Page 25 of Absolution

Gina paused so long I wondered if she was carefully choosing her words.

“Things changed when you left.”

“What things, Gina?” My mind went to dark places with her simple statement.

“I was a teenage girl who’d just lost her best friend. The person she looked up to the most. I started to act out. I was also someone people would never suspect doing something illegal.”

“Lorenzo recruited you.”

“Essentially. You weren’t around anymore. I was an easy target. Between Gideon and Lorenzo, I really didn’t have much of a choice.”

“Goddamn it. That was one of the reasons I left. Gideon was supposed to protect you. Not drag you down with him.”

Gina looked straight at me. “Gideon wasn’t who you thought he was.”

Something about her words bothered me. Like she had known who he was. It sent a sinking feeling deep inside me. One I didn’t like.

“So, you saw something you shouldn’t have, turned him in, and now he’s planning his revenge?”

“That’s about the gist of it.”

I still felt like I was missing something. I studied her, and that’s when I saw a few telltale signs. The pulse in the side of her neck fluttered rapidly, and she was rubbing the hem of her shirt between her thumb and forefinger in a nervous gesture.

I squatted in front of her and laid my hand over hers. I wanted to comfort her, but mostly I wanted to protect and provide for her.

“He’s not going to get it, Gina. I may not have been there to protect you all those years ago, but I swear to you now, I’ll burn the world to ashes to protect you.”

She seemed taken aback by my proclamation. It made me wonder if she’d never had anyone looking out for her. Whether she’d been all alone all these years. She also didn’t seem to believe me. Not that it mattered. Soon she’d realize I meant what I said. I released my hold on her and rose.

“I want to start teaching you how to protect yourself in case Gideon shows up again.” And I wasn’t talking about the gun Webber had mentioned last night.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean self-defense. In case something happens, you need to be prepared.”

Gina seemed skeptical. “Gideon probably outweighs me by seventy-five pounds, and he’s almost as tall as you.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t hurt him. You’re smaller, probably more agile, and quicker on your feet. You don’t have to be bigger than him to hurt him. You just have to be smarter.”

“I’ll try.”

“You’ll be fine.” I grabbed my keys off the side table and turned back to her. “Now, since its daylight, and the cameras and alarms are installed, I’m going to run home for a few and grab some of my things. At least enough to last a week.”

She slowly lowered the coffee she’d been drinking. “What things? And why do you need them?”

“I need some clothes and toiletries since I don’t have any here.”

Gina blinked. “I was afraid that’s what you meant.”

I waited for her to explode and fight me on this, but when she remained quiet, I began to wonder if she understood what I was saying.

“You do realize I’ll be staying here until Gideon has been stopped, right?”

“Yes, I kind of figured that when you said you needed to get your stuff.”

Her calmness made me nervous. “You were adamantly opposed to my new role in your life, yet you’ve accepted me staying here without a fight. What gives?”

Gina glanced up at me and then turned away. “There’s nothing I can say that is going to dissuade you from doing this. Why waste my energy, when you’ll simply exert your control over me and do what you want anyway?”

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