Page 11

Eleven

Quinn

I t felt like it took forever to get to Roman’s work, probably because I had this terrible feeling of being away from Rosie all afternoon and not knowing if she was okay.

I trusted that Roman would keep her safe, but I also knew he had no idea what to expect from a five-year-old.

For all I knew, she had tied him to a chair and painted his nails bubble gum pink while trying to style what little hair he had since it was cut so close to his head.

I shuffled through the door and heard laughter in the back of the gym. I knew the sound of her giggles from a mile away and felt the corners of my lips turning up as I gave the kid at the front desk a quick wave and headed toward it.

“Is that all you got?”

I stopped for a moment before I turned the corner and walked into the room. I knew that voice, but why was he here? Had Roman gotten into so much trouble that he felt he needed to call my brother for backup?

I walked in and stopped in my tracks, holding a hand to my heart.

Rosie was bouncing back and forth in front of a boxing bag, her little hands barely fitting in the gloves that covered them.

“Come on, Rosie, you can do it!”

I looked around, noticing that Roman was standing next to her, coaching her on where to hit next, while Mike proudly stood on the other side, wearing the biggest grin I had ever seen. There were two other guys in the room, but I didn’t recognize them.

She pulled her hand back and then punched with all of her might, her small body looking ridiculously tiny compared to the giant bag.

“That’s it, Rosie!” Mike yelled.

I walked over and stood next to Roman, folding my arms over my chest.

He turned his head for a split second, noticing I was there, before turning his attention back to Rosie.

“Okay, how about a break,” he said nervously, and I knew he was trying to gauge my reaction.

Rosie spun around, a frown on her face that quickly changed when she saw me.

“Mom!” She ran over and wrapped her arms around me, almost knocking me over. “Did you see me?!”

“I did,” I laughed, her excitement enough to make me feel silly.

“He was showing some guy how to hit the bag, and I really wanted to try it. He said no, but then I asked Uncle Mike, and he said yes.”

I raised my brows at Mike, who just shrugged.

“Then Trevor jumped in and helped me get the gloves on, and his friend Max came by, and he gave me some pointers too.”

“It looks like you’re a very lucky little girl who has a whole army of superheroes to protect you,” I said quietly, pulling her into me for another hug.

“They talked to us at school today about what to do if someone tries to take you, but I think that if anyone ever tried to take me, I would just hit them instead.”

My heart skipped a beat, and I could feel the heat of everyone’s eyes on me.

“Well, let’s hope that never happens. Now, go get ready so we can go home and give Roman a break.”

“Can we stay the night with him again?” Rosie asked as she pulled her gloves off.

My eyes flew open as I whipped my head around to Mike. There was no way that this was going to go over well. I had planned on telling him about it soon; there just hadn’t been time.

“Relax, I already know,” Mike said, holding his hand up to stop the trainwreck of thoughts pulsing through my head.

“You know?” I looked to Roman, begging for more clarity. Did Mike know about us staying there and nothing else, or did he know about everything else?

“We talked, and there’s something that you need to know,” Roman said, lowering his voice as he stepped closer. Trevor and Max—I guess were their names—helped Rosie put her gloves away before taking her back to Roman’s office to get her backpack.

“What’s up?” I asked a little too nervously as I looked between Mike and Roman.

“Remember the hat we saw in the photo from your mom’s house?” Roman asked.

“Yeah,” I said slowly. I had a bad feeling about whatever they were about to drop on me. “What about it?”

“It’s mine,” Mike said with a tight smile.

I pulled my head back in confusion.

“It’s your hat? You’ve been stalking Rosie?”

“No,” he blew out and rolled his eyes. “But my hat used to be in my office, and I haven’t been able to find it for almost a week.”

“How do you know it was yours?”

“Because there was a stain on the side from Rosie’s peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She was so upset about it and didn’t want me to find it, so she got the scissors and tried to cut it off.”

“Oh my god,” I laughed. “I remember that!”

Roman pulled out his phone and zoomed in on the picture.

“See right there,” Mike said as he pointed to it. “That’s where it was cut.”

I squinted my eyes and held the phone closer. Sure enough, there was the missing chunk. Why hadn’t I seen that before?

“So someone stole your hat and is wearing it around town while they watch my daughter?” I asked, flinging my hands in the air. “Why? It doesn’t make any sense.”

“Someone is targeting her; we know that much for sure,” Roman said.

“But Quinn, you’re also missing the bigger picture here,” Mike added gently. “It’s not just someone. It’s someone who had access to my office and knows a lot about her already.”

My blood ran cold as a chill spread throughout me.

“You think it’s someone in the FBI?” I whispered.

Mike flinched but didn’t say anything.

Suddenly all of the pieces started falling around me. It wasn’t just that it was someone in the FBI; it was that it was someone who worked with my brother in the witness protection program—the same department my husband worked in before he was killed on the job.

“What was the last case that Justin was working on before he died?” I asked, forcing my voice to be stronger than I felt.

“Quinn—you know that I can’t—”

“Tell. Me.”

Mike’s shoulders fell, and he looked down at the floor.

“Ariel Wyland. She was a victim of sex trafficking. The only one who went to court and put her captor behind bars.”

“Where is she now?” I asked, knowing that he couldn’t tell me since she had gone into witness protection shortly after leaving the courtroom.

“The U.S. Marshal’s office confirmed they found her body yesterday.”