Defending Morgan (Mountain Mercenaries #3)(27)

“Do you know where your dad was the night you were kidnapped?” Meat asked.

Morgan’s brow furrowed, and she shook her head. “No. I have no idea. We weren’t close enough to keep tabs on each other like that. I had lunch with him the week before, but that’s about it.”

“According to the police reports, he doesn’t have an alibi. At least not one that can be corroborated,” Rex said. “He left work around six, which was verified by his employee swipe card, and his car was seen on a surveillance camera leaving the parking garage. He says he went straight home and was alone all night, but again, there’s no one to vouch for him that he’s telling the truth.”

“You think my dad did this?” Morgan asked in disbelief. “There’s no way.”

“Why not? Nina’s dad snatched her from the only home she’s known and didn’t plan on returning her,” Black said. “It happens, Morgan. All the time.”

“Not my dad,” she insisted.

“You said yourself that you don’t know him all that well,” Rex said without a hint of sympathy in his tone. “Maybe he did it to get back at you for snubbing him all those years. Or he did it to get back at your mom for cheating on him. Humans can hold a grudge for a very long time, Morgan. We can’t rule anyone out.”

“Fine,” Morgan spat, her eyes shooting sparks at the phone lying on the end of the bed. “In that case, maybe Lane did it because he didn’t want me seeing anyone else, even though he didn’t love me anymore. Maybe Lance had a crush on me and wanted me all to himself, or he was mad I was going to break up with his brother. No, I have it—maybe Karen and Sarah were in this together, and they just wanted someone to scare me, and it got out of hand. Or someone that night saw me in the club and figured he’d just take me.”

She was breathing hard, as if she’d run a mile at full speed.

Arrow murmured, “Easy, beautiful.”

Morgan turned on him then. “No! This is crazy.”

“Just because we bring up a name doesn’t mean we necessarily think they were the ones who did it,” Meat said soothingly.

“Then why mention them in the first place?” Morgan shot back agitatedly. “I mean, you might as well accuse every single person I’ve sold honey to, or the homeless man I give money to when I go downtown to meet my dad, or my seventh grade teacher who I had a crush on when I was twelve. You might as well accuse my mom, or my postman, or the bouncer at the club that night. Where does it stop? When does the list start getting smaller? If you’re going to accuse my own father of having me kidnapped, it could literally be anyone I’ve ever spoken to in my life.”

“That’s exactly right,” Rex said sternly. “It could be anyone, Morgan. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you’ll be able to think clearly and help us figure this out. People can be evil. Some just hide it a hell of a lot better than others. We aren’t pointing the finger at anyone yet. We’re just talking. Trying to get information on the people closest to you so we can eliminate them. We wouldn’t be doing our jobs if we dismissed someone simply because you don’t think they could be behind it. We’re good at what we do because we’re not emotionally connected to the primary players.”

Arrow kept his eyes on Morgan. He couldn’t look away if his life depended on it. He wanted to take her in his arms and reassure her that they’d figure this out. That she was safe. But he couldn’t. He didn’t have the right. He had to sit there and watch as her world was torn apart once more.

But he should’ve known she would reach down deep inside herself and find the same strength she’d used to get through the ordeal thus far. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then another.

Arrow would’ve sat back, given her some space, but she turned her hand in his and gripped him so tightly, he knew her nails were leaving half-moon marks in the back of his hand.

“You’re right. I’m sorry. I just . . . this is just so overwhelming.”

“I know it is,” Rex said. “You’re doing amazing. And again, we are so relieved and happy to have found you. I won’t bore you with statistics, but I imagine you have an idea that generally people who disappear for as long as you did aren’t found, and if they are, they aren’t walking and talking, if you know what I mean.”

“I do. Thank you,” Morgan told him.

Nina jerked on the bed and began to moan in distress. Morgan immediately turned to her and brushed her hand over her head. “You’re okay,” she said quietly. “You’re safe. Go back to sleep, baby. I’m here.”

Her words did the trick. Nina settled back down without ever having woken up completely.

“How’s she doing?” Gray asked quietly.

“I’m not sure,” Morgan said.

“She had a tough night,” Black informed everyone. “Woke up screaming every hour or so. Nothing we did worked, and she was scared to death of us.”

“Morgan being here has really helped,” Ball added. “I think the fact that she’s female is working in her favor.”

“It’s more than that,” Arrow countered. “It’s Morgan. She protected Nina when they were in that hell house together. Nina knows deep down that Morgan was the only thing standing between her and extreme danger. It’s going to take a while for that feeling of vulnerability to fade.”