His expression hardened when he looked at her. “There were footprints near the tree line. Right where you said they’d be.”
“They could be anyone’s. Your brothers stop in all the time and I never see Kell drive a car.”
“I know my brothers’ prints. Whoever was here wore a size nine boot.”
“You were wearing combat boots when you rescued me.”
“None of us wear a size nine.”
The arrogance in his tone caused her gaze to drop to his feet clad in leather dress shoes. Clearly, they were not size nines. They were much bigger.
Heat tinged her cheeks. She never blushed. And she certainly wasn’t modest. But, the thought of how big Quinn’s…feet were actually made her go red.
Opting for safer ground, she let his comment pass. “It could have been a neighbor.”
“Everyone’s at the funeral home. Besides, why would they be sneaking around my property?”
“It could have been kids.”
“Only one set of prints.”
Frustrated, she crossed her arms. “Obviously everyone wasn’t at the funeral home.”
A muscle ticked along his jaw. “It’s nothing for you to worry about. I’ll handle it.”
She quirked a brow. “Don’t start keeping me in the dark now. I have nothing else right now. Tell me what you know.”
His expression darkened. “There are security cameras mounted on the property. They should have captured whoever it was. I’ll take a look at the footage after our talk.”
With a huff of expelled air, she paced to the doors leading to the deck and stared out. The talk would be the end of her.
****
Quinn let his eyes drag down Avery’s slender frame. Her hair flowed loosely down her back in copper waves, her feet bandaged. Frustration stiffened her shoulders.
“I hate this,” she muttered. “I just want to get back to my life.”
Quinn ruthlessly refused the twinge in his gut. “You will. After—”
She cut him off. “Yeah, I know. After this is all over. I got that part loud and clear.”
He couldn’t blame her aggravation. The situation was a fucking mess with no end in sight.
“You should go back to the funeral home,” she said, still staring out at the lake.
“Kell is handling it. Are you hungry?”
She shook her head.
“I’ll make us something. Sit down before your feet start to hurt.”
To his surprise, she didn’t argue but shuffled back to the sofa to sit down with a stifled wince. He crouched in front of her and pulled her feet into his lap. Blood dotted the bandages.
“You have to stay off your feet, Avery. Or they’re never going to heal.”
She pulled them out of his grasp. “I’m fine.”
He unbuttoned his shirt cuffs and rolled the sleeves before striding into the kitchen.
“You made cookies?”
“Don’t get too excited. That’s the only thing I can make.”
He helped himself to one, then another, impressed by the rich, satiny chocolate taste and perfect, chewy texture.
“I’m just surprised you found the ingredients to make them in my kitchen.”
The food his mom prepared was nearly gone, so instead he gathered fixings to make sandwiches. He stacked turkey, cheese, lettuce, tomato, and his mom’s special mayonnaise on slices of homemade bread, added a pickle spear to each plate along with a handful of chips and carried one to Avery.
She stared at her plate a moment while he sat across from her. He looked down at his own plate and decided he had no appetite either. They pushed their plates away at the same time and their gazes met.
“Got a bottle of Scotch?” Avery asked.
Chapter Ten
“You know what happened on the mountain. How they shot missiles at our convoy.” Avery twisted the glass of whiskey in her hand. On Quinn’s nod she continued. “I passed out before they got to me. I tried to tell Macy to run before they got her too, but I couldn’t stay conscious long enough to see if she escaped.”
“Macy?”
“Macy Gibbs. She was my personal assistant.” She broke off and downed the whiskey in one swallow as memories of that day filled her head. “And my best friend.”
“You think she made it through the crash?”
Avery stared into her empty glass. “I don’t know. They held me in a bedroom. In a house somewhere in the mountains. I could hear girls all around me. Crying. Begging. Being…” The words trapped in her throat, the sounds of their suffering cutting through her.
Quinn’s hand covered hers and she jumped into the present, the voices in her head fading. “Go on,” he urged quietly.
“I thought I heard Macy’s voice once, but I couldn’t stay awake long enough to call out to her. When I came to and tried to find her again she was gone.”
“Came to?”
“They beat me,” she whispered. “Just like they did those other girls. But, with me, it was worse. Torture. They called me a dirty, filthy American whore. Blamed me for trying to educate their girls. For bringing my evil and vulgarity into their country.”
Her breath hitched. She held out her glass and Quinn poured two fingers of liquid. “I’ve never encountered hate like that before. I mean, my organization obviously deals with opposition, but I never realized how loathed we really are.”
“Azbakastan doesn’t share our system of beliefs. They don’t respect women. Tell me about this house.”
She sipped her drink, welcoming the fire that burned down her throat and calmed her nerves. “I can’t tell you much. The room they held me in only had a mattress on the floor and a window. Too small to crawl out of. I could see the mountain peak outside.”
“But you heard other women there?”
Avery scoffed. “They were girls. I swear they sounded like teenagers. Or younger. ”
Quinn’s arm stretched along the back of the couch, his fingers caressing her shoulder. “Did you catch any of the men’s names?”
She shook her head. “No. They were careful. All I heard were the…sounds.”
“The guards raped the girls in the house?”
