Page 26 of Possession

“Oh angel, I know you are. We are too. Which is why you need to be where we can protect you.”

“Nathaniel?” Madeline’s eyes met mine. I wasn’t sure what her question was. Did she think I didn’t want her in our home? Or was there something else?

I shifted so my thigh made contact with hers, and I brushed my thumb under her eye catching a small amount of wetness left behind and wiping it away. “You know Joseph is right, pet. It’s our job as your Doms to take care of you and make sure you’re safe.”

She nodded and opened her mouth, but her response was interrupted by the doorbell. Joseph released her hands and we both rose from our positions to let the team in.

* * *

Three hoursand two pots of coffee later, the field team had collected their evidence and our tech team ran a thorough scan to determine how Casanova had gotten past their security measures. That was something that was going into our report. If this fucker had the skills to bypass our cameras, then his hacker skills were top notch. Hackers of that magnitude left a footprint. They wanted the Feds to know they’d been bested. We may not know the identity behind their screen name, but they had a reputation in the hacker community. Hopefully that would help us find a single thread to trace and learn his identity.

The local medical examiner had also come and gone. The woman’s body was transported to the county M.E.’s office where an autopsy would be performed to determine cause of death. Although, the fact that her heart was missing was a good indicator of what had killed her. Then again, there were indications of possible strangulation. Whether it happened peri- or post-mortem was still to be determined.

Throughout the evidence gathering, Madeline had merely alternated between pacing and fidgeting on her couch. She never sat still. Finally, everyone vacated the premises and the three of us were left alone again. Joseph and I took our respective positions on the chair and couch and waited patiently while Madeline continued pacing and worrying her lips. Patience had never been one of my virtues, and I’d almost reached my limit when she finally stopped moving and turned to stare each of us down, hands wrapped around her waist.

“You win.”

I gave a mental fist pump, but I hated her wording. Like us ‘winning’ meant her ‘losing.’ The only thing she might lose was her life. Madeline needed to be reminded of that. Smoothly, I rose from my place and stalked toward her. She tried maintaining eye contact, but her innate submissive side had her eyes automatically lowering to meet the floor. I fisted her hair and firmly pulled her head back until she met my gaze. “This isn’t a game, pet. There is no winning for any of us. Not until we catch this bastard. Even then, those women he killed… none of them won. So stop being stubborn and instead realize that this is the best option at the moment.”

She blinked and her expression shifted until she looked sufficiently humbled. “You’re right, I’m sorry. I’ve been incredibly selfish. Those poor women are dead and here I am worried about leaving my home and not letting this psychopath win. Please forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive. You’re a strong, independent woman, I get it. We’re not trying to change that, but we”—I gestured between Joseph and me—“need this Madeline. We feel helpless knowing Casanova is out there, somewhere, mocking us. We need to feel in control. Having you near us is one way for us to accomplish that. So, let us.”

“Yes, Master.”

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