Page 29 of Mad Love

Her head whipped around and she glared at me. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“And you don’t know who you’re dealing with,” I shot back. “That man is a murderer, amongst other things. You think it’s normal to lock up your own daughter?”

“It is when she makes decisions to associate with dangerous people.” Dr. Browne’s haughty look was almost amusing. This woman was insane if she thought Gary Cabot was anything other than a sadistic asshole who was using her.

“You’re never gonna get through to her,” Royal commented from the back, shaking his head. “She’s a fucking nutcase.”

He was right, and I was done waiting. I shoved open my door and nodded my head for her to do the same as Royal got out on her side in case she decided to do something stupid like run or scream.

Dr. Browne flinched as we flanked her, and as we approached the glass doors leading into the main lobby, I could see her eyeing the front desk guards.

“Don’t,” Royal growled. “We’re trying to do this the easy way. The hard way is we come in here, gun blazing, and burn this place to the ground.”

She stopped in her tracks and gaped at him. “There are innocent children in here.”

He tilted his head, looking every inch the mercenary killer that made him a vital part of Phoenix. “My mission is to get Maddie out. I don’t give a fuck about collateral damage. If you scream or call for help, I’ll put a bullet in your head, and I won’t stop until we get to her.”

That was a fucking lie, but she didn’t know that.

“You’re a monster,” she whispered, horrified.

He leaned forward with a smile. “Takes one to know one, doc.”

Clearly rattled, Dr. Browne moved forward and opened the door. She paused at the front desk, where one of the guards looked up, surprise on his face.

“Dr. Browne.” His gaze flashed to us. “Is everything all right?”

She squared her shoulders and nodded. “I received an alert that one of my patients needed me.”

He nodded but seemed confused as to why Royal and I were there.

Royal stepped closer to her, his shoulder brushing hers. “We’re here to protect Dr. Browne. There have been some recent threats, and we need to ensure her safety.” With our black shirts and tactical pants, it wasn’t a stretch to imagine us being her bodyguards.

The guard’s eyes widened. “Oh. Is there something we should be on the lookout for?”

“We’ve already got a meeting planned with the head of security in the morning,” Royal explained without hesitation. “Tonight we couldn’t convince the doc to stay home. You know how she can be.”

The guard laughed. “Committed to her work, right?”

“Exactly,” I chimed in with a chuckle. “We’ll be in and out.” I turned my gaze to Dr. Browne. “Let’s go see that patient, shall we?”

She nodded stiffly and walked ahead of us to the bank of elevators. She didn’t speak until the doors slid shut behind us. “You won’t get away with this. There are cameras everywhere.”

“Let us worry about that,” I replied. I’d already called Ash, and he was working on scrubbing their security system. There would be no trace of us ever having walked in here on their security feeds.

The elevator opened in front of a set of imposing steel doors that needed a retinal scan in addition to a keycard to access whatever lay on the other side.

Royal and I exchanged a look, and my pulse thumped at knowing Maddie was close.

Hang on, baby. I’m coming.

“Open it,” I snarled when Dr. Browne hesitated.

With a sigh, she used her credentials to unlock the doors and push them open. Another guard desk awaited inside, but it was empty.

Royal’s brow quirked up. “Wow. Security around here is impressive.”

Dr. Browne frowned. “They should be here, but it doesn't matter. She’s down here.” Leading the way down a long corridor of windowless doors, she paused at the second to last on the right.

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