by Aliyah Burke
She shifted on the seat, cutting her gaze to her father before accepting that any nicety had vanished like a puff of smoke in the wind. “I realize that my life being threatened is a huge inconvenience for the police department and detectives like you. I’m sure you have much more important things to do like look after people who don’t use their status to demand things from the department.”
Shai slid back her chair and encouraged her father to stand up, never dropping Lopez’s gaze.
“Thank you, though, for stopping all of your daily hard work to keep me safe while I am no longer allowed to go to my day job, because people may die, find a new car because mine had a bomb attached to it, or a house which may or may not have something happen to it at some point. I do appreciate your dedication to protect and serve. You are doing such a wonderful honor to the badge you wear. Come, Daddy, let’s go home. I’m done with all this.”
Silent, her father walked with her, both of them ignoring Lopez as he called out after them. She bit the inside of her cheek as she moved through the busy precinct, needing to find the door before she lost all control.
Not paying much attention, she just dragged her father with her down the street until she reached where she’d said for the ride to pick her up. Correction, them.
He slid in beside her and tugged her close as the driver got going. She struggled against the tears, not because she was sad—they were angry tears. And once that gate was opened, the flood would be monumental in size.
“Don’t let him break you, baby girl. He’s an ass and I will be visiting his boss.”
She shook her head. “No, Daddy. I will handle this one.”
His chuckle was like when he slayed all her dragons as a youngster. Indulgent. “Baby girl. The hell I’m letting this go. I know you’re grown but that man shouldn’t have a badge and I’m going to do what I can to get it off his belt.”
She gave him a smile, as big as she could, even though she knew it wasn’t real. He didn’t even know half of the shit she’d gone through to get to where she was and while he was her father, it was also her job, in her mind, to protect him.
“I’m not letting it go.”
Leaning over, she gave him a kiss. “I know you won’t. It’s why I let it go.”
He patted her hand and held it for the rest of the ride. She straightened when they turned on the street to her house and she found all these police cars in her line of sight. Unease slithered up her spine as she strained to get a better look. What the hell is going on?
A cop waved them to a stop and the driver rolled down his window.
“Street’s closed,” the man said, hooking his thumbs in his belt.
“I live down here,” she announced, pulling the focus off the driver to her. “What’s going on?”
The officer peered into the back and sucked in a deep breath. “Dr. Monroe?”
It was official—she couldn’t get out of this cesspool of her life right now fast enough.
“Yes. That’s me.”
Ignoring her father, she opened the door and stepped out. Skimming him, she registered his name tag, Regan, in a second.
“Did something happen at my house?”
Her father joined her, slipping his arm around her waist.
“Yes, ma’am. Excuse me.” He stepped back and spoke into the radio at his shoulder. His blue eyes flashed to her numerous times during his exchange but his expression remained solemn. “I’ll escort you down.”
Exhaling slow, she nodded. She and her father fell into step with the man and she knew both men shortened their strides to make it so she wasn’t having to run to keep up with them. There were days being on the shorter side sucked. This was one of the many.
“Shit,” her father whispered as they were able to see the destruction. Windows, the front door, even the plants leading up to her house were trampled, broken and otherwise in a fucked-up condition.
She couldn’t disagree with what he’d said but the words weren’t willing to escape her mouth. Hell, she had a hard time swallowing her throat was so dry. It took her three attempts to remove the lump in her throat and clear her airway.
“Oh my God,” she whispered staring at the overturned pots of her carefully cultivated roses and other plants. The broken window could be repaired but her plants, they were something else in itself.
“There was a break-in,” Regan said, his voice low.
“How’s the inside?” she asked even as she began moving toward the door that was propped open to allow the uniforms to come in and out.
“It’s seen better days,” he commented, his hand settling upon her arm, halting her. “Let me make sure it’s okay for you to go in, okay? Just give me a moment.”
She turned her face into her father’s shoulder and prayed for strength just a tiny bit longer. All she had to do was hold out until she could get all of them gone. Out of the place that used to be her sanctuary.
He mumbled some words of comfort, she knew that but she wasn’t sure what precisely the words were for she could hear only the heavy beating of her heart. And it wasn’t pretty. Her chest got tighter and she wanted to sink to her knees. Instead, she locked them, refusing to let whoever was behind this realize they’d got to her.
Tara had once said she couldn’t believe how many people there were who went back to the scene of their crime. So perhaps somewhere in this ever-growing crowd was the person responsible for this heinous action.
“They’re just finishing up,” Officer Regan stated, his voice pulling her face from the protection of her father. “It will be just a few moments. We’ve also alerted Detective Savvas that you’re here. He would like you to wait for him, but he did say we weren’t to keep you out if you wanted to go inside.”
It overwhelmed her. She was fading fast and looked to her father.
“We’ll wait.” He held up more of her and pulled out his phone.
She shook her head vehemently and begged, “Please don’t tell Mom right now.”
