“She’s afraid of her fucking shadow, no disrespect, I’m not saying you’re not doing all you can for her but there’s something you need to know about me, about the Steeles period. We don’t hide and we don’t back down. I have a sister, a mother and a new sister in law. If anyone had done this shit to one of them I’d lay his ass out, I can do no less for Kadyn.”
“But you just met…”
“Doesn’t matter, my heart knows her, my soul owns her that’s enough for me. Now are you going to give me what I want or am I going this alone?” He studied me for the longest time but I didn’t back down and I didn’t look away. When he saw whatever it was that he needed he took a key from his pocket and opened a drawer throwing a manila envelope across his desk to me. I didn’t open it, not yet, not here. I had something else to do first.
“She upstairs?” he nodded and I turned to leave.
“I’m going up.” I didn’t wait for him to say yes or no just headed back the way I came and walked out and around. I knew there had to be a way in from the inside but I didn’t want to scare her. I pulled my phone from my hip and called her on my way up the stairs. “Kadyn I’m at your door open up.”
She was dressed like a typical teenager, something I’d stopped being about two hours ago, in a halter-top and shorts. The thing with Patti had barely tipped me over into adulthood, this shit, what I might have to do now to protect had finally taken the shine off the once happy go lucky kid with the silver spoon in his mouth and the world at his feet. My eyes had been opened and I didn’t like none of what I saw.
I looked at her standing there and it pissed me off that my first thought was to get her back inside behind closed doors. This had been her reality for how long, this hiding and barely existing while this sick fuck was living his life free and clear? The report on the net had said that because their state had no stalking laws at the time of the incident he had walked with a mere slap on the wrist and a restraining order, which everyone knew wasn’t worth shit. He’d been free to torment her while she and her mother had lived in fear no doubt.
I crowded her in the doorway until she walked backwards into the room her eyes never leaving mine. I tried to fix my face and dim the kill lights maybe a little but I could see from her apprehension that I wasn’t doing a very good job. “I know.” Her eyes fell to the envelope in my hand before her shoulders scrunched up to her ears before they fell and she lowered her head as if in shame. That too pissed me off.
Lifting her chin I looked into her eyes hoping she could read what was in mine. It was a fucked up situation all around. How could I ask her to trust me after everything that she’d been through? We’d only just met, she knew next to nothing about me, only that I’d stormed into her life and decided that she was mine. That wasn’t about to change but I had to find some way of getting it through to her that this was for real. That I meant everything I’d said to her on that beach. Was that only a few short hours ago? Felt like a lifetime.
“You have nothing to be ashamed of Kadyn, but now I understand certain things. I want you to listen to me, as hard as this might be for you to accept you no longer have to live in fear, I won’t allow it. I know you’ve felt cornered for the last four years but that shit ends here and now. Tomorrow I’m taking you home to meet my parents, if my words alone won’t convince you then being with them will. What we love we protect, when you become one of us you gain the same care as everyone else in the Steele clan. And we are a force to be reckoned with believe me. So far it’s just been your mom and dad and their limited resources, well now you have Nathaniel Steele in your corner and he’s no light weight.”
She had no idea what the fuck I was talking about, it was evident in the questioning look she gave me but I figure it was best to just show her. I can imagine that being given the run around all these years by the people who were sworn to protect her had made her a little doubtful, but now it was my job to see that she had all the protection she needed. I felt raw inside and although all I wanted was to go home and dive into the file her dad had given me I needed her more.