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Grief welled inside of her, the razor-sharp edges of it scraping her raw from the inside out. But she fought it back, swallowing the tears burning in her throat. Without looking up at him, she pleaded with him for understanding. “Please, Cyrus. I can’t do this right now.”
“Baby.” Hearing her own pain echoed in his voice nearly broke her. “Can I hold you, please?”
It was on the tip of her tongue to refuse him again. She felt as though she were made of glass, as if one wrong touch would shatter her into a million pieces.
And even more than the breaking, she was terrified of who she would be when she put those pieces back together. Because now there was a part of her missing, and the pieces would never fit together quite the same way.
But before she could refuse, she was out of her chair, his arms closing around her. A quick, body-wracking shiver raced up her spine, but instead of shattering as she’d feared, his embrace seemed to hold her together.
Her breath hitched in her chest once, twice, before she was able to draw in air without her chest aching from the effort.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” he murmured, pressing his lips to her temple. “I’m so fucking sorry and I swear to you I will find a way to make this right.”
Pulling away, she lifted her head to meet his steel gaze. “I want him to pay for this. I want him to suffer.”
If her words shocked him, it didn’t show on his face. “Then consider it done.”
Fear mingled with fierce, righteous fury. “Don’t say that if you don’t mean it. I want to see him behind bars and know that he will never hurt anyone else the way he hurt Gabby. I want to know he’s going to spend the rest of his life in a fucking cage. And if you can’t, or won’t do it, then I will.”
His hold on her tightened, nearly cutting off her ability to draw a breath. A fury that matched her own burned in the pale gold of his eyes. “You have my word, Mina. I want yours that you won’t seek him out.”
“She was my friend.”
“I know. But you’ll give me your word, or I’ll lock you in my house with Cole’s men standing guard until I can deal with my brother.”
The words stuck in her throat, but she was able to force a nod. That seemed to appease him, and he loosened his grip on her, allowing her to drag in a gasping breath.
“I mean it, Ace,” he growled, pressing his forehead to hers. “If you go snooping around after my brother, you won’t sit comfortably for a month. Understood?”
“Yeah.”
“Good girl. I have a meeting with Cole in a few minutes, to discuss beefing up your security, and then I’m going to head down to the MPD and see what I can find out about Gabby’s case.” Straightening, he lifted a hand to her chin, forcing her head back, his expression serious. “You still have the app on your phone, right? The tracker?”
“Yeah.”
“Good girl. Cole is doubling up on security for the time being, so the same rules as before apply. You do not try to slip away from them under any circumstances. Understood?”
Another time, she might have argued. But for now, she was happy to appease him if it meant he was free to investigate without being distracted by worrying about her. “Yes, Sir.”
The hint of approval in his smile nearly melted her into a puddle. “Thank you. Be good, and I’ll pick you up after work. I don’t want you going home without me, so let me know when you’re ready to leave.”
“I will.”
Leaning down, he captured her lips in a kiss so soft and sweet it made her chest ache. Guilt niggled at the back of her mind as she sat and pulled out her phone, tapping out a few notes to research when she got back to her desk.
She trusted Cyrus, completely. But family was family. And just in case it turned out he couldn’t do what needed to be done, she wanted to be prepared.
One way or another, she was taking Adrian Banks down.
ChapterTwenty-One
“You really think she’s going to listen?” Sipping at his to-go cup of coffee, Cole’s eyebrow raised in question.
“She will if she knows what’s good for her,” Cyrus grumbled, glaring down at his own cup. “But that’s why I need the extra men on her, just in case she tries to give them the slip.”
“I can give you one, maybe two more guys if I move things around, but I don’t have the resources for much more than that. And if this drags on much longer, I have other contracts that will need attention.”
“I’m hoping this can all be taken care of within the next forty-eight hours.”
