Page 92 of In The Trenches (Owens Protective Services)

“Just that he wanted Beth because she saw who broke into his facility. Apparently, he thinks she knows them.”

I remembered Red pointing to the man that stood beside her and put his arm on her back as he led her out of the building. It was intimate in some ways, but I wasn’t convinced anymore that she actually knew who he was.

“She said his name was Seth. Do we have any intel on that yet?”

“Not a peep. But, boss, the boys and I were doing some thinking…”

“That’s dangerous,” I grinned. “What did you come up with?”

“Well, Hayes clearly wasn’t behind the second attack on Beth, so who would want her dead just as much as Hayes wanted that information?”

I leaned back in my seat and sighed. “The men that were in the building with her that night.”

“That’s what we’re thinking.”

“But they let her go,” I said in confusion. “Why go back for her after the fact?”

“I went over the feed several more times. From what I can tell, Seth is the only one that wanted to let her go. You’ll need her to confirm.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” I nodded.

“You want us to send a team out to you?”

I almost said yes, but I might get more information out of her if we were alone. “Not yet. We’re going to lay low for the time being. Besides, we’re both wiped out.”

“Just ring when you need us.”

“What about Rafe? Has he called yet?”

“Silent as the lamb.”

“Figures,” I grumbled. “That asshole was never very good at sharing information.”

“Much like you and the secret of you and your alphabet bestie.”

I smirked at him, leaning forward to hit the button. “Catch ya later, Dash. Don’t let me get shot.”

“We’ve got you covered.”

I flicked off the button and leaned back in the seat, closing my eyes. I was fucking exhausted, but I needed to check on Beth, put the food away, and clean myself up. The last thing either of us needed was infection to set in.

I hauled my tired ass out of the chair and climbed the stairs, pressing my hand to the wall when I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. Damn, I must have lost more blood than I thought.

“Are you okay?”

I glanced up quickly, berating myself for not having heard her walk up. “Yeah, just checking in with the company.”

“No, I meant you look like shit.”

“So do you,” I shot back. I finished climbing the stairs, pulling on my final reserves of strength to put the rest of the stuff away. I shoved a plastic bag her way. “I picked up new clothes for you.”

“I need a shower first,” she sighed, wincing when she moved the wrong way.

“Go ahead. I’ll get some food started.”

“Shouldn’t we clean you up first?” she pointed to the wound in my side.

I really did need to take care of that, but food and water were a priority for both of us. “I’ll take care of it later.” I grabbed a bottle of water and handed it to her. “Make sure you drink that.”

---