Page 30 of Bride of Vengeance

"Hi, Mamá."

"Mariana, thank God! I saw the news, saw your picture on television. They're saying terrible things, impossible things!"

Of course she saw the news.My mother watches CNN religiously, terrified that something will happen to her daughter who chose to chase criminals for a living instead of settling down with a nice man and giving her grandchildren.

"It's not true, Mama. None of it."

"I know, mija. I know my daughter. You could never hurt innocent people."

Innocent people.The contractors who tried to kill me weren't innocent. But they were human beings with families and lives and futures that ended because of choices I made.

Choices Mikhail made to save you.

"Mamá, I might not be able to come home for a while. There are people trying to hurt me, and I need to stay somewhere safe until it's over."

"Who would want to hurt my little girl?"

My boss. My own department. The system I swore to serve and protect.

"Bad people, Mamá. But I'm safe now. I'm with someone who can protect me."

"A man?"

Trust my mother to focus on the important details.

"Yes."

"Is he good to you?"

He saved my life. He's letting me stay in his home. He makes perfect coffee and omelets that taste like heaven. He knows things about me that I've never told anyone.

"Yes, Mamá. He's good to me."

"Then I will pray for both of you. And mija?"

"Yes?"

"Be careful who you trust. Sometimes the people who claim to protect us are the ones we need protection from."

Too late for that wisdom, Mamá.

"I love you."

"I love you too, mija. Come home to me when you can."

I hang up before the tears can start, before the homesickness and guilt can overwhelm what's left of my professional composure. When I turn around, Mikhail is standing in the doorway, watching me with those dark eyes that see too much.

"She sounds like a wise woman."

"She is."

"She raised a remarkable daughter."

The compliment makes heat unfurl in my chest that I absolutely cannot afford. Not now. Not when I'm vulnerable and scared and completely dependent on his protection.

"Don't."

"Don't what?"