His hand flexed, his knuckles turning white as he clenched them into a fist.
No part of me worried it had been him now. He knew exactly what I was doing.
“Evie,” he warned, his eyes glued to my lips.
“Yes?”
“That’s enough.” His words were barely a whisper.
I laughed—sharp, humorless. “You think you cancommandme to stop?” I took a step closer, my chest heaving, barely ableto contain the storm rising inside me. “And you actually think I’d fucking listen?” My blood pounded, adrenaline sparking white-hot beneath my skin. “Idon’t carewhat you think, Aiden.” I shoved a finger into his chest, punctuating every word. “I don’t care about your warnings. I don’t care about the threats.”
His jaw clenched, but I didn’t stop. “Maybe it’s connected, maybe it’s not. But that doesn’t change a damn thing for me. I’m not going to roll over and stop becauseyouthink I should. And don’t pull this protector bullshit—I’mnotyour responsibility, Aiden.”
His expression darkened, something dangerous flashing behind his eyes.
“You absolutelyaremy responsibility,” he said—the twitch of his jaw and the way he moved to crack his neck sent a shiver through me... not from fear, but from something deeper, something tangled up in too many years of knowing him. But I shoved it down, furious at the implication.
“You don’t get to decide that,” I snapped.
“I’m not the one who decided that. Your brother is.” His hand shot out, gripping my wrist tight enough to make my pulse stutter. “For once in your life, can you stop being so damn stubborn?” His voice was lower now, rougher, almost pleading, but it only made me more reckless, more furious.
I yanked my arm back, eyes burning as I glared at him. “You don’t get to control me, Aiden. Not now. Not ever.” I could feel the fire burning in my chest, my frustration boiling over. “And for once in your life, can you stop treating me like I’m fragile? I’m not scared of whoever is threatening me.”
“Because you have me watching over your fucking shoulder every minute of every day!” he yelled, the outburst making me step back. He reached out, grabbing my wrist and pulling me backin. “We don’t know who this is, Evie. I can’t keep you safe when I don’t know who the threat is.”
I tore my arm free, my skin buzzing where he’d touched me, breath hitching as I fought to pull myself back under control. “Maybe you should stop trying to protect me from everything. I have to do this, and one stupid text isn’t going to stop me. That could have been from anyone there that night. It could be some random guy who has a crush on me for all we know.”
Aiden’s nostrils flared, his body rigid as he stayed frozen in place. For a moment, I thought he might walk away, let this argument drop, but instead, he lowered his voice.
“If you don’t stop... you’ll force me to stop you.”
I didn’t move, my eyes meeting his only inches away, my heart pounding in my chest. “A new threat?” I asked with a grin. “I’d like to see you try.”
Before I could say anything else, his phone buzzed, breaking the tension. He glanced at the screen, jaw tightening. “We’ll talk about this later tonight,” he muttered, turning away and heading for the door.
I watched him go, anger bubbling inside me. I wasn’t going to stop. Not now. I was finally finding a sliver of information about my parents.
And if Aiden thought he could keep me from digging deeper, he was wrong.
I already had a lead and like hell was I not going to follow it because of him.
Chapter 17
Shadow
The garage was silent, the faint smell of oil and metal lingering in the air as I slipped inside, my footsteps careful and soundless against the concrete floor. Aiden’s Ducati bike was parked near the back, dark and sleek, a tool he relied on far too much. A tool I was finally learning more about. It was a crutch for them, using it to run around instead of facing their problems. The place was a testament to the arrogance of them all, to the reckless confidence that they all wore like a shield.
I grabbed the light-blue hoodie draped over his bike and brought it to my nose, taking a deep breath of the vanilla perfume that lingered on the fabric. Did she always wear this scent?
It was a fact I wouldn’t need to bring back to my boss, but it was one I felt I needed to know. I was paid and praised to be obsessed. Wouldn’t the obsessed know what their targets smell like? What they thought about?
I took another deep inhale of the scent, memorizing it as I kept walking through the maze of bikes.
Evie. The thought of her gnawed at me, forcing me to push forward. She’d been digging into things that weren’t her business, things she had no right to touch. And if she kept on like this, well, she’d end up like her parents—buried so deep in a pile of ashes no one would find her.
The faint flash of a computer light in the small office caught my attention, the locked door the only thing standing between me and the answers I sought. My fingers brushed over the lock, tracing it, the chill of the metal seeping into my skin. She was smart, but not nearly as clever as she thought.
I’d get in.
