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“Granger, assemble a four-man team of personal security for her. I want an armored vehicle reinforced for her travels, too.” Not that I’ll allow her to leave the house without me. Not anytime soon. Maybe not ever.
Christ. She’s turning me inside out already.
“Anyone in particular you have in mind?” he asks, and I think for a moment about the kind of protection I want for her.
“No, but make sure you do extensive background checks on them. No criminal records. No family ties. Complete loners. Ex-Delta, Special Forces, Rangers, top-tier guys. They need to know how to handle anything that comes at them.” Nothing less will do. “I want them to be able to protect her better than everyone on my payroll combined.” Marco growls his annoyance at the implication that they aren’t all good enough.
“Calm down, Marco. I’m not nearly as precious as she is.” I roll my eyes at him as Wes enters the room with the mother, forcing her to her knees in the middle of everyone. The felines begin growling, their hackles rising. Both ready to attack.
“Boss, I’ve got a cousin. Former Ranger, no familial ties except me. The guys in his unit would be the ones for this job,” Granger offers.
I think on his suggestion for a minute. “Will you die for her, Granger? Accept that you could be used against your cousin in order for someone to have access to her?”
He doesn’t hesitate. “Yes.” Granger has been as loyal to me as Marco has from the day I met him.
“Will your cousin accept that?” He’s silent for too long. “Your hesitation doesn’t bode well, old friend.”
“Calculations, boss. Sarge is as deadly as a man comes. You give him an order, and he’ll follow it to the letter. As long as you reinforce that his loyalty is to her and her alone, he’ll let the world burn to the ground for her.” I like that. I give him approval, and he’s off to make his calls.
“Name,” I snap. This woman means nothing to me, so her name is insignificant. But I’ll need it to address her.
“Justine,” Wes answers for her when she refuses.
“Justine Ricci.” Her head pops up at my frigid tone. The anger in her eyes as she stares at the woman sleeping soundly in my arms is uncalled for. I suspect that despite being alone for so long, she hasn’t rested well most of her life.
Justine’s eyes narrow as I rub one hand down my girl’s ass, brushing my fingers between the supple cheeks and farther on until I find her damn cunt. Christ, I wonder if she even realizes she’s wet for me. Would she understand what that means?
“What’s her name?” I ask the bound woman on my floor. “And how long has she been locked in that tower?” I have a thousand questions, but those are the two most pressing ones.
There’s a hitch in little girl’s breathing as I continue rubbing along her covered pussy. In slumber, she enjoys this. Her body reassures her that she’s safe with me touching her so intimately.
“You turned my husband down when he offered her to you,” Justine spits out.
“Because I didn’t want to merge our families. I still don’t. The Riccis are done for. This sweet angel will have my name, and in ten years, no one will remember who the Riccis are.” Bitterness rises in her eyes. “Answer my questions.”
Wes’ knee digs into her shoulders from behind. The man is a machine when it comes to killing; nothing and no one matters, only the assignment. He’s the perfect instrument of destruction.
“Her name is Rue.” Glancing down at the angel beneath my shirt, her given name is soft and feminine, just like her. I nod for Justine to continue as my eyes lift. The doorbell rings before the older woman can answer, making Rue startle in my arms. I whisper sweet words to her, and she settles again.
Marshal enters my office with Adonis and Zak, his second-in-command, on his heels. “Isn’t this cozy?” Adonis eyes up the way I’m holding Rue before dropping into one of the chairs across my desk. Both cats bare their teeth at him; the one on my desk exposes his claws and jumps down, pinning Adonis with a glare. “Jesus,” he murmurs, sitting farther away from the animal.
“What do you want?” I’m getting sick of interruptions.
“Found something in the home office that I thought you might like to get your hands on.” He pulls out a manila envelope and taps it against his leg.
“Out of the goodness of your heart?” Marco snaps out.
“Of course.” He offers a predatory smile.
“What the fuck do you want?” Before Adonis can respond, the male cat leaps forward, snaps the envelope between his sharp teeth, and snatches it from Adonis’ grip, bringing it around to me.
“Jesus Christ, what the fuck, man?” My lips twitch with amusement as I take the object from the Serval’s mouth, surprised his teeth didn’t pierce the papers.
Pulling out the documents, my blood boils as I read through the records they kept on Rue. She’s been in the tower since she was five years old, taught only enough to have a basic understanding of the world around her. They suspect she has a photographic memory, and I’m betting that’s why she was locked away. She was a threat to Ricci’s organization.
Her first period came when she was sixteen. They began giving her a shot to prevent her from menstruating each month, not wanting to have more contact with her than was deemed necessary.
In that regard, they never allowed her to have her own clothes in her room. They were handed to her through a door in the wall. Same with her food and anything else she or her cats needed.
