Page 56 of Stalked

“We need to get Rosalyn moved to Omega,” Jon said. “At least we know there that she’ll be safe. That he can’t get to her.”

Brandon nodded. “I agree. There’s something we missed, obviously. Some way he’s finding Rosalyn’s location.”

“Because they sure as hell weren’t followed.” Liam leaned his large frame against the fridge. “I can guarantee that.”

Steve agreed. There was no way someone could’ve followed them last night without their being aware of it.

“I don’t want to be the bad guy here,” Derek said. “But, Steve, yesterday you were sure Rosalyn had contacted the Watcher. Are you sure something like that didn’t happen again?”

Steve wasn’t going back down that road. “Yes, I’m sure. However he’s finding her, it’s not because she’s telling him.”

Derek held out his hands in surrender. “All right, don’t kill me. All I’m saying is sometimes the simplest answer is the most likely one.”

“Well, start looking for complex answers because Rosalyn isn’t helping the Watcher.” If they had seen her face when she’d found that letter, they wouldn’t question it either. Steve would give everything he had to never see that look on Rosalyn’s face ever again.

Jon jumped in before things got out of hand. “We need to get Rosalyn back to HQ. You too, Steve. We’ll work out the hows and whys from there. And I have some other cases I’ve found that I think might have an interesting tie to what’s happening to Rosalyn.”

“Steve, I’m going to open the letter now,” Molly called out from the hallway. “I’ve gotten all the forensic evidence I can from the floor around it and the outside of the envelope.”

They all moved into the hallway.

Molly looked up, shaking her head. “I had hoped he had licked the envelope. That would’ve been our best shot at DNA.”

“He never licks the envelope.” Rosalyn’s voice was tight at the top of the stairs. “Not once. He’s too smart for that.”

“I was going to read the note.” Molly looked up at Rosalyn. “Is that okay?”

Rosalyn nodded.

Molly opened the envelope and her eyes flew to Steve. This had to be bad.

“Go ahead,” he murmured.

“‘I can’t wait to meet your baby. Maybe he’ll decide to come live with me. But I’ll get rid of Dad first.’”

Rosalyn let out a sob and held on to the banister for support. Steve took the stairs two at a time to get to her, then pulled her hard to his chest. He could feel shudders racking her small frame.

“He’ll kill you. He’ll take the baby.”

“No,” he whispered in her ear. “Do you hear me? That maniac will never touch our child. I promise you that. And I can take care of myself.”

“Not all the time, you can’t. He’ll wear you down. That’s what he does.” Her quiet sobs broke his heart.

He held her close, fury streaming through his blood. He looked down the stairs at Liam and Derek.

“I want to get her back to HQ, now.”

Within minutes they were on their way. They left the forensic team and coroner’s office representatives, as well as members of the SWAT team. Derek stayed to oversee everything but really to keep an eye on his wife if the Watcher decided to come back for any reason.

Everyone else made a caravan to get Rosalyn back to Omega. Liam was in the car in front of Steve, Jon in the car behind. Weapons hot in case there was any problem. Rosalyn sat in the backseat in Steve’s car. Andrea was beside her, arm around her shoulder. Brandon was on the other side.

Every time he caught a glance at Rosalyn’s face in the rearview mirror, his heart sank a little more. She was pale to the point of gray, her lips pinched until they were colorless. Her blue eyes, usually so full of life, were dull, lifeless.

Like she had given up.

Steve felt marginally better as they pulled into Omega and he got her into the building. The Watcher’s violence seemed to be escalating, and now he was using guns. Rosalyn would be staying inside the Omega compound until they caught the Watcher.

They moved quickly past the security guard, Steve biting his tongue when Rosalyn once again set off the metal detector. The guard ran the wand up the front and back of her body but found nothing.

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