“No, he’s here. He’ll hurt you. It’s my uncle. He did it all. He killed my mom. Be careful.”
She knew she sounded hysterical. She couldn’t help it. She didn’t know where he was. He was like the boogeyman, living in the shadows all this time.
She’d trusted him.
A sob wracked her body. Then suddenly, she found herself sitting on Wolfe’s lap. He rocked her back and forth. He wrapped his arms around her. One part of her was aware that he was hugging her. Actually hugging her. But most of her brain was still focused on the fact that her uncle tried to murder her. “Shh, princess. Shh. You’re safe. I’m here.”
“My uncle is here somewhere. He’s behind it all. He hit Hux. He tried to drown me.”
“Okay, princess. Shh. It’s all right. Everything will be all right. I’m going to get you somewhere safe. Then I’ll check on Hux and find your uncle.” He stood, cradling her in his arms.
“No, no. You can’t!”
“Hush, it will be all right, princess.” He carried her towards the house, deactivating the security then walking inside. They headed towards his office. She hadn’t been in this room and she didn’t want to take the time to look around now.
“Please, Wolfe. He’ll hurt you.”
“No, he won’t.” He set her down on her feet a few steps back from a bookcase. What was he doing? Then he grabbed a book and pulled it.
“Oh my God, it’s a secret door.” Her fear fled her momentarily. Behind the bookcase was a metal door. There was a security panel next to it. Wolfe held up his hand to the panel, it scanned his palm. Next, he bent down to eye level so it could scan his retina.
“What is this?” she asked, calming slightly.
“You’ll see,” he told her as the door opened to reveal a small room beyond it. He held out his hand to her and she walked inside. “This is a safe room. Every house here has one. The palace has three. However, no one knows where it’s located except for me, Aleki, and Caleb. When I leave, you press this button, and the door locks. The code to open it is zero, four, zero, eight, nine, two.”
“That’s my birthdate,” she whispered.
“It is.” He grabbed hold of her shoulders. “Listen to me. If someone is in here, then the door will only open if you put in that code. No matter who is on the other side. And you only open that door for me, Aleki, or Caleb, understand?”
“No, Wolfe, please don’t.”
“Understand?” He gave her a firm look. “Every minute we spend arguing, I could be getting help for Hux and finding your uncle.”
Oh God, he was right.
“There’s blankets, clothes, food. You will be fine. But I can only leave if I know you’re safe in here. If you don’t promise to stay in here then I’m not leaving. I can’t do this if I’m worrying about you.”
“You really want me to lock the door?” She knew how hard that was for him.
His mouth tightened. “Yes.”
If he could do this, so could she. “Go.”
“Promise.”
“I promise. Just don’t die.”
To her shock, he reached out and hugged her again. She soaked in his touch.
“I love you, Wolfe.”
“I’ll be back. I promise.”
And then he was gone. The door shut and locked behind him. She was alone. Terrified.
* * *
Wolfe was glad that Genevieve was safe so he could focus on other things. He crouched down and checked Hux’s pulse. Still alive. Good. Unconscious. Not good. He radioed his injury in as well as sending a code word to Aleki and Caleb from his phone. And then he smiled.