Beautifully Broken

Gravel crunches under my bare feet, and then an arm wraps around my middle, yanking me back. I open my mouth to scream, but instead, a broken cry is all I can manage.

Damian takes me to the ground, and I fall flat on my ass. His arms clamp around me, and he yanks me against his chest. The gravel scrapes at my hands as bursts of panicked air explode from me.

“I’m sorry,’ Damian rasps, his voice filled with a foreign urgency while his chest heaves against my back. “I’m sorry,” he repeats.

Sobs build in my throat, and no matter how hard I fight, I can’t hold them back. They rip through me, and hot tears spill down my cheeks, and then my body sags against his.

Unable to contain the relentless pain, I let out a scream. It’s a horrible wailing sound that robs me of my breath.

Damian’s arms wrap tighter around me, and I feel his breath warm my hair. “I’ve got you. You’re safe,” he keeps repeating the words, holding me as I shatter to pieces.

I lose track of time until lost sobs drift over my lips. Only then does Damian ease his hold on me. Climbing to his feet, he helps me up, and then he frames my face, locking eyes with me.

“Better?”

No.

Never.

I nod, knowing it will set him at ease.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you,” he says, his eyes filled with guilt. His thumbs brush the tear tracks away from my cheek. “I forgot to lock the door. That’s why I came back.”

I should’ve listened to him and not gone up there.

Pulling my face from his hands, I take a step back.

Damian’s eyes scan over me. “You okay?”

I nod again. “I’m going to shower.” The horror’s too raw in me to talk to Damian any longer.

Walking around him, I head back into the house so I can be alone with my demons.

It feels like every time I manage to take a step forward, I’m knocked two steps back.

There’s no escaping this nightmare.

Chapter 14

DAMIAN

Knowing there’s no way I can leave now, I wait until I hear the shower running before I call Jane.

“Hey,” she answers. “Still coming over?”

“No, something else came up. What do you need help with?”

“My brother owes a drug dealer money, but he’s hightailed it out of town, and now they’re threatening me,” Jane explains.

“What do you want me to do about it?” I ask.

“I’m going to report it to the police but want some kind of protection until the drug dealer is taken care of.”

Fuck. There’s no way I can protect Jane. Cara needs all of my attention.

“I have a friend. Jeff. He’s old, but he’ll be able to protect you.”

“Why not you?” she asks, disappointment lacing her words.

“I’m busy with another assignment, but Jeff is highly skilled and will be able to keep you safe.”

“Okay, fine.”

“I’ll get Jeff to give you a call so the two of you can make arrangements,” I say.

“Thanks, I’d appreciate it.”

As soon as we end the call, I dial Jeff’s number.

“Everything okay?” he asks, knowing I won’t just call for idle chat.

“I have an acquaintance in town that needs protection. She’s being hounded by a drug dealer. Can you take care of it?”

“Sure. Send me her details.”

“Thanks.”

I text Jane’s phone number and address to Jeff, then tuck my phone back in my pocket. Hearing the shower still running, I head up to my office, and grabbing the camera and all the memory cards, I shove them in one of the cabinets.

Once I lock the door behind me, I head to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. Leaning back against the counter, I take a sip, and then I try to figure out where to go from here.

I fucked up. Again.

Christ only knows what damage seeing the footage did to Cara. After last night and what happened today, it feels like I’m back at square one.

Fuck.

My mind starts to race, trying to come up with some way I can undo the damage, even though I know there’s none.

I’ll just have to be patient and be there for Cara.

Jesus, I fucked up.

CARA

I stand in my room and blindly stare out of the window and into the night.

Once I managed to shove the harrowing memories back down, anger began to grow in me.

Why did Damian keep the camera and memory cards? Why did he watch them?

Did he see when I was raped?

One question after the other only makes my anger grow until I’m trembling from it.

He had no right.

I feel Damian come into the room, the dominance pouring from him, making the air tense.

Not turning around, I ask, “Why did you keep it?”

“Evidence,” he murmurs.

“For what?” The words taste bitter as they leave my lips.

I swing around, and he takes a step closer. The air starts to buzz between us as if it’s a live wire.