"Protect her from what, Dimitri?"
I eye him levelly.
"Goddammit," Dillon curses, looking at Jude.
"Dimitri, dammit," my brother-in-law says, his blue eyes flaring with irritation. "If you know something about the girl, just tell him already. He already knows whatever the fuck happened out there was self-defense. It's pretty goddamn clear that you were outnumbered and outgunned, trying to protect the girl. The scene speaks for itself. He just needs to know why they were after her and whether she's safe. What the fuck is going on?"
"Like I said already, I've never heard of her."
Dillon curses again, his jaw clenching. "If I find out you're lying to me, I'm hauling you in for obstruction, Arakas. She's been missing for weeks. Her mom is worried sick."
I snort in disgust, fighting the urge to grab him by the collar for daring to bestow that title on Delilah. Delilah Buchanan doesn't deserve to breathe the same air as Snow. She damn sure doesn't deserve to call herself Snow's mom. "Take it from someone who knows," I growl, hitting Dillon with a cold stare. "When someone her age goes no contact, it's usually for a goddamn reason."
I know that better than anyone. Jude should too. Devin went missing last year. She just fucking disappeared on us. Scared the hell out of me. Turns out, she just didn't want to have contact with me and Dante. She was afraid we'd drag her back to Houston when she was perfectly content living here in Silver Spoon Falls, where she'd fallen in love with Jude. She didn't want to leave him.
Except, she didn't tell him that either. She spent a couple of weeks living in her car, sneaking in through his bedroom window at the Silver Spoon MC when he wasn't there. He was livid when he found out. And I felt like a complete asshole for making her think she had to put herself at risk like that to escape this life.
It's the reason I'm so fucking worried about dragging Snow into this life now. Devin hated living this way, constantly under guard, never safe. Will it be any better for Snow? Or will she yearn for freedom too?
"Next time you threaten to arrest me, make damn sure you bring a fucking army to do it," I growl at Dillon, pissed off and more twisted up than I was before he showed up. "Now, kindly get the fuck off my property."
I don't wait for a response from him or Jude. I turn on my heel and storm back toward the house. I need to see Snow. Maybe that'll settle my big ass down a little.
No, what I need to do is claim her, bind her to me in a way that nothing can change, not the sheriff, not the Carmonas, not even death.
"Dimitri," Dillon shouts from behind me. "If you've never heard of her, how do you know she's Devin's age?"
Fuck.
Chapter Eight
Snow
"I'm sorry about the dogs," I say for the millionth time, pacing restlessly across the small safe room hidden behind a panel in the walk-in closet. It's nearly the size of my bedroom at home, with a plush rug covering the floor, a full bed, and a cozy sofa. There's even a television on a small stand, a bookcase, a mini fridge, and a bathroom.
It's…elegant. Far nicer than I imagined a safe room would look. I guess I always thought they'd look a little like the dark, cramped tornado shelters I've seen on TV.
"Don't worry about them, Snow," Dante says, watching me from the sofa. "They're just rugs. They can be cleaned."
I glance down at Rosy and Dizzy and sigh. Luckily, they didn't escape the bedroom earlier. They ran straight to their food bowls when they got inside. But the bedroom floor is a disaster area, and the rug in here aren't much better. Both dogs are fast asleep in the middle of it, mud drying on their coats.
They're too cute to be mad at. I love that they're happy here. But I still feel guilty for the mess. For the sheriff. For causing so much trouble. For everything, really. Dimitri could go to jail because of me.
I don't know why that possible outcome never occurred to me until today. It should have because he killed a man to protect me. We left God only knows how many bodies in the woods when we fled. What if the sheriff hauls him and Constantine out of here before I ever get to tell Dimitri how much he means to me? Or how grateful I am that he's the one who found me in the dark? They saved my life, and they may pay for it with their freedom.
"I don't want to lose him," I whisper, tears stinging my eyes as I admit the truth to his uncle. "I don't want him to go to prison because of me."