“Baby girl, this isn’t something I can keep from her.”
“I’m barely hanging on right now, Daddy. If she comes over, and she will, I’m going to lose it. Please, let me at least walk through and see the damage first.”
His indecision was all over his features but he gave her a slow nod. She curled up against his side and allowed his warmth and familiar scent to move over her.
I will get through this. I will. I won’t let anyone see me crack and fall apart.
Her determination and will were about to be tested when she recognized the red SUV that pulled up, lights flashing.
Derek Savvas jumped out, his trench coat moving behind him with each powerful step he took in her direction. It was his expression, however, which nearly did her in—behind the composed look he had, she witnessed the anger and concern in his amazing green eyes. For a moment she longed to run into his embrace and soak up his heat and strength. As he stared at her, his gaze softened for a mere moment then flashed to business once more.
Chapter Ten
He stood by the door and watched Shai as she made her way slowly through the disarray of her home. To his left, a man finished installing the final new window that had to be replaced. Her family had come and gone.
She’d not cracked. Not even when her mother saw everything and burst into tears. Not even when her sisters arrived and enfolded her into their embrace. Again, this woman blew him away—she comforted them. Mostly Eva and Adalyn. Tara had to be calmed down as she was furious. After a while her husband had to move Tara to the side and keep her there for a moment.
“Windows are done.”
Turning to face the man who spoke, Derek nodded. “Thank you, I appreciate you coming out and doing this so quickly.”
“Not a problem. I’m in a bowling league with Frederick so when he called and told me what happened, I headed right over. These girls are like my own. Any ideas on who did this?” He shook his head. “Never mind, I know you can’t talk about an ongoing case. Just kee
p her safe will you?”
“So long as there is a breath in my body.”
Not that I’ve been doing a good job so far.
He skimmed the area, noting the new vehicle in the garage that needed to still be closed. Another Subaru Outback, she loved the car and it shouldn’t have shocked him to see a man he’d never met roll up in one and hand over the keys to her. Turned out, according to Tara, he owned a local dealership and had given this one to her. Also a man who bowled with her father.
The counters were full of food from family and friends who’d brought items over. This latest incident had brought out the network in force. Each time someone stopped by with food, new plants or other items, he realized just how liked the Monroe family was in the Quad Cities.
He kept his distance until the final car drove away, the garage had been closed, and he could step through the front door and shut it and lock it behind him. Exhaling with a long, slow breath , he tracked her through as she moved across the far side of the living room.
There wasn’t any sign that someone had broken in earlier. Her family and friends had taken care of that while she again gave statements and was asked questions.
“Hungry?”
Her voice shocked him and he snapped his gaze up from where he stared at her feet in the pumps she’d been wearing all day to find her eyes waiting for him.
“I’m sorry?”
She gestured behind her into the kitchen. “Are you hungry? I have enough food to feed an army in there.” Shai offered him a small shrug. “I don’t need to be eating all of it anyway so you’d be doing me a favor if you did eat some.”
He hated the way her tone portrayed defeat. “Only if you’ll eat with me.”
She gripped one arm in her hand and rubbed it. “I’m not hungry.”
What he’d figured she would say. He walked to her side and while he never touched her, despite wanting to with every fiber of his being, he guided her into the kitchen. Holding a bar chair for her, he resisted the urge to allow his fingers to touch her violet streak as he stepped away from her.
He gave all the dishes a close perusal and dished a few things up onto a plate. As he did that, he fixed a mug of tea for her and allowed it to steep while he finished the food and placed it before the seat next to her. The rich scent of the Moroccan mint tea filled the air as he uncovered the purple mug.
Reaching for the container of raw brown sugar, he added the amount she put in her tea and stirred it a few times before moving it to sit before her. She took it with a slight smile and curled her fingers around the heated porcelain.
He got himself a beer and popped it open then sat beside her in front of the plate. He was fucking ravenous as he’d not eaten since a small sandwich about twelve hours ago.
Stabbing a forkful of macaroni, he closed his eyes in appreciation as the food slid along his tongue and into his belly. He wasn’t sure which of the numerous friends or family had brought these particular dishes gracing his plate, but wished them all a beer and heartfelt thank-you. The blend of foods went down easy and for a few moments he sat there and ate in silence beside the woman who’d come to mean more to him than anyone ever could.
In his periphery he observed her and she took a deep inhalation of the mint tea he’d prepared for her before allowing herself to indulge in a drink. Her entire body relaxed the moment that it hit her lips. He knew that was exactly what it was for as he’d watched her do it multiple times.
Waiting until she had a few more sips beneath her belt, he stabbed a small bit of macaroni and impaled the thick piece of ham on the end of the fork. With a deep breath, he maneuvered the fork in front of her mouth, not giving her a chance to say no and smiling when she instinctively opened to accept his offering. Sav didn’t offer any quip about how she should’ve listened to him and eaten prior, or how he’d be more than happy to go fix her a plate of her own food.
