Page 50 of The Bodyguard

“Even Maya Ramsey?”

“She’s not off-limits,” Mitch said flatly. “No one is. Get someone inside her apartment within the hour.”

“Yes, sir.”

He ended the call. Pocketed the phone. Opened the fridge, stared at the bottles of water and leftover takeout without really seeing any of it, then closed the door again.

She was going to fight him on this. He knew it. She wouldn’t like what he’d just ordered. Would probably tell him he’d gone too far. That this was a violation. But she was wrong.

Trust didn’t win wars. Vigilance did.

The sound of soft footsteps behind him told him she was still awake. He didn’t turn around.

“You find anything?” Andi asked, her voice low but steady.

“Not yet.”

He heard her shift, standing near the counter, watching him. “You called it in?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

He turned slowly. Met her eyes across the island. “It was a test.”

She blinked. “What?”

“They wanted to see how fast we’d respond. What protocols I’d trigger. What perimeter layers I’d activate first.”

Andi’s jaw clenched. “So you think it was about you, not me.”

“I know it was about me protecting you.”

She took a step closer. Her robe hung loose, one shoulder slipping free, bare legs visible. But there was nothing soft about her expression.

“What else did you order?” she asked, voice dangerously calm.

Mitch didn’t hesitate. “A trace on your team’s electronics. Everything from phones to smartwatches. If it’s plugged in, Cerberus is inside it by now.”

There was a beat of silence. Then her expression hardened.

“You what?”

“I’m not saying it again.”

“You had no right to go after them without even telling me…”

“I had every right,” he interrupted, voice going cold. “Because you’re not the only one with a target on your back. I am. And now, they’re coming for you through me.”

She stared at him like he’d slapped her. “You went after Maya. She’s not a suspect.”

“Yet.”

“You think she’s the leak?”

“I think nothing until I have proof,” he said. “But she’s close. She’s trusted. She has access. And that makes her a vulnerability.”

Andi stepped around the counter, closing the distance. Her voice rose, sharp and clipped. “You don’t get to bulldoze through people’s lives just because you’re scared.”

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