Page 236 of Before Dawn

“Who hurt you?” The question slipped from my lips, sharp and desperate.

A pause hung between us, thick with unspoken pain, and I could almost hear the cracks in her heart. Then came the hitch in her breath, a sound that shattered me. It was as if I could feel her tears, and my resolve wavered.

“Mikkel…” she whispered, and the sound wrapped around me like a vice.

“So help me God,” I vowed, my voice low and fierce. “Whoever hurt you won’t get to do it a second time.”

“I don’t want to talk about it over the phone.” Her voice quivered, and I could picture the tears glistening on her cheeks. “Tonight, when we’re together.”

“Okay.” My heart thundered in my chest. “But remember, I love you.”

“I don’t think you love me as much as I love you.” Vulnerability dripped from her words, and I felt the air thicken with her despair.

Impossible.How could she think that?

“No one could ever love you more than I do.” My voice burned with urgent conviction. “You aremi todo190, Abigail. Never forget that.”

The moment I came off the phone, Morison approached me and the air felt heavier, as if it knew something I didn’t. As long as my girlfriend wasn’t happy, there was nothing to fucking smile about.

“Good morning, Mr. Suarez,” he greeted me warmly. “How are you today, sir? Sapphire will be out of the office today.”

“Morning,” I replied, barely glancing at him, and I entered my office, the door shutting a little more aggressively than I had intended.

My eyeslanded on a brown envelope lying dead center on my desk. There was no indication of its origin or stamp, just my name and office address scrawled in an unfamiliar handwriting. My heart sank, a sickening premonition twisting in my gut.

Have fun with her. I sure as hell did.

Who the fuck was this?

I ripped it open, hands trembling, and pulled out a thumb drive and two glossy photographs. The first one hit me like a punch to the gut—Abigail with Joshua. But this was from the past. Her nails were almond-shaped, not coffin-shaped. Her hair was more burgundy than copper.

But fuck, none of those details made this any easier to stomach.

What kind of man would do something like this to a woman?

I put the thumb drive in my laptop and before it hit the ten second mark, I knew what it was. A sex tape. Then, another small note fell out from between the photos. I unfolded it, my breath catching in my throat as I read the words.

Get out before she finds another cock to suck.

The world tilted, and I grasped the edge of my desk to steady myself. The words seared into my brain, each letter a brand of agony.

I felt an anger so fierce it seared through my veins, leaving a trail of bitterness. But above all, it was the hurt that drowned me, a suffocating wave of anger that left me gasping for air. My office felt like a prison, the walls closing in on me.

“Tienes que estar de coña,191” I cursed. “Estehijo de puta.192”

Was this why she was off? Had Joshua threatened her?

Without thinking, I shot to my feet, the chair screeching against the floor. There was no way I could focus on work while rage burned through me, hot and unrelenting. Grabbing my keys, I stormed out, my pulse pounding so hard it drowned out everything else.

“Cancel everything, I’ll be out of office.”

“Sir,” Morison called after me and I didn’t even stop.I couldn’t stop.

The drive to Xander Tower was excruciatingly slow, and for the first time in my life, I broke every fucking stop sign. My heart raced as my thoughts pounded in my head like a drum. As I finally pulled up outside the building, I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself.

I strode into Dillon’s office, a storm brewing inside me as I saw him, Azzaria and Arnoldo seated. Arnoldo looked up from his phone, his expression shifting from pleasant to concerned in an instant.

“Mikkel? You look—”

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