In fact, he didn’t say a single thing, just continued to eat as she chewed her bite. Knowing Shai, she probably counted the number of times before she swallowed her food. Then after she’d had a few more drinks, he gave her another bite—a different mixture this time. On and on it went until between the two of them, granted he had done most of the eating, the plate was clean.
While he was more than willing to go forward and slice off a big piece of cake or pie—one of the numerous desserts that were on a different counter—he turned his fork over and slid the plate away from them prior to leaning forward and resting his forearms on the island they were sitting at. He remained silent for a few moments then took a swig of his beer and spun the bottle between his forefinger and his thumb.
“I know it doesn’t mean much, and I know you’re tired of hearing me say it, but I truly am sorry for all of this.”
“I know.”
That was it. No sarcastic remark, no snippy tone, no cutting edge to her words. Just blind acceptance of the fact that no matter what had happened, and how well he did his own job, this was inevitable. Derek hated every second of it.
Angling his head so he added a more direct view of her face, he took a deep breath before reaching out and pushing that damned violet streak away from her eyes where it hung forward to tuck it behind her ear. Shai blinked once, ever so slowly. Not in the least bit of a flirtatious way but in the way of one who’s reached the end of her rope, stumbled upon the sheer exhaustion that owned her body and soul and had no will left to fight.
“Talk to me, Shai. Tell me what you didn’t tell the others who were here earlier.”
“If it’s all the same to you, Detective. I just finished cleaning up my house and putting things back to rights.” Before he could say another word, she slid off the barstool and made her way back into the living room.
He spun on the seat and watched her walk away as she exited the room. Gripping the neck of the bottle, he rolled his lower lip in his teeth before trailing after her. He caught up to her as she stood before the fireplace and stared at the mantel.
After he positioned himself behind her close enough to feel the heat from her body he gazed at what she stared at. Pictures of her family. Her short unpolished nails trailed along the gold frame of one of her and her sisters. One of the most recent, he assumed, given they all had the current hairstyles.
Taking another drink, he reached down by her and touched the corner of the frame. “Where was this one taken?”
“At the airport, right before we each headed off for a week’s vacation of fun in the sun. We each had one vacation planned. A week on a beach in Mexico.”
He furrowed his brow. “Each headed off. As in you each went on your own vacation?”
She relaxed a bit more and he knew this was the right way to handle this.
“Yes. We had it set up so Eva could get some sex. She’d been working too hard so, as her sisters, it was our job to stage an intervention and help her find out what she was missing out on.” A small titter of laughter escaped. “That’s where she met Grant, so guess something went well for her.”
He despised the thought of her heading off to a beach somewhere to find mindless sex with anyone but him. But it was past. And he had no say over that. However, he could ask questions.
“And what did your sister Tara do?”
“You know, I’m not really sure.” Shai angled her body so she faced him more. “Based on everything she told us, she was still married to Andrew. I know my sister was one thing but I don’t believe she’d ever cheat on him. I know I wasn’t there so I don’t know how it all actually went down, or didn’t as the case may be.”
He drained the rest of his beer and put his pinky in the opening of the bottle as he exhaled. “And what about you?”
A temptress smile curved up her full lips and he felt the answering jolt directly in his groin. Whatever her response was about to be, it would end up in a dream, or fantasy. Either way it would get a good workout later on.
“I listened to my older sisters of course and did what they told me to.”
Like he was going to let it go at that. Hooking his left index finger in the open space of her button-down shirt, he drew her closer and dipped his head until their lips just about brushed.
“Stay in your room and be a nun?”
“I don’t believe that’s quite how my orders were, not that it mattered because once…” She trailed off, something hitting her that she’d not thought about in a long time.
He recognized that look in her eye. When her mind wheels were churning and it may take her moment to find purchase before she was about to get going. So he waited. As patient as he could be when he came to this woman.
“Never hit me until just now, my phone was stolen when I went to Mexico. Again, I gave it very little thought because I didn’t think anybody would be able to break into my phone. The password has to do with my work and uses some derivatives of the formulas I use on a daily basis.”
“You didn’t recognize anybody there? No one from your school showed up? No student who perhaps has the hots for his professor?” He ran his gaze over the body before him. “Or her professor?”
* * * *
Shai rubbed her tired eyes. Feeling the grit beneath her fingers did nothing but make her long for a shower. The kind of shower that would wash away the memories, the pain and anything else that happened to be in them keeping her awake right now. She and Sav stayed up raking through everything she’d done on her vacation to see if she could pinpoint anybody that may be inclined to see her hurt.
Course we came up empty. Why would my life be something simple and easy?
With a heavy sigh, she puttered around the kitchen staring at all the dishes of food that remained out. She needed to put them away. Opening a cupboard door, she began to dig for her storage containers and proceeded to match container size to dish before she even started moving food. Once that was all set, she swiftly transferred the food from the container it arrived in to its waiting vessel.