Avery downed the last of the whiskey to drown out the noise in her head. “Sick bastards. Said they were trying out the goods before they sold them.”
Quinn cursed, his fingers going still on her arm. Then, dangerously soft, he asked, “Did they rape you?”
“No, they were more interested in torturing me. Had they kept me longer I’m sure they would have.” She shuddered. “They moved me after a couple days. That’s when you rescued me.”
“I pulled you out of the Ibi River.”
She set her glass on the coffee table. “I managed to escape out the back of the supply truck they were transporting me in. Fools didn’t tie me up. Guess they thought I was too broken to run.”
“Their mistake.”
His fingers were caressing the back of her neck again and it felt so good. She met his gaze. “I jumped out the back of the truck when it slowed for a curve and I didn’t stop until I hit the ledge on the river. All I knew was I wasn’t letting them capture me. Or sell me into sex slavery. I chose death.
“Just before I stepped off that ledge I saw his face. Ramil Diakameli. I know it was him. Somehow, I just…knew. He’s the one who ordered the beatings, the torture. It’s his fault all those girls are being raped and sold into slavery and my friends are dead—”
Her breath hitched and she looked away before Quinn saw the tears glistening in her eyes. While she sat there free, hundreds of girls suffered.
Damn it, everything had gone wrong and she had no way to fix it.
****
Quinn pulled Avery into his arms. “I know,” he murmured against her hair. “No more tonight.”
She resisted only for a second before slumping against his chest. “I’m not going to stop delivering books and teaching girls to read. The good my organization does far outweighs the ancient bel
iefs of a suppressed country. I won’t deprive those girls their right to learn.”
“No one’s asking you to quit.”
“Good, because I won’t.”
He smiled against her hair. Avery Marks didn’t lack for gumption and he admired the hell out of her for that.
“My team died because of me.”
The tormented words whispered into his shirt made him want to take away her pain.
“It’s my fault we were on that mountain. I pushed too hard. Made too many runs because I was selfishly avoiding my own issues.”
He frowned. “You can’t carry that burden, Avery. You didn’t cause this.”
She pulled back. “Yes, I did. I broke off my engagement two months ago.”
Two months ago? Explained why she never asked to call her fiancé.
“I’ve been in three different countries since. My staff never complained once. They simply went along and supported me even though they knew I was punishing them for my own failed relationship.”
Her breath hitched. “And now my team and your brother are dead and I’m to blame.”
“What happened wasn’t—” His phone cut him off. He snatched it off the table. Shit. “I have to take this.”
Avery waved him off. “I’m tired anyway. I think I’ll go to my room.”
“Avery—”
She was already walking away. “No. Take your call. I’m done talking.”
Gritting his teeth, he punched the connect button on his phone and answered his brother’s call.
Minutes later he stood outside the closed door of Avery’s room, hand poised above the door handle. No sound came from the other side. He wanted to go inside, take away her burden and carry it for her, but he didn’t know how.
His hand fell to his side and he retreated down the hall and out the back door to the pole barn that housed HQ. Kell sat behind the wall of monitors in the war room, already scrolling through the video surveillance.
“Guess who I found lurking around your property.” He punched a couple buttons on the computer keyboard and pointed to the center screen. “Hey, you okay?”
Quinn watched a dark figure come into view and let out a curse. “What the hell is a reporter from The County Herald doing sneaking around my house?”
“Two guesses. You think he saw Avery?”
“He didn’t make it to the house, but I’m not taking any chances,” he said over his shoulder on his way to the door.
“Want me to come with?”
“No. Just keep an eye on Avery.”
“I’m putting on Kevlar,” he heard Kell mutter as the door closed behind him.
The sound of voices on the front lawn had him hollering for Kell and breaking into a run. He burst through the back door to find Avery pressed against the wall next to the windows. She glanced at him.
“What the hell is going on?”
“Reporters started driving up a few minutes ago,” Avery said. “Are they here about Ryan?”
Quinn’s gut clenched. “No.”
He strode to the door and jerked it open. “Stay out of sight.”
“I know.”
Cameras flashed in his face the instant he stepped onto the porch. Kell rounded the corner at the same time, meeting his gaze.
“Is it true Avery Marks isn’t dead? That she’s here with you?”
“Is Avery Marks under the protection of Wolff Securities? If so, what is the danger to her life? Is the IPA involved?”
“How did Miss Marks escape the country?”
“How is she involved in the death of your brother?”
“Why are you keeping Miss Marks’s presence a secret?”
They hurled questions at him. He zoned in on Peter Harris and saw red. Pushing through the crowd, he grabbed him by the shirt front. “You son of a bitch,” he snarled.
“Hey, get your hands off me.”
“You did this.” He shoved him against the railing.
The low growl of Chris’s Charger barreling up the driveway didn’t deter him. Nor did Kell’s shout for him to back off.
He gripped the man’s throat. “Who sent you?”
Harris frowned through his panic. “What are you talking about?”
Cameras flashed around him, the crowd considerably quieter than earlier.
“Why were you stalking my property?” His grip tightened.
