Page 19 of Protected from Torment

I’m sobbing while I try to get the door open. My hand is slick with sweat, and the knob keeps slipping. The man is right behind me, Oscar is growling, my wrist is throbbing⁠—

And there.

The door opens.

Shoving Oscar ahead of me and onto the porch, I say the one word guaranteed to make him run. “Squirrel,” I gasp. “Squirrel! Go! Get the squirrel!”

For a moment, I’m not sure if it worked.

For a moment, I fear I let down my best friend in the world.

A moment later, he runs. He lopes across the yard and veers into the trees to the side, where we spot the most squirrels. Seconds later, he disappears into the dark.

I’m just about to follow him when a hand comes around my throat.

My scream cuts off.

I’m dragged back inside.

“Fucking bitch!” the man hisses. “You fucking cut my face. Now you’re really going to pay.”

The front door closes with a resounding thud, trapping me.

Then he throws me to the floor.

“Fucking bitch,” he repeats. “Think you can scam me? We’ll see about that.”

As I lay on the worn hardwood, gasping for air, several thoughts fly by, one after another.

Please, let Oscar be okay. Let one of the neighbors find him and keep him safe.

My parents will be so upset. They don’t deserve this.

I shouldn’t have been such a chicken. I should have called Tyler.

Then pain explodes at the side of my head.

Blinding lights erupt across my vision.

“Fucking bitch,” the man mutters.

And everything goes dark.

CHAPTER 4

TYLER

“Before we wrap things up, do we have an update on the deepfake case?”

At Rafe’s question, all eyes turn to me.

Though I already know the answer, I scan the file displayed on my laptop screen to refresh the details in my memory before responding. “Yes,” I reply. “I collected all the evidence and it’s ready to be sent to the police. Anonymously, of course.”

My teammate, Indy, leans forward, resting his elbows on the glossy conference table. “Do you think it’s enough to convict?”

“I do. We have the hidden files on his hard drive, the crypto payments from the dark web site, his deleted browser history, and the photos he saved on his phone. All together, it paints an undeniable picture of what he did to our client. Once the authorities receive everything, they’ll have to press charges.”

Rafe gives me an approving nod. “And do you think the charges will stick? Or should we be prepared to step in?” His expression grows dark. “Rich assholes like that always seem to find a way out of trouble.”