Page 22 of Knox

“I’m thinking you aren’t trained for the kind of thing you’re suggesting.” I dragged my gaze to the water. It was too difficult to concentrate with her eyes on mine. “If we’re right, and this man is responsible for the missing hikers, then we’re dealing with someone clever enough to evade detection for years. Someone who is dangerous and escalating. The last hiker is still making headlines, and he’s already made a grab for you.” Two, if I counted chasing her through the forest on the night we’d met.

Sloane nodded. “I agree. I don’t have the kind of training necessary to face off with him.”

I looked at her again. She’d said the right things, so why did it feel like a setup?

“I don’t,” she repeated. “But you do. That’s the real reason I came here. I want to hire you to protect me while I look for this guy.”

I frowned. Of all the things I thought she might say next, this wasn’t in my top ten thousand. “You want to hire me?”

“My family is returning to the mainland today. They have business commitments, and I refuse to go. I’ll be alone for the next ten days to two weeks. And honestly? The thought of being in that house by myself, knowing he’s out there...” She shuddered. “I’d rather be there with someone I trust to protect me.”

I rubbed my brow. When she’d suggested we work together, I’d had something completely different in mind. Now, she wanted to hire me? I was a US Marine, not a bodyguard.

“I can pay you,” she said. “I’ll be consuming most of your time, and that’s asking a lot, especially when I know your time is limited, and you’re still deciding if you plan to stay here. So, please, name your rate. Whatever you want, I can afford it.”

Her words came faster as she spoke, as if she thought I might say no before she could convince me otherwise. “You’d have your own room, obviously, and complete privacy. I won’t get in your way. I just need to know that someone’s with me until this guy is found. And it would be nice if you accompanied me on any necessary outings while I look into this.”

I stared at her, stunned silent, but intrigued. Living in the same house as Sloane Mercer. Being near her every day, and every night. That was definitely not a good idea. I’d be too distracted, and I wouldn’t be at my best.

“If you aren’t interested,” she said, apparently sensing my coming response. “That’s fine. I understand, but it won’t change my plan. I’ll hire a personal protection detail from the mainland. I just want to be clear that saying no to me won’t prevent me from moving forward. I will do everything in my power to stop this guy from taking someone else.”

I couldn’t allow her to put herself in danger by choosing me as a distracted protector.

But the thought of someone else in the role tightened my body for a fight. I didn’t want anyone else near her like that, around the clock, in her personal space, earning her trust. Learning everything about her.

Absolutely not.

“I won’t take your money,” I said finally.

Disappointment flickered across her face. “All right.” She looked away, cheeks pink. “Thank you for hearing me out and for your help last night. I owe you everything for that, and I understand you have your hands full already. I’ll make some calls later.”

“I’ll do it.”

“But you just said⁠—”

“I said I don’t want to be added to your payroll,” I corrected. “I want the same things you do. Closure for the families of those missing hikers. Justice for you and the ones who went missing. A lifetime of imprisonment, preferably something worse, for the guy behind it all.”

“So, you’ll stay with me?” Hope crept into her voice, bright and fragile. “At the house?”

I glanced up at my mom’s home, where my friends were staying. “On one condition.” I held her gaze, making sure she heard me out completely. “This isn’t just babysitting duty. If we’re doing this, we’re doing it right. That means you follow my lead when it comes to safety protocols. No going anywhere alone. No taking unnecessary risks. And I’ll need time here, too. I have to pack up this place and get it on the market, if I’m going back to the Marines. Also, I have friends here for a couple of weeks, and I’d like to include them in this. They won’t take your money either, but their involvement will help us complete our objective faster.”

“That’s five conditions.”

“They’re a package deal.”

A small smile touched her lips—the first real smile I’d seen from her since the attack. “It sounds as if you already have a plan.”

“The beginning of one.” I looked down the beach, my mind working through tactics and strategy. “We’re going through all of Mom’s notes to see if we can use any of the information she was gathering. Maybe we can reach out to the families of the missing hikers and look for commonalities beyond the location.”

“And the VW bus,” Sloane said. “We know that’s connected now.”

“Does your property have any security cameras that reach out as far as the property line where I saw it parked?”

She shook her head. “Our cameras focus on the home and anything that could be damaged and need replacing by insurance. The backyard isn’t covered beyond the patio.”

My jaw clenched. “What about your guests? Anyone have a dashboard camera?”

“I can ask,” she said. “Wouldn’t the sheriff have had one?”