Shattered Mirror (Eve Duncan #23)(22)

“The hell it was. There are five suites on this floor. Why was yours the only one that was targeted?”

“Maybe someone heard about my violin. I had it with me, or he might have meant to take it.”

“And then ran out without taking it?”

“I knocked over the lamp and it broke. The noise might—”

“Stop arguing!” His gray eyes were glittering in his taut face. “It’s all too pat. There’s a doorman downstairs, but he saw nothing because the entry was made through the basement. The door to the street was jimmied open, and the alarm was disconnected. This place has decent security facilities, and that alarm system wasn’t easy to take down. But it was disarmed, and the exit stairwell was used to come to this floor. Not to any of the other four floors in this building. This floor. Then the door to your suite was unlocked, the furniture and drawers made to appear that they’d been ransacked. Then the door was locked from the inside, and he stood there waiting.” He took a step closer. “Are you getting the picture?”

She was getting the picture, and it was chilling. A man there in the dark, waiting for someone to unlock that door and come in, so he could attack.

“I see that you are,” Jock said. “Well, so did I. I don’t know why you weren’t hurt more than you were. Maybe you’re right, and that lamp’s breaking startled him enough to panic him. Or maybe it was only meant as a warning so that he could prove to Kaskov he could kill you at any time.” He repeated through set teeth, his eyes blazing. “Any time, Cara. That time could have been tonight.”

She couldn’t look away from him. His intensity was overpowering. But no more than the scenario he had crafted for her in those incisive words. “I may have been targeted. But it doesn’t have to be because of Kaskov’s enemies. It could still be a robbery that was blown.”

“Kaskov.”

She nodded slowly. “Or because of Kaskov.” She swallowed. “I’ll have to consider that as an option. But now that I’m aware that it might be a possibility, I can take precautions and I—”

“I’ve been taking precautions for years, and this still happened. Stanton was prepared for an attack from the outside, not this. It was too bold, too direct.”

That strong hand reaching out, biting into her throat and jerking her into the darkness.

“Yes, it … was bold.”

“And Stanton didn’t stop it. I didn’t stop it. I swore you’d never be in danger again, and I didn’t stop it.”

“How many times have I told you that you’re not responsible for me?” She tried to smile. “I can see why you might have felt like that when I was younger. Everyone always feels as if they have to take care of kids. But I’m eighteen, and I have to take care of myself these days.”

“Oh, do you? Think again, Cara.” He lifted her chin, his gaze on the deep, mottled bruises on her throat. “He knew exactly what he was doing. He wanted to hurt you. And if he’d dug his thumb just a little to the left, he could have killed you. Do you think I’d allow him to get near you again?”

She stiffened. “Allow? You don’t allow me to do anything.” She glared up at him. “Because that would mean I’d have to give you permission to go back to doing what you did all those years ago. I won’t do that, Jock.”

“I don’t need permission to keep you safe. I can’t do anything else.” He touched the dark bruise on the hollow of her throat. “I realized that a long time ago.” He smiled recklessly as he stepped away from her. “And I never really moved far away from what Reilly made me. It’s just been waiting in the dark like the man who did this to you.” He held out his hands, palms up. “Were you aware that I know twenty-two ways I can kill a man with my bare hands? Give me a weapon, and I’m damn near unstoppable. Why should I waste all that talent?”

“No, I didn’t know that,” she said unevenly. “You didn’t tell me because you knew it would hurt me. But now for some reason you want to do that.” She reached up and touched her swollen throat. “Did you think this wasn’t enough?”

He stared at her for a moment. “Low blow, Cara. You know that’s the opposite of what I want.”

“Then you didn’t go about it the right way. Start over.”

He was silent. “Lord, you’re tough. Ordinarily, you’d have me on my knees because I’d hate the idea of hurting you.”

“And so you should, Jock. I’d never do anything to hurt you. Friends don’t do that.”

“You do hurt me.” His voice was suddenly soft, persuasive. “The idea of your staying for even one extra day here hurts me. I trust Joe Quinn. I know he can take care of you. I want you out of this city.”

“I’ll think about it.”

He shook his head. “Not good enough. I’ll take you to the airport at noon tomorrow. You can tell Eve you managed to get away early.” He paused. “If you don’t, I’ll call and tell her what happened tonight. I was planning on discussing it with Quinn in the next couple days anyway. But then it will be his decision if he wants to tell Eve. Or it may give you the chance to break it to her gently.”

She stared at him in frustration. He’d called her tough? He knew that she wouldn’t want Eve to know there was a threat when she still had a year to go to finish at the academy. “I’d have to miss a class.”