Page 113 of Beyond Protection
"Yeah. You do a good job."
Mac's knee bounced. I placed my hand on it. Solid. Present.
The bouncing stopped.
"Thank you," he said quietly. "For being here and for not leaving even when I'm a mess."
Ma appeared in the doorway. Saw us. Smiled slightly.
Then she disappeared, leaving us alone with blinking Christmas lights.
Mac leaned his head against my shoulder. Rested there. Breathing. Letting himself be scared.
I stayed still. Kept watch.
I was also aware of the weight of his head. The warmth of his hand. How his hair smelled like clay and rain.
I wanted to turn and pull him closer. To kiss him the way I had under Christmas lights, except this time without an audience.
But he needed comfort more than he needed my want. So I stayed still and told myself that wanting him was something I could deal with later.
At three-seventeen in the morning, the house had finally gone quiet.
I sat in the kitchen monitoring camera feeds. Four angles. All empty. Sixth cup of coffee cooling beside the laptop.
Movement made me reach for my sidearm before my brain caught up—only Mac, emerging from the hallway like a ghost.
"You scared me."
"Sorry. Couldn't sleep."
"You should try—"
"Don't. Please."
Fair enough.
He sat across from me. Pulled out his phone. "Clairmont sent me access to the evidence files. Vanessa's apartment." He scrolled. "I need to understand what she was thinking."
I understood the need. I had spent three years reading reports after Kyra died.
"All right. Show me."
He looked up. Surprised. "You want to—"
"If you're going to do this, you're not doing it alone."
He turned the phone so we could both see. Vanessa's handwriting—precise, controlled.
Day 127: Subject shows signs of accumulated stress. Shoulder tension visible. Sleep deprivation evident. Current handling insufficient. Deterioration accelerating.
"Four months of this," Mac said quietly.
He scrolled to another entry. Then another. Eighteen months of his life filtered through the eyes of someone who'd decided he was an object.
"Here. This is when she decided."
Day 512: Subject's condition critical. Extraction necessary. Timeline: December 18th—symbolic date, Christmas week, family gathered, optimal conditions for removal and restoration.
