Page 68 of Targeted By Desire

I had no doubts the animals would chomp on their faces and limbs, making them damn near unrecognizable. The uniforms would still give part of their identity away, but I wasn’t worried about that. Let those pigs find their bodies. Let them try to find me, so I can add more to the pile.

I climbed back into the car and cut off the patrol radio and the GPS. The last thing I needed was another rude interruption.

This game with the agent has been fun, but like all good things, it must come to an end.

THE AGENT

“Simone, I’m not going to ask you again,” Logan said. He stood on the other side of the desk in one of the spare offices of the estate, decked out in his field gear. “What is his name?”

“For the last time: I don’t know,” I replied, my voice hard.

Gabriel dragged me in here, kicking and screaming, as the other agents hauled Mateo - or whatever the hell his real name is - away. I didn’t get a chance to curse him out before Logan came in and started interrogating me as if I were a suspect. I didn’t appreciate the disgusted curve of his mouth and livid eyes. Even if I had information to give, I still wouldn’t tell him anything.

Logan threw his hands up in frustration. “Well, what do you know? You can’t tell me you haven’t learned one thing over the past few months you’ve been pursuing this!”

“He’s been a tough egg to crack,” I said with a shrug.

“Then, tell me about the incidents you’ve had with him. What has he done to you?”

I glanced at Gabriel who stood at Logan’s side like a loyal puppy. I had half a mind to tell Logan to ask him instead. After all, he was the one behind all this. No one else knew about the time and energy I’ve invested into catching Mateo. The fact that he would go behind my back, tell Logan, and help orchestrate this whole thing made my blood boil.

“Nothing,” I said. Technically, it wasn’t a lie. With every encounter, Mateo hasn’t actually done anything to hurt me - not severely, anyway.

Logan’s eyes went to Gabriel for verification.

“He’s attempted to kidnap her, tried to kill her three times - including the inciting incident with Rizalli - and he’s been breaking into her house,” he explained.

I leaned forward in my seat. “Wait, how did you know about the break-ins?” I asked. I’d stopped telling him about this stuff after the Vegas incident. He’d told me to drop my obsession, so I wanted him to believe I had.

“He’s not the only one keeping tabs on you,” Gabriel replied. “I’ve been checking on your camera feeds and noticed a pattern of disappearing time lapses. I’m not stupid; I knew what was going on. I just can’t believe you let him do it for so long.”

“Eventually, I was going to catch him.”

“Before or after he attempts to murder you again?”

“Did you guys not just see what happened outside? Did he look like he was going to hurt me?”

“No,” Logan jumped in. “It looked like he was about to do something much worse.”

I averted my eyes, unable to find a comeback strong enough to combat his words. I didn’t want to admit they might be right. I may not have any bruises or broken bones, but my mind was mauled with the marks of his claws.

“Look, Simone,” Logan said, his softening voice calling my gaze back to him. “I’m sorry for not taking this threat seriously sooner. I didn’t know it was impacting you directly. But, I’m on it now and I want to help. You just have to let me.”

I stared at him, refraining from spatting on his so-called “help.” I didn’t need him. I didn’t need Gabriel. I was handling this just fine on my own. Shit, if they hadn’t stepped in, maybe I would’ve actually gotten something out of him. A name, alone, was a huge step. Then, they fucked it all up.

“You’re gonna stay in a safe house for the next couple of-”

“No,” I cut him off.

Logan’s eyes pinched together. “What?”

“No, I’m not going to a safe house. No, you won’t interrogate him; I will. And no, you will not assist with this matter.”

“Simone,” Logan sighed.

“This is my case!” I yelled, rising from my seat. “Mine! And if you even think about taking it away from me, I am going to the ones above you and telling them of the negligence that started this in the first place.”

A fire I never seen before lit up in Logan’s eyes. “You wouldn’t,” he said through tight lips.