Page 30 of Unexpected Heroine

I kiss the top of her head and slip away. Although she’s feigning more bravery than she did last night, her fear of being left alone is palpable.

Lingering in the kitchen entryway so she can see me, I instruct Klein to continue.

He soothes my agitation by explaining that they’re only coming to offer Violet access to resources for trauma survivors, which includes a room in a residential facility with the other women we rescued.

That’s out of the fucking question.

But at least Big Al and Leo aren’t coming to stir up a hornet’s nest.

“Fuck. Fine,” I acquiesce to the forthcoming home invasion. “She’s not staying at some shelter, though. I’m moving her in with me permanently.”

“Say what now?” Lettie chimes in, obviously listening too closely for her own good.

Pressing the phone to my chest, I step back into the living room. “We can talk about it later, sugar bear.”

Crossing her arms over her chest, she mumbles to herself.

Fucking hell.

Since our incoming house guests are at least fifteen minutes out, I ask Klein for an update on the case.

Mia’s likely found a fuck ton of usable intel by now. All of which will expedite my plans to take down the traffickers.

Two of the three men responsible for drugging and abducting women for the ring are already in Redleg custody. The third guy—the bouncer at Yuri’s strip club—may have fled the area. He’ll be one of my first targets.

Unfortunately, Mia suspects there’s a mole on the FBI’s trafficking task force. And the large number of victims we dropped at the hospital last night raised red flags, which means the FBI is involved now.

It’s only a slight concern for me because I don’t intend to hand these fuckers over to law enforcement once I find them. If I give them to anyone, it’ll be the coroner.

“In potentially related news,” Klein drawls. “Mia’s place was broken into last night while we were on the op. They disabled her security system, stole her tablet, and bugged her room. She’s trying to figure out who it was but isn’t having much luck.”

This is a fucking shit storm.

I roll my head in alternating circles and shift from foot to foot to burn off the spiking adrenaline. “Did she report it to the cops?”

“Not yet. We can only do so much at once.”

A twinge of guilt makes my neck and shoulders tense. It all but dissolves when Lettie groans in pain from the simple act of rolling onto her side on the couch.

She’s all that matters.

I check my watch. It’s time for her pain relievers and a massage with the arnica lotion.

All the more reason for Leo and Boss to stay the fuck away.

“Sorry I’m not there to help.”

“That’s what family is for.” He pauses, letting loose a tense groan. “Speaking of which...” Klein’s words trail off, and his heavy exhale crackles the line.

Here it is. The pressure to come clean about how Lettie fits into the Redleg family. It sits heavy in my gut like a jagged stone.

“I know. Don’t remind me.”

“Well, Mia and I are the only other people who know. She and I are leaving it up to you to decide what to do. You know Violet best. So it’s your call.”

I turn my back to Lettie for the first time since I’ve been this far away from her and quietly say, “I’ll tell her later this week, once she’s feeling a little better, and let her decide.”

“After last night, we figured she doesn’t know, but we weren’t sure.”

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