Page 42 of Marked

Cameron stayed quiet for the entire ride. Every now and then, she’d readjust herself. Even with the wind billowing around us as we drove, I could still smell the fear coming off her in waves. The initial attack had shocked her, but this second would be much harder to explain away. You could always brushsomething off as an act of fate, but this had been premeditated, targeted. I knew it, and she knew it.

When we pulled up outside her apartment, I took her hand and led her inside, scoping out every shadow, corner, and door as we went. At this point,anythingcould be a threat, and I’d be damned if I let something get past me this time. Not on my watch.

“How are you doing?” I asked as we headed up the stairs.

“I’m good,” she said. “Better.”

She did sound a bit more like herself. That was a good sign. It also meant she was tough as hell. Most people would have had a mental meltdown if something like that had happened to them even one time, much less twice.

“Stop right here,” I said, putting a hand on her shoulder as I leaned around the corner of the second-floor landing.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

Scanning the hallway, I looked for any movement, a sign of danger. Someone who looked out of place, or a cracked door that should have been closed.

“Double-checking for threats,” I answered. “What does it look like?”

“What kind of private investigator are you?” She stared at me, her brow furrowed in confusion.

The landing was clear, and I took her hand again, leading her to her apartment. “I have what you could call adiversehistory.”

“Diverse? Like what? Special forces? Bodyguard?”

“Bodyguard, yeah,” I admitted.

A lone wolf was always a good option for security for an alpha or an alpha’s family. There were times when they might be physically threatened by a rival alpha and couldn’t trust their own pack. A guy down in the States had hired me once to protect his wife. He’d been sure the rival alpha was going to try killing her to force him to relinquish control of his pack to him. Turnedout the mate had been in on it and wanted her husband killed.Thathad been an uncomfortable conversation to have when I found out.

“Seriously?” Cameron asked as we approached her door. “You?”

Unable to help myself, I turned and looked at her, raising an eyebrow. “What the hell does that mean?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. You just didn’t strike me as the type. You look like the kind of guy who doesn’t want to be tied down. To me, that would include watching over someone for days or weeks like a babysitter.”

Huh. Was I that easy to read, or was she just really good at it?

“I’m the type who likes money and does what I’m paid for. How about that?” I said.

“Well, thanks for getting me home. I’m gonna go in and lie down.”

“I don’t think so,” I said. “Is anyone home yet?”

Cameron frowned. “No. My brother is still at school, and my mom is at work. She’ll be home in a few hours. My brother goes to an after-school program. His bus gets here in an hour or so.”

Shaking my head, I eased her hand off the doorknob. “I’m going in first. I need to check the place out. Make sure our little friend isn’t in there waiting to jump you again.”

“Wait… do you think he might be in here? Like, waiting for me?” The fear in Cameron’s eyes when she said that made me angry. I wanted to beat that guy’s brains in for attacking her like that. She’d be skittish for a while at best.

“Better safe than sorry,” I said, snatching the key from her hand.

Cameron blinked, obviously confused and shocked at how fast my hand moved.

I grinned at her. “You can follow me in, but stay by the door until I sweep the place.”

“Sweep the place? What, are you on a SWAT team?”

Pretending I hadn’t heard that, I unlocked the door and opened it slowly, peering inside. Nothing. No slavering, growling, homeless feral jumping out at us. I brought Cameron in and locked the door behind us.

“It’s fine. See?” Cameron said. “You’re good to go.”

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