To Love and Protect (Must Love Diamonds 4)

“Gus was going through them to see if there could be any connection to whoever’s been bothering you. I offered to be a second pair of eyes.”

“And?”

Even though he’d promised to tell her everything, he still hesitated. After seeing her reaction to just a couple of the threats, he worried that admitting he saw the possibility of two connections would magnify her anxiety.

She watched him over the rim of her cup as she took a sip. “You found something, didn’t you?”

“Maybe,” he reluctantly admitted. “I was going to call Gus to see if he saw the same thing and have him check it out.”

Her gaze flicked down to the folder, and after a moment, she squared her shoulders. “Which one?” When he didn’t move right away, she reasoned, “If the connection is to me, maybe I can confirm it.”

He sighed slightly, then located one of the letters toward the back that had stood out the most and passed it over.

Her gaze skimmed back and forth, her frown returning as she read out loud, “‘Until you lose a child, you can never fully understand the responsibility you have to do what’s right for the survivors. It is our duty as parents to protect our children. You must advocate for them, or you will be replaced with someone who will.’” She sat back and stared at the paper. “It’s so articulate. Not like the other one where every other word was a swear word.”

“Yeah. Those—and most of the others—generally tend to be the hotheads blowing off steam. It’s the present-tense wording that elevates it from implied to actual threat. In my opinion anyway.”

Her eyes narrowed as she leaned in to look closer again. “When was it sent?”

“It’s older—from right after your dad became governor.”

“That was six years ago.”

“I still want to have Gus look further into who sent it—if he hasn’t already.”

“Surely it would’ve been dealt with by now?” she asked.

“Everything in that folder has been investigated by either the Colorado police, or the Capitol police, and prosecuted as needed. But it’s the wording that caught my attention.”

“‘Until you’ve lost a child’?”

“Yeah. The man’s daughter was killed in a shooting a year before he sent the letter.”

Shelby frowned. “That’s horrible.”

“It is,” Dev agreed. “And he was determined not to be a threat at the time, but with your dad’s strong stance on the second amendment and everything heating up on gun control laws, maybe it’s got the guy stewing again and looking for someone to blame. Or for revenge. Or to make your dad understand by going after one of his kids.”

Not to mention, all the little incidences with Shelby had started suspiciously close to the anniversary of the daughter’s death.

She stared into her cup in silence.

“I’m not saying that to scare you, I just want you to be aware.”

After one last drink, Shelby slid off the stool while setting her cup down. “I’ll make sure I’m done with work on time today so we can get in double time on the self-defense.” An arch of her eyebrows followed. “If you’re good with that?”

Approval surged forward as he nodded.

That’s my girl. Don’t back down.

Chapter 21

About an hour before Shelby’s shift ended later that afternoon, Dev set his magazine aside and hurried to hold the hospital clinic door open for a petite, older woman hobbling in on crutches with her left foot in a boot.

Her blue eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled her appreciation. “Thank you.”

“Of course.”

“I didn’t know the clinic had gotten themselves a doorman. What a classy touch.”