Page 44 of Wyoming Cowboy Undercover

“Actually, he is. But he’s Laramie PD. It’s because of the task force that we became such good friends.”

For some reason, those facts made her even more uneasy.

Rocco fiddled with the keys and unlocked the back door. After they stepped inside, he turned the bolt, locking it behind them. They walked down a corridor, passing the bathroom and entered the main front space.

Charlie was in the middle of teaching a class. Brian stood off to the side with his hands clasped. An LPD cruiser was parked out front.

When Brian spotted them, he came over. “Good morning. Why don’t we talk in the office?” He led the way.

They stepped inside and Rocco shut the door.

“Anything?” Brian asked.

“Afraid not. I’m going to update Nash, and I gave Mercy a heads-up about Becca.”

With a grim look, Brian nodded.

“Good idea to have a couple of uniforms posted out front,” Rocco said.

“The visual makes a nice deterrent.”

“My father wouldn’t send anyone after me,” Mercy said. “It’s a waste of resources.”

“Would you give us a minute?” Rocco asked Brian, and his friend left them alone in the office. “You underestimate your dad. He’d do anything to keep you under his yoke.”

“He wouldn’t kidnap me and drag me back. I’m not an escaped prisoner.” Although she felt like one.

“No, he’d only manipulate you into a courtship with a man you don’t want, in front of your entire commune. And that’s after years of his machinations to prevent you from claimingpenumbroyage. But you really think he’s above sending Alex or someone else to haul you back?”

“Yes.” She tried to picture it. Bound and gagged and tossed into a vehicle like a hostage. Her father’s methods were never so crude. He operated with far more finesse.

Over the years, whenever he’d gotten her to fall into line, he’d always managed to make her feel as if it was her own choice. She saw him clearly, for what he was. A master puppeteer, pulling everyone’s strings.

Maybe the immense power of being a prophet had corrupted him.

That little voice in her head whispered to her.The Light can illuminate. But it can also blind.

She still believed in the commune and always would. But she was ready for a change. To choose her own path. To get out from under her father’s thumb.

To be free.

“I hope you’re right and those officers parked outside turn out to be a waste of resources,” Rocco said.

“You don’t need to worry about me. You should worry about yourself if you’re still planning to go to the Devil’s Warriors.”

“The odds are high that they use the same weapons supplier as the Shining Light. It’s our best bet at this point.”

It would take time to track down the supplier and once Rocco did—if that gang hadn’t hurt or killed him—it would be too late. The full moon was tomorrow.

She didn’t think her father was a terrorist, but she also couldn’t dismiss an informant directly linking him to whatever was going to happen.

“I may be angry enough to strangle you, but I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

“Oh, I see, you want the pleasure of doing it yourself.” His mouth hitched in a sexy grin. “How about when you’re in the mood touseme again, I let you tie me down so you can have your way with me.”

She couldn’t believe he was making a joke at a time like this.

His eyes trailed from her face down over her body. His gaze was like a caress, her skin igniting as if it were his fingers doing the work. Awareness sizzled between them, almost as if a fuse had been lit in the silence.

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