Controlled.
Vaughn swallowed once.
There it is.
Fear.
Finally.
“You were assigned to protect her,” I said quietly.
Blood streaked down from his mouth as he tried to recover some of that smugness.
“Wasn’t personal.”
My vision narrowed instantly.
Not personal.
Flick was crying herself to sleep for months because she watched people being executed by the cartel.
Flick jumping every time a car slowed outside.
Flick forgetting what safe felt like.
Not personal.
I smiled then.
Small.
Cold.
And Vaughn’s face changed immediately.
Because he realized something important.
I wasn’t a federal agent.
I wasn’t law enforcement.
I was a former Army Ranger.
And Rangers handled monsters differently.
“You sold her location,” I said.
Vaughn’s eyes flicked briefly toward Ava.
Interesting.
Ava saw it too.
“You son of a bitch,” she whispered.
He laughed weakly again.
“You think it was just me?”
