“I just can’t understand how someone could become so fixated on another person that they would commit crimes in order to possess them.” Of course, she was talking about Castro, but I could feel her anguish as if it was my own.
“In a normal situation, I’d agree with you.” I grinned at her again. “But I’m pretty fixated on you, too, so I might be able to understand.”
Liza whipped her head around to face me. “You don’t ever wonder how Castro got to the point of faking his own death in order to claim me?”
“If it were anyone else, I’d be puzzled. But it’s you, Liza.” I wanted to make her feel better. I would have done anything to ease her anxiety. “I can easily see how someone who already hada few screws loose would fixate on you and put all their efforts into making you their own.”
“Are you saying he would have to have a few screws loose? Or that only someone with a few screws loose could fixate on me?” Her eyes flashed as her frown deepened. “Don’t bother,” she said, holding up her hand when I opened my mouth to answer. Probably best if I didn’t speak since she was obviously not flattered by my poor choice of commentary. She continued the line of thought as if I hadn’t spoken at all. “I’m worried more people are going to die because of me.”
“Whoa.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “Let me stop you right there. All of this is one hundred percent Castro’s fault. You have nothing to do with the way he is. I won’t stand by and let you harbor guilt over something completely beyond your control.” I tilted her chin up to look into her eyes. “Do you hear me, Liza? This isn’t your fault, and it’s not your burden to carry.”
Her eyes brimmed with tears, and I hated seeing her so upset. I caught one on the pad of my thumb as it fell. “Just thinking about Castro puts my wolf’s back up, and my nightmares match the anxiety I experience every day.”
I held my breath. Was she finally going to confide in me? I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but I did all the same.
“The nightmares feel so real that it takes me a few minutes to wake up and assess my surroundings. I expect to see Castro looming over me with his weapon of choice, ready to kill me and anyone I’ve ever loved.” Liza inhaled sharply, and her delicate hand went to the base of her throat. Her breaths became a little shallower, and the beat at the pulse point in her throat kicked up a notch.
Recognizing the signs of a panic attack creeping up on her, I rubbed her back soothingly. “Just breathe, Liza. In and out. You’re safe. I’m here.”
Once her breathing returned to normal, she continued. “In my nightmares, I see Castro standing over my parents. Not my biological parents—my adoptive ones.” Chances were, she didn’t remember her biological parents well enough to see their faces in her dreams. “He has them bound and gagged, and they stare at me with such expectation in their eyes. They want me to save them, but I can’t move.” She rubbed her palms on the legs of her jeans. “Castro says he’s going to kill them and that he won’t let anything stand between the two of us. The scary part is that I believe him. Even when I’m not asleep, I believe it. He’s a lunatic, and he’ll stop at nothing to get what he wants.”
“Damn it.” My stomach twisted. I hated that she had to endure such terrible nightmares, though I knew that her fears were valid, and that Castro was capable of doing heinous things.
“We’ll protect you and your family, Liza. We’ll make sure Castro can’t hurt anyone else again.”
“I don’t want anyone to get hurt because of me.” Liza’s voice was barely above a whisper.
I cupped her face in my hands, forcing her to look at me again. “We’ll do everything in our power to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Dad cleared his throat from the driver’s seat as the car came to a stop. “We’re here.”
He slid out of the SUV, no doubt anxious to be far away from our intense conversation.
“We’ll put security on your parents’ house until we’ve taken care of Castro. It’ll make me feel better about their safety. That is, if it’s all right with you.”
Her demeanor eased as she reached up and kissed me on the cheek. “That would help a lot. Thank you.”
We got out of the car, and I stretched, needing some kind of exercise after sitting all morning. “Dad wants to discuss our next steps. Do you want to join us?”
Liza pulled her phone from her purse. “I appreciate you inviting me and keeping me involved in everything, but I’ve got an important client meeting I really should get to. I almost canceled, but since we finished in time, I’d rather not reschedule.”
I waved one of the security guards over. “Please escort Liza back to her house to change, then follow her to her meeting.”
“Yes, sir.” He stepped back and allowed us a moment of privacy, though none of the guards ever strayed too far.
I snatched Liza by the hips and pulled her closer, closing my eyes and breathing in her delectable scent. She looked up at me and stood on her toes to meet my mouth for a long kiss.
I didn’t want her to leave my sight, but I couldn’t keep her locked in a cage like a songbird. “I’ll see you later. Call or text if you need anything at all, okay?”
“I will.” She followed the guard to a black car parked to the side of the driveway, and I watched until the car vanished from view.
I was worried about her. What I’d said about her not feeling guilty for Castro’s actions was the truth, but the shame had been written all over her face when she kissed me goodbye. My words might have soothed her, but she still believed that she was responsible for every wrong move Castro made.
I’d have done anything to take that burden off her. It wasn’t her weight to bear, which only fueled the rage burning deep inside me.
That motherfucker had no idea what was coming. He had no right to lay a finger on her, to look at her, to even think about her. Liza was mine, not his.
I was going to make sure he paid for every single thing he had done to Liza, her family, and anyone else he had hurt. I clenched my fists, trying to keep my anger and frustration at bay. It wasa good thing Dad and I were discussing our next steps because I was ready to take action.