Harris’s face grew red. His camera fell from his hands so he could claw at Quinn’s grasp. A car door slammed in the distance. Warning shouts issued.
His brothers.
“Why are you hiding Avery Marks? Is she in danger?” Harris fired off questions and the reporters swarmed, crowding them against the railing.
Quinn choked out his next words, but the others already caught on.
“Are the residents of Cedar Falls in danger?”
“Will the danger to Avery Marks blow back onto the towns folk?”
“Tell us what kind of danger Miss Marks is in and why you’re keeping her identity a secret?”
“See?” Harris taunted. “You can’t silence us all.”
Quinn punched him. Blood spurted from nose. Harris howled. Cameras flashed. Voices erupted in excitement, pushing to get the story.
Two hands grabbed him and dragged him roughly off Harris. He turned to strike, but Kell blocked him. “Get your ass inside before you end up on the eleven o’clock news,” his brother commanded. “We’ll run damage control.”
Reporters continued to push their way toward him for answers. Nate and Chris forced them back.
“Now,” Kell ordered.
Quinn cast Harris one last warning look before crossing the deck. The door barely closed behind him before Avery assaulted him.
“What was that all about?” She ducked beneath the window to avoid detection and followed him into the kitchen.
He closed the blinds on the sliders and pulled the curtains over the window above the sink.
“The media knows you’re here.”
The color drained from her face. “What? How?”
“I don’t know. Doesn’t matter.” He gritted his teeth.
“What if they put it on the news? The IPA will be monitoring local news channels for exactly this reason. What do we do?”
“My brothers are handling it.”
She didn’t look convinced. “They can’t plug every leak.”
“Then we’ll protect you. It’s what we do.”
“But this is your home. I can’t ask you to bring that kind of danger to your family.”
“We’ve been over this.”
She came to stand in front of him. “Now will you let me leave?”
He looked down into her pleading eyes. Tomorrow he would bury his brother. Avery would not be added to the list of casualties. As long as he drew a breath he would protect her.
He cupped her cheek, rubbed a thumb over the worry lines bracketing her lips. “The safest place for you is here.”
Her lips parted on a sigh and his body tightened. “Somehow I knew you’d say that.”
Her easy acceptance gave him pause. “You’re not planning on sneaking out again, are you? I swear to God, Avery, I’ll handcuff you to the bed.”
No sooner were the words out of his mouth, than he regretted them. Images of her cuffed naked to his bed filled his head, her copper hair splayed over the pillow, lips parted in ecstasy.
Avery swayed toward him, bumping into his chest.
He lowered his head—
The front door opened and he took an abrupt step back, his hand dropping to his side.
Nate strode in, his eyes skimming from Avery to him. “We managed to keep you off the eleven o’clock news, but word of Avery’s presence will be on the front page tomorrow morning.”
Avery turned wide eyes to him. “They’re going to come for me. Your family is in danger, Quinn. Are you willing to bring the fight to your back yard?”
In the middle of his brother’s funeral, what choice did he have? If he had to choose the
safest place to protect Avery and his family, he would opt for here. Keep them close, keep them safe.
“We’re trained for this,” he said, praying he wouldn’t fail this time.
Chapter Eleven
Dani stared at her reflection in the full-length mirror. The dark circles beneath her eyes matched her dress. She’d bought it yesterday because she didn’t own anything black. Soft shades were more her style. Pinks, lavender, blues. Color. Anything but this somber, drab, colorless piece of fabric wrapped around her.
Ryan would hate this color on her. It washed out her already pale skin. He used to tell her that her lilac cashmere sweater was the first thing he noticed about her. That he loved it when she painted her finger and toenails pink. The sexiest color in the world; he would smile.
Oh, God.
She clamped a hand over her mouth and ran into the bathroom. On her knees in front of the toilet she dry heaved since her stomach was empty. Weak, she collapsed against the wall and stared at the baby pink polish on her toenails.
“Dani? Shit.”
In a daze she watched Evan run a washcloth under the faucet and move to her side. He crouched in front of her and gently pressed it to her forehead and cheeks. She kept her eyes averted, staring at his dark blue shirt and tie. The resemblance to Ryan was too much for her to handle right now.
Finally, she pushed his hand away. “I’m fine. We have to go.” They were due at the funeral home in fifteen minutes.
Evan tossed the cloth in the sink and rose to his feet. He held out a hand and she allowed him to pull her to her feet.
In silence they walked out of the bathroom. With each step she took, Dani’s heart fractured into another piece.
****
Quinn descended the stairs, buttoning the cuffs on his shirt as he went. A heavy weight sat on his shoulders. For the first time in his life he wanted to turn around, go back to bed, and skip today.
Instead, he stepped onto the landing and stopped short. Avery stood in front of the wall of windows, the sun casting a warm glow over her red hair, pulled back into a ponytail, and somber profile. A pair of dark slacks and blouse hugged her slender figure. The lines of her face were creased in deep thought.
“Time to go?” she asked without looking at him. She hadn’t argued about going to the funeral. Not since the local news broke the story of her being alive and under the protection of Wolff Securities this morning. Peter Harris was behind it. The bastard had been vying for an managerial position since he’d hired in.
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