“Mercer...”
“EOD agents put the body inside.”
She’d gone over the reports. There hadn’t been enough of the dead man’s blood in the cabin, so the police had thought his body had been dumped there, but they’d never been able to find the kill site.
The EOD were too good at covering their tracks.
“I didn’t want to tie you up. Your wrists were already raw and bloody.”
She blinked away tears.
“You wouldn’t stay behind. You kept trying to follow,” he said quietly. “I didn’t...I didn’t have a choice.”
“Actually, you did. You’ve known this for years, you could’ve said—”
“Before I left you at that cabin, I told you that you couldn’t speak to the police about me. I told you I was working a case and lives were on the line.” He yanked a hand through his hair. “At first, I thought you were covering for me. Doing what I’d asked because you promised me that you’d keep quiet.”
She frowned at him.
“Later...later I realized you just didn’t remember, and by then, I was in so deep at the EOD that telling you the real truth wasn’t an option.” His hand dropped. “I even thought it might be better for you. Not knowing. You seemed to be making a good life for yourself. Y
ou graduated at the top of your college class. You went to Quantico. You had a wide circle of friends. Hell, you were even involved with that jerk psychology professor for a time.”
She took a step back as realization slammed into her. “You were watching me.” That was her gut response. He wasn’t just quoting facts he’d discovered in some background report on her. The anger that hummed in his voice when he talked about her ex, Jim...it was too strong. Too personal.
He’d even told her before that he’d seen her, but she hadn’t seen him.
Because he was watching me?
“I needed to make sure you were all right.”
The growl of an engine grew louder. A snowplow? The sheriff? She didn’t look away from Thomas to find out. “How long have you been watching me?”
“It’s not... I check on you, okay? When I’m back in the U.S. Between assignments.” He seemed to be weighing his words and responding so carefully. “I just like to make sure that you’re safe.”
I’ll always be with you.
“The EOD gathered a lot of intel on your attacker, and we thought it was just one guy, working alone. You seemed to be the first victim he’d taken. Mercer believed that, with his death, it was over, but I...just needed to be sure.” He sighed. “I needed to be sure because at night, when I closed my eyes, I would still hear you screaming for me to help you.”
There it was. All of the secrets from her past. The truth she’d sought for so long, and now, hearing all of those details just made her feel numb. Like she’d just taken a dive into another ice pond.
But it made sense. His story explained the strange connection she’d felt with Thomas. The awareness. He was her past. The man who’d saved her in the dark.
He saved me, then left me.
No wonder her emotions had been all over the place with him.
She’d even...even wondered if she might be falling for him.
“Say something,” he gritted out, his eyes glinting.
“What do you want me to say?” That emotionless voice didn’t sound right. It didn’t sound like her voice at all.
“Yell at me. Curse me. Tell me I’m a jerk for keeping the truth from you.” He took another step toward her. “Tell me that I should’ve chosen you and turned my back on the EOD.”
Her eyes widened. “Is that what you want me to say?” As she stared into Thomas’s eyes, Noelle saw his guilt. Heavy. Thick.
“You were seventeen.” Another step brought him even closer. “You were terrified. You...you asked me to stay with you. You begged me to stay.”