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“I can cover it, sir.”
“You can but it’s unnecessary. You need a few hours to rest before the training session tomorrow morning.”
Ryan shifted closer and dropped his voice. “She has to be protected, sir.”
Ah, so he knew what was going on. “She will be. You have my word.”
The other man studied him a moment, then gave a slight nod, apparently satisfied. “Anything you need, tell me and I’ll get it done. No questions asked.”
Interesting. “Understood.” He clapped Ryan on the shoulder and walked to his quarters. Mindful of his own instructions to Rubin, Seth knocked on the door. “It’s Seth. I’m coming in soft.” He unlocked the door and went inside.
After he was positive no one forced Seth inside at gunpoint, Marsh lowered his weapon. “Kitchen,” he said, his voice barely above a growl.
“You find out what happened?”
A nod. “Teagan’s talking to her. The kid, Rubin, is with them. He’s a loose cannon, Seth. We need to watch him. I don’t want Richardson or Peters sending him to the punishment room. As volatile as he is at the moment, the militia leaders could kill him if they decide to make him an example.”
“I agree. He’s as much at risk as his girlfriend.”
“Who’s taking Rubin’s watch?”
“Ryan. He’s concerned about Jillian.”
“He should be. If I still had my badge, Peters would be in handcuffs and on his way to the station for statutory rape.”
Seth froze. “She’s a minor?”
A nod. “She turns 18 in two months.”
That changed everything. Seth sighed, sick of the whole sorry mess this case was turning into. “Will she talk to me?”
“As long as Teagan is with her. Jillian bonded with your woman.”
Seth followed the sound of soft conversation to the kitchen. At the table, Jillian and Rubin sat side-by-side, his arm around her shoulders. Teagan sat at the end of the table next to Jillian.
At Seth’s entrance, Rubin scrambled to his feet. “Sir.”
He gestured for the boy to return to his seat and sat across from the couple. “How are you, Jillian?”
“I’m okay,” she whispered, her gaze locked on her clasped hands resting on the table.
Rubin glanced at Seth and shook his head, silently disagreeing with Jillian’s statement.
“How is your wrist?”
Her gaze flicked up to Seth’s. “It hurts, sir”
He pushed back from the table and poked around in the freezer until he found a bag of frozen peas. He draped the bag over Jillian’s wrist. “When Violet arrives, we’ll ask her for a chemically activated cold pack. Tell me what happened.”
She paled. “Nothing.”
Rubin frowned. “Jillian, Seth will help.”
“Nobody can help.”
“Talk to me,” Seth said. “I’ll see what I can do to make things better for you.”
“Jillian, please,” Rubin begged. “This isn’t right. We can’t let him get by with this.”