“You can’t leave yet. We need to talk, Jade.”
I was conflicted, torn between what I wanted to do, and what I had to do. My heart ached to give him a chance, to hear him tell me I had misunderstood everything I’d heard Friday night. It fought for him, and I knew this feeling wasn’t wrong. This was real. Every beat was meant for him. But my head told me something different. It told me I didn’t need to hear him explain anything, that whatever he had to say would be a lie, anyway. This was his chance to rope me back in, and not only did I have my safety to think about, but I had a daughter, and I would never allow her to be put in danger again.
“There’s nothing to talk about, Cash. You can’t use your pretty words or empty promises to make me forget what I heard…what I saw. There’s nothing you can do that can convince me it was a misunderstanding.” The walls had started to close in, and if I didn’t get out of here, he would witness my total destruction.
But then Cash did something I hadn’t expected. He closed the door, trapping me inside the bedroom with him, keeping me from leaving. Forcing me to hear him out. The knot in the pit of my stomach grew and tightened. This wasn’t panic—I’d lived with that for years—and he didn’t fill me with fear. I truly believed he wouldn’t hurt me the second he turned around and his easy, warm gaze fell upon me. But that didn’t calm my anxiety. I was apprehensive, though not over what he would do to me. If I gave him the chance to explain, I worried I’d fall for his every word—hook, line, and sinker. And I had no desire to do that.
“You overheard three very pissed-off men in an extremely intense moment. I can assure you that whatever you think you know, you don’t have a clue. I can’t even begin to guess what you heard that night before you came into the kitchen, so I’m not going to offer excuses for any of that. And as far as what you witnessed…it was no different than what any other boyfriend would’ve done to defend the woman he loves.”
“I heard someone say you’re a trained killer, Cash. I don’t care about anything else. You could’ve killed him right there in front of me, and I more than likely would’ve turned a blind eye. Nothing that happened that night matters—except hearing what that man said about you.” I threaded my fingers into my hair and held my head. Nothing made sense, and I needed to be farther away from him than I was, so I moved around the bed and leaned against the wall. “A trained killer, Cash. I can’t even wrap my head around what that means.”
There we were, two people standing on opposite ends of a room, backs against a wall. I had no idea how I was looking at him, but he stared at me like a little boy who’d just been scolded for wetting his bed. I couldn’t look at him or I’d cave, so I hung my head and closed my eyes.
“I don’t work on cell towers. When I’m away for work, I…” He huffed and I held my breath. “I’m given specific people to target. I follow them, track them, and then I basically kidnap and interrogate them until we have the information we need.”
I covered my face and slid down the wall until my feet gave out beneath me and my bottom hit the hard floor. His confession was nothing more than a jumbled mess of words I couldn’t even begin to sort through.
“Rhett, the older man who drove us to the hospital that night, is my boss. Kryder, the other guy in your mom’s kitchen, works on my team. I didn’t call them over, nor was I aware they’d be there. After you told me what had happened to you, I had a hard time focusing and Rhett noticed. He asked me what was going on, so I told him. He ordered me to a week behind a desk doing paperwork, but then I rushed home, and honestly, didn’t think too much more about it. Not after spending the night with you. But then I saw you with him at the hospital and put two and two together. That’s when I took matters into my own hands. Rhett and Kryder came after the fact. They had no idea I’d be there.”
“Then why did they come?”
“Rhett wanted to tail him for a few days, just to check him out. He thought there was a chance he was the older man who’d abused you and figured it was worth looking into.”
I dropped my hands and gawked at him. “I didn’t need you or anyone else coming to my defense. He no longer had any control over me, so there was no reason to do what you did. I’m not a victim, Cash. I survived. I got out of there. I got Aria out of there.”
Defeat lingered in his eyes, and the sight cut me wide open. “I couldn’t let him get away with what he did. It doesn’t matter how strong you are or how far away from him you moved. I couldn’t let him live after knowing what he did to you.”
“I don’t get it…are you a criminal? A cop? You said you interrogate people, but you don’t sound like law enforcement. Not to mention, you guys seemed pretty concerned about the police getting called.”
“I’m not a cop.” With that confession, my throat closed. “And whether or not I’m a criminal would depend on who you ask.” And with that, my head spun.
“Have you ever killed anyone?” I wanted the truth, but that didn’t stop me from praying for the answer that would help me sleep better at night.
“Yes. Sometimes, in my profession, it happens.”
“Your profession?” I balked. “And what’s that? Are you a hitman? A thug? You work for the Italian Mafia?” I remembered what he’d told me about his dad’s biological parents. “Oh my God. That’s it, isn’t it?”
“I’m not in the Mafia, Jade.”
“Then what is it?”
His feet slid out in front of him until he mimicked my position on the floor. “The company I work for is contracted out by the government to track down potential terrorists who are in the country. Information on the target is collected, then given to Rhett, who then passes it on to me. I’m sent wherever I’m needed, and aside from coming home on the weekends, I remain there until I have what I need. When the time is right, I grab him, and then he’s carried off to our main headquarters for interrogation. Whatever we get from him is then used to help understand their plots and plans, and hopefully, prevent other terrorist attacks.”
“So you work for the government?” Hope blossomed, and I prayed he’d say yes.
“No.” The hope wilted. “I work for Rhett. We are essentially hired by the CIA and State Department, but not directly. The orders come from them, but it has to go through countless departments before it gets to us, so if anyone ever finds out or if we’re ever discovered, their hands are clean.”
“I don’t understand. Why would they need to keep their hands clean?”