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Cameron nodded.

“The guy who killed them was convicted and sent to prison, but he didn’t serve much time because he ratted out a bunch of mobsters, then got himself into WITSEC. Even though Franky has cops in his back pocket, it was still hard to get sensitive intel like that. Took a long time, but when he found that address, he made it count. Got The Butcher to make the old man suffer before Franky finished him off. Mutilation isn’t my style.”

She adjusted her position on the seat of the bike and folded her arms around her belly. “Right, your MO is to make them disappear. Like that crooked accountant who went missing a few months back. That one was you, right?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t kill him.”

“No?”

“No doubt he’s a low life, but I couldn’t pin him to anything that deserved a bullet between the eyes. He’d been cooking the Mafia’s books for a few years, and something spooked Franky. He didn’t trust the guy anymore. So, I paid the accountant a visit. Told him he had two options: pack a suitcase and get out of the country before midnight, or stick around and I’d finish the job. He guessed who I was and knew who sent me. He grabbed his passport and wallet and walked out the door. Didn’t even bother packing a bag.”

“So, Franky thinks you murdered the guy?”

“No. I told him a half truth. Said I went to do the job and he’d already gone. That he must’ve got wind of trouble and taken off.”

She blinked fast. “Why didn’t you give me that option?” There was confusion on her face and perhaps a touch of renewed fear.

I lifted my cap to wipe sweat from my brow. “Cameron, if I’d turned up on your doorstep and told you to leave the country or die, how would you have reacted?”

“Not so great. Probably would’ve slammed the door on your face and freaked out.”

“And then what would you have done?” I hooked my thumbs into the waistband of my jeans.

She puffed out her cheeks and looked to the sky for her answer. “Even if the idea hadn’t sounded batshit crazy, I wouldn’t have left the country since I don’t have a passport. And I guess I would’ve gone to the police for help.”

“Yeah, the same ones Franky pays off. Might as well have walked yourself right into his office at the strip club. Which would’ve landed me in a world of shit, too.” I picked up another large log and loaded it into the trailer.

Cameron’s shoulders slumped and she rubbed her eyes. “Point made. Maybe I’m understanding why your methods were a little extreme.”

“I thought about this a lot before I decided to betray Franky and bring you up here.”

She remained silent while picking at the hem of her shirt.Myshirt. It sure as hell looked better on her.

After a short while, her gaze returned to me. “You’re a real contradiction, you know that?”

“How so?”

Those upturned pale green eyes bored into mine. I swore she could see right through me.

“I don’t know if you’re my knight in shining armor or the most frightening person I’ve ever met.”

After dropping a few smaller logs in the trailer, I faced her. “I may have done terrible things, acts you would consider unforgivable. And there are people in this world I would show no mercy. But I promise you this, Cameron. You never have to fear me.”

She held my stare and not for the first time today, I wondered what was going through her mind.

I smirked. “I’m not sure what kind of fairy tales you were told as a kid, but I must make a pretty fucked-up version of a knight in shining armor.”

“Sometimes the person who’s supposed to protect you is the one who hurts you, so perhaps the opposite can be true.” She shrugged. “Maybe the bad guy can be the protector.”

That she thought of me as her protector gave me a strange sense of pride. It shouldn’t. I only did what any decent person would if they had my resources and skills.

She chewed on a fingernail. “It’s Cam, by the way. My family calls me Cammy. People who don’t know me call me Cameron. Everyone else calls me Cam.”

“All right.” I nodded. “Cam it is.”

I guessed that meant I passed the interview. That made me happier than it should.

A few minutes went by in silence while I collected more timber.