52. Shep
52
SHEP
I pulled Thea tighter against me as we watched law enforcement personnel crawl all over her backyard. She shivered against me, even though it was in the mid-eighties. Those tiny tremors had me wanting to burn the whole damn world down.
Instead, I tapped the side of Thea’s mug with my finger. “More tea?”
She shook her head, watching as a camera flashed in the fading light. The crime scene techs had been taking photos of everything. Each flash made Thea wince and killed another part of me.
“It was my favorite place,” she whispered.
The words sliced at my chest, like razor blades coated in acid.
Thea’s grip on the mug tightened, her knuckles leached of all color. “It was where I started to find myself again. Hear my own voice. Remember who I was after all his lies beat me down.”
Fuck.
I was going to kill Brendan Boseman. And I wanted to take my time doing it .
I swallowed all the anger swirling inside me and forced my hold on Thea to remain as gentle as possible. “We’ll fix it. We’ll rebuild. Even better than before.”
Thea simply stared at the greenhouse and the ruined garden. At the way the techs were only ruining it more with all their stomping around. “It’ll never be the same.”
My hand slid along her jaw, carefully turning her head so she was looking at me. “No, it won’t. But it only proves how strong you are. Everything you’ve made it