerily quiet as I opened the door and went inside. “Veda? Lisa?”

“In here!” Lisa called from the kitchen.

I pulled my gun and kept it in front of me as I carefully made my way along the edge of the living room until I came to the archway that led into the kitchen. “Lisa?”

She walked over to the archway to meet me. She was wrapped in a soft-looking pink and gray robe, her hair sticking out all over her head, but her eyes were calm and steady, and her posture relaxed. “She’s in here,” she told me. “I made her some tea.”

Ah. Tea. Lisa’s magic cure all.

Holstering my weapon, I hurried into the kitchen.

Veda was sitting at the table, her hands wrapped around a steaming mug. All I could do was stare at her. She had a bruise on her jaw and a haunted look in her eyes when she raised them to mine. “Are you hurt?”

“Define ‘hurt,,” she said.

“Physically. Are you hurt physically?”

She looked up at me then, and there was no life in her eyes. “Nothing that won’t heal.”

“Veda—”

But she held up her hand and cut me off. “Don’t. Just…don’t.”

I took a breath. She was here. And she was alive. That’s all I fucking cared about right now. I turned to Lisa. “Did Enzo get through to you?”

“Yes. Kevin is in the bedroom packing some bags. I just need to get dressed. I didn’t want to leave Veda alone.”

“Thank you,” I told her. “Go do that and bring your things out. I’ll stay with her.”

My eyebrows rose in surprise when Lisa turned to Veda and asked, “Is that okay?”

She nodded, and Lisa patted her shoulder and went to do as I’d told her, shooting me a warning look on her way out.

I watched her go, half amused and half annoyed at that little performance.

“So what are your plans for me now?” Veda’s voice was dull. Lifeless. Like her eyes.

“I just want to take you home.”

A small spark of hope was there and gone in a flash. “I don’t suppose you’re talking about my home?”

“I’m talking about the lake house. Where you’ll be safe.”

“Safe from who, exactly?”

“Veda…” I trailed off, not knowing what to say.

Taking a last sip of her tea, she rose from the table and walked stiffly over to the sink, where she rinsed out her cup. I watched her closely, searching for any sign that she was injured, despite her assurance otherwise. She was wearing tight black leggings and a leopard print blouse that was too tight across her breasts. My cock stirred as I noticed the buttons straining to hold it together. She had something black and lacy underneath.

“These are my sister’s clothes,” she told me. “His closet was half full of them.”

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