Page 15 of Duty Unbound

Her lips pressed together as she jotted down notes on her electronic tablet. At least she was taking all of this more seriously than her sister. Beside me, Ty was already examining the camera placements, shaking his head in disapproval.

But then Mel’s attention flipped back to her phone. So, maybe not.

Ty pointed to the cameras. “And those? Useless. You’ve got massive blind spots.”

Mel let out a sigh and nodded. “So what do we do?”

“Reposition the cameras first,” I said. “You need full coverage, including motion sensors on the back perimeter. The biggest problem, though?” I turned to face the house. “Your biggest vulnerability is all this glass.”

The entire rear of the house was designed to look sleek and modern—massive floor-to-ceiling windows, wide sliding doors, open access points. It was a damn invitation for an intruder.

Mel followed my gaze and exhaled. “Nova loves natural light.”

I gave her a look. “Natural light isn’t going to stop a stalker.”

She swallowed but didn’t argue. Good. At least one of the Rivers sisters seemed capable of rational thought.

Ty and I spent the next hour checking access points, evaluating locks, and noting every weak spot. Mel stayed with us the entire time, attention torn between listening to us and text messaging whoever needed her so badly on her phone.

If she had this much work, she needed a damned assistant. Because nothing else mattered if someone got in here and hurt her or her sister.

Each time she looked down at that screen, I felt my irritation grow. It wasn’t just unprofessional—it was dangerous. She couldn’t maintain situational awareness if she was constantly distracted.

When we made it back inside, we moved through the rooms systematically. More of the same problems. Weak locks. Untrained staff. A security system that was basically for show.

Mel looked up from her phone as I tested a window lock in the living room. “So…how bad is it?”

I turned, leaning against the frame. “On a security scale ofone to ten, with ten being the best you can have? You’re at a three. Barely.” And there was no excuse for it with the money Nova had.

Mel’s shoulders dropped, a flash of genuine concern crossing her features before she composed herself again.

Ty shot her a lopsided smile. “The good news is, we can fix it.”

Yeah, we could. If we took them on as a client. And that was becoming a bigger “if” by the minute.

Mel sighed, glancing toward the hallway. “Nova’s not going to like this.”

“She’ll like being dead a lot less,” I said bluntly.

Mel flinched slightly, but I didn’t sugarcoat things. Not with a real threat in play.

Before I could say more, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye.

Nova again. She’d been waiting to make her entrance.

She waltzed into the room, dropping onto the couch with a dramatic sigh. “Okay, summarize for me. Give me just the sexy parts.”

I turned my head slowly. “The sexy parts?”

She waved a hand. “You know, the action-movie stuff. Chase scenes, night vision goggles, maybe a helicopter.”

Ty muffled a laugh. I just stared at her, momentarily speechless. This woman truly did not grasp the severity of her situation.

“The sexy parts,” I said flatly.

Nova beamed. “Exactly.”

I crossed my arms. “Fine. Here’s your summary.”

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