The Revenge by Tijan

I heard the inflection in her tone.

I rounded on her. “Because I know Bailey. That’s not a daughter in mourning anymore. If there was doubt, she wouldn’t be looking like that. Look at her, Bright.” I nodded toward Bailey.

Bright turned.

I kept talking. “She’s ready to set fire to the earth and burn with it. If there was any chance she didn’t see Chrissy or she doubted herself, none of that would be there. She’d be curled up in a ball, because trust me, it’s been a long process to get her uncurled from that ball. No.” A decisive shake of my head. “She’s itching for you and Wilson to get out of here, and then I know she’s going to launch herself into whatever and however she can help to find her mom.”

And we were wasting her time.

I cursed again.

Bailey wanted to hack. Hell, that wasn’t even it anymore. She needed to hack. I could see it pulling at her. She wanted to fuck or fight. It was the most human part of us, and taking her to bed wasn’t prudent right now. That meant fighting.

Which meant hacking for Bailey.

I needed to get these FBI agents out of here.

“Are you sure?” Wilson was repeating some question to Bailey, whose eyes were flashing from annoyance.

“I’m sure!” Her tone was snapping.

That was enough.

I started for them.

Bright’s hand touched my arm, stopping me.

I looked at it, looked at her. “Get your hand off of me. Now.”

She did, jerking backward from the severity of my tone. She tucked her own phone into her pocket and her lips parted, glaring at me. “We will handle this, Kash.”

“You are on retainer for her father.”

Her hand clenched into a fist. I saw it before she caught herself and lowered it back to her side. Her head ducked, but her eyes remained on me. They were in slits. “That’s for special favoring. Not for us to look the other way on a case. We have to verify what Bailey is saying. Look, it won’t be hard. There will be things to be covered up if her death was faked. It’s easy if no one is looking. Once someone’s looking, there’ll be traces. We’ll catch the traces, but let us do our job.”

My own eyes were narrowed, and I leaned into her space, saying quietly so she could hear just how clear my promise was, “Then work fast, because once you leave, I’m letting my girl go. If I find that anyone in your department is being paid by my grandfather, they will be taken down.”

Her lips parted again. “Is that a threat?”

One last skewering look before I straightened and started for Bailey. “It’s a promise.”

She gave me another warning look but sighed and headed for her partner. Wilson and Bright left, and then it was just Bailey and me.

Her eyes were wide and clear.

I flinched. They were so clear.

“I need my computer,” she said.

I was already nodding and going for my keys. “We’ll go to your father’s office for this. He has the best technology.”

She stood, but her hand touched my arm, pausing me. “You believe me?” Her gaze darted to the door. “They didn’t.”

“I believe you.”

My chest was tight. I wanted to pull her into my arms. Instead, I just cupped the side of her face, my thumb tracing her lips. “Let’s go and find your mom.”

She blinked, startled, and then her mouth tugged up in a smile I hadn’t seen for months.

Right there. That was worth everything.





FORTY

Bailey


I felt awake.

It’s not something someone can explain, because it wasn’t waking up from a sleep or a nightmare. It’s not the drowsy state, clambering out of bed, stumbling into the bathroom, and hoping you can hit the snooze button for another hour, then crawl back into bed. It’s not that type. It’s not even the type where suddenly the world is clearer, brighter, and you feel magic in the air. I was riding next to Kash in his car, because he needed to drive, because he needed to feel in control, and I was awake. That’s all I could think about.

I felt the texture in his hand as he was holding mine. I felt the ridged grooves of his fingers. The roughness of his skin. The strength of his palm as it rested against mine.

I felt the texture of the seats.

I smelled the leather in the car. Heard the crispness from the cold in the air.

But I felt a nagging sensation. It was zooming down my spine. It was coursing through my body.

I was thirsty.

I was ravenous.

I wanted to dance.

I wanted to laugh.

But I wanted other things, too.

I wanted Kash, and my finger skimmed down the side of his hand.

He tightened his hold over mine, meeting my gaze through the side of his eyes, and I saw the answering desire there. He wanted me, too, but not yet.

My heart was pounding.

My legs were restless, starting to tap on the floor of his car.

I was soon a bundled ball of nerves, barely able to contain myself.

I was focused.

We didn’t talk once during the ride.

Not one time.

Our hands never moved from one another.

He pulled into the Chesapeake, and I hadn’t realized we were going to Peter’s personal office. I thought we’d be going to the Phoenix office. But Kash was right. This one held Peter’s best computers. This was the right place to be. But once we had parked and turned the engine off, once we should’ve gotten out and didn’t, I looked at him.