Page 10 of Witness Protection

“Your heartbeat is strong,” she said. She toyed with the buttons on his shirt. The room was dim, only the lights of the cityscape giving the walls a scant wash of light. She tucked her knees up onto his lap, cuddling up like a kitten.

It wouldn’t be easy to walk away. Sophia had been his full-time ward for the past six years. Even before that, she’d been a fixture in his life since he moved into the house. He came to the Morenov home when he was a little boy, so they’d grown up under the same roof. Only he wasn’t family, and he slept in the staff’s wing, and never felt like he truly belonged. Her father had pitied him, taking him under his wing rather than leaving him on the streets.

Sophia missed her father and looked to Hawk for security. The fact that unwholesome thoughts kept creeping in his head pissed him off. He was a twisted bastard to look at Sophia as anything but a little sister. She was innocent, untouchable, and mourning her father. Either he was getting cabin fever or he needed a stiff drink to drown his fucked-up desires.

“You should get to bed,” he said.

“It’s not even late. Let’s do something,” she said. “Can we go out for a little while?”

“You know we can’t.”

She sighed and slipped off his lap, walking to wall of windows. At first, she’d been afraid to get too close. Now she pressed both palms to the glass above her head and rested her forehead on the window. “I used to watch the cars from my bedroom window. I’d give each person a story and try to guess where there were going. It’s too far up here. I can’t see their faces.”

Sophia sounded lost. A feather on the wind.

“I wonder what would happen if I jumped from this high up,” she said. “When I hit the road, would my blood run crimson like my father’s?”

“Sophia…”

“Just wondering.” She twirled back around, mischief in her eyes. “How many people have you killed?”

“Who said I killed anyone?”

She paced in front of the windows. “I know a lot more than you think. My father thought he kept me in the dark, but I’m not an idiot. I even picked up Russian over the years, enough to get the gist anyway.”

“He was protecting you.”

“So, how many, Hawk? How many lives have you taken?”

He wasn’t going to play games with her. What was the point? “Too many to count.”

Her mouth opened slightly. She was probably surprised he answered her. “Can I see your gun?”

He shook his head.

“Please…” Her pleading reminded him of the many times she tried to get him to pose for one of her paintings. It was hard to refuse her anything.

Hawk pulled out one of his pistols, removed the clip, and checked the chamber before holding it out to her. She smiled, sauntering over to the chair.

“It’s no fun without the bullets.”

“You’re not getting bullets.”

She huffed and took the gun with her to the window, examining it every which way. “So many cars.” Sophia held both arms straight and lined up the sights. “They wouldn’t know what hit them,” she said, aiming at the street far, far below.

He got up and headed to the bar, dropping an ice cube into a clean glass with a clink before adding the liquor. Carrying his drink, he joined her at the window. “So, you’re a killer now?”

“Maybe.”

He humored her. “Who do you plan on killing? The man who murdered your father?”

“I haven’t really thought about it.” She held the gun to her temple and pulled the trigger. The empty gun clicked. “I was mostly considering doing myself a favor.”

Hawk snatched the gun away, some of his drink sloshing onto the tiles. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” He tossed the gun onto his chair and grabbed her wrist. “That shit’s not funny.”

She had no fear of him.

Sophia smiled, a mix of sadness and insanity. “Don’t you ever think about it? Ending it all? I have. It’s been on my mind for years.”

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