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Kingsley’s eyes meet mine, and I see a flicker of realization mirrored in his gaze.The name Agunda triggers a memory—weren’t they the ones who pulled off a high-profile theft from a celebrity in Paris last year?
Kingsley’s focus snaps back to the intruder.“Was it Agunda in Japan too?”His voice is sharp, pressing for information about my kidnapping.
The intruder hesitates, the sirens growing louder in the background while police cars screech to a halt outside.Kingsley presses the barrel of the gun between the man’s eyes, letting it rest on his skin—a nonverbal ultimatum.
“Yes, yes, okay!”the intruder finally blurts out just when a shout comes from outside.
“Stop!Police.”
Kingsley keeps the gun trained on the man but shifts his gaze toward the window, aware that law enforcement has finally arrived.
“Put down your weapon.”Police come from every angle, filling the space, weapons drawn.
Kingsley steps back and lowers his gun.
“He’s my bodyguard.That’s the man you want,” I say, pointing to the bloodied man on my rug.
Officers swarm the intruder, hauling him to his feet and escorting him to a waiting squad car.Kingsley turns back to me, pulling me into a protective embrace, just as a new voice interrupts us.
“Detective Wallace, I’ll be handling this case,” the man says, displaying his badge.
“We need your statements right away.The sooner we get the details, the better,” he continues, flipping open a notepad.
I lock eyes with Kingsley.God, I want to hold onto this moment with him, especially when it feels like he’s on the verge of revealing something significant.But I can’t ignore the gravity of what just happened.Reluctantly, we both nod.
We recount our experiences, describing the break-in, the confrontation, and the intruder’s admission about Agunda’s involvement.As I mention Agunda and their notorious activities, including last year’s incident in Paris, the detective’s eyebrows shoot up.
“That’s unexpected,” he mutters before continuing.“You should know that we arrested Mr.Agunda and the ring leaders in his organization just a few hours ago in a joint operation between the FBI and MI5.The intruder you encountered must have been acting on earlier instructions.”
Kingsley and I share a look of both relief and concern.
Detective Wallace snaps his notepad shut, his eyes narrowing when he digests what we’ve told him.“Thank you both for your statements.With what you’ve given us, it looks like Agunda won’t be seeing the light of day for a while.”
A sense of relief floods over me, but it’s tinged with the complexity of everything else going on, especially between Kingsley and me.Our eyes meet again, and I wonder what he’s thinking, what he’s feeling.
Detective Wallace heads toward the door, pausing before exiting.“You might want to put on a shirt,” he says with a wry smile.
Kingsley grunts and rolls his eyes, and I can’t help but smile, even under the circumstances.
After Detective Wallace leaves, the atmosphere in the room is heavy with both relief and the unspoken acknowledgment of what we’ve been through.Kingsley turns to me, his eyes searching mine as if to assure himself that I’m truly unharmed.
“Hey,” he says softly, his voice tinged with both relief and concern.“It’s over now.They’ve got him and his whole gang.You’re safe.”
As the weight of his words sinks in, a sense of profound relief washes over me.For the first time in what feels like forever, I allow myself to believe that I can put this terrifying chapter behind me.
I walk over to him and put my arms around him.He pulls me close, holding me tightly as though shielding me from the world’s dangers.At that moment, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude and love for this man who has stood by me through it all.
Kingsley’s eyes linger on me, a mix of relief and something deeper—something that’s been haunting him long before tonight’s incident.He takes a deep breath as if mustering the courage to dive into an internal battle he’s been waging.“You know…” he starts hesitantly, “… tonight brought back memories… painful ones… of times when I couldn’t protect the people I cared about.”
I sense the gravity of his admission and grasp his hands, willing him to look at me.“Sometimes, terrible things happen that are beyond our control,” I tell him.
“I know that here…” he points to his head, “… but feeling it here…” he moves his hand over his heart, “… that’s a different story.I was so afraid of losing you, Victoria, that I pushed you away.”
Our foreheads touch just barely, and my heart slams against my chest.Kingsley’s eyes, a swirl of emotions, fix on mine.Then, like the eye of a storm finding its center, his gaze sharpens.“I want all my nexts to be with you, Victoria.”He caresses my cheek tenderly as he continues, “I’m done running from my past.I want to face the future with you.”
“Why?”I blubber out so emotionally I need to hear him say the words we’ve both pushed down for fear of being hurt.
“Because I’m so damn in love with you.”
