Page 48 of Flame's Fight

“Brooke.” I sigh, rushing toward her. She grabs onto me as I wrap my arms around her. “Where were you? Where’s Tony?”

She shifts, but I don’t let her go. I can’t let her go. In fact, I’m never letting her go again. I hope she’s ok doing her rounds with me wrapped around her, because that’s what I’ll be doing from now on. Going to the bathroom might be difficult and messy, but I don’t care.

“Jesus, man, you’ll smother her.” Ghost says. “Ease up a bit.”

I let her go just enough so I can see her face. She shakes her head at me before telling us her story.

“I was on the phone with Gina when I heard a knock on the door. When I looked through the peephole, I saw Tony.” She takes a deep breath before continuing. “I asked Gina to call Flame and then the cops, while I looked for a place to hide.”

“The balcony.” I say, and she nods, glancing over at the curtains.

“Once I snuck outside, I closed the curtains and the door. I wasn’t sure if he would find me, so I moved far away from the door. Had a plan to drop to the floor below if he came outside. Luckily, he didn’t.”

“Where did he go?” I ask her.

“That’s what we’d like to know.” I hear a voice behind us. I turn to see Billings and his partner. Now it’s Brooke’s turn to hold on to me, because I’m straining to kill the bastard.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: BROOKE

I hold on tight to Flame because I can see murder in his eyes. Right now, I don’t know if I’m holding him back to protect Flame or because I want to be the one who takes out the prick of a cop. I’ve never been much for violence, but I’m seriously considering it.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” I snap at him. He steps back before squaring his shoulders.

“Someone called the cops and reported a trespasser at this address.” He says. “Looks like you have a houseful of trespassers.” He sneers at the guys with an extra glare for Shield.

“Yes. A trespasser. Anthony Younger. He broke into my apartment.” I snap back, gesturing toward the mess. “He ransacked my apartment when he couldn’t find me and then he took off when he heard my friends arriving.”

“Where were you hiding?” He asks.

“Why the hell should I tell you?” I bellow. “Are you going to tell him where to find me so that the next time he comes after me, he succeeds? Get the fuck out of my apartment!”

“What’s going on?” My dad comes in and moves to my other side. He glances around the room, nods at Flame’s friends before turning his attention to Billings.

“You need to calm your daughter down.” Billings says. “She’s over emotional and impeding our investigation.”

I jerk free of Flame’s hold and shoot across the room before either he or my dad can stop me. “Get out!” I shout in his face as he takes another step back. He’s now outside in the hall. I follow him. I can see my neighbors standing in the hallway watching the show. Well, I plan on giving them a good one. “You son of a bitch. You let out the man who tried to kidnap me so he could come at me again. Are you two buddies or something? Maybe working together?”

I hear my neighbors gasp, but so does Billings. He reaches for my arm.

“Don’t fucking touch her.” Flame growls as he comes to stand next to me. The rest of the guys file out behind him. I see Smoke, Axel, and Ghost grinning at me. Shield is glaring at Billings.

“You need to leave.” Shield tells Billings.

“You don’t call the shots.” Billings spits at Shield. “We’re answering a call…”

“You need to go. I’ll handle this.” Harding finally speaks up. He’s glaring at Billings, and I see when Billings realizes no one is on his side. That he’s very much alone.

Snarling, he turns and pushes his way through the crowd, slamming his finger on the elevator call button. When nothing happens, he hunches his shoulders as we all continue to stare at him. He swings away and pushes through the door to the stairway.

Snapping my eyes to Harding, he holds his hands up. “I swear to you, I didn’t know he sprung Younger. I would have made sure you knew. Hell, I would have called you, your dad, and Shield. Fuck, I probably would have called Flame and Dante just to make sure they had you protected. I’m very sorry Younger terrorized you again.”

“I don’t want him on the case.” Flame says. “He’s as dangerous to Brooke as Younger.”

“I understand, and I will talk with my Lieutenant. I promise.” Harding says. “Can you come to the precinct tomorrow to give a statement?”

“She’s bringing a lawyer.” Flame says. “I heard the recording of the last interview, and I’m not letting you bully her again.”

Harding nods, and I can see the regret on his face before he speaks. “I apologize for my part in that.” He says to me. “I was out of the office dealing with a personal matter when Billings interviewed Younger. I hadn’t reviewed the notes before our interview. Noah gave me a verbal summary and assured me you fabricated the kidnapping. I let him take the lead because I trusted him. I should have put a stop to it when I realized something was off.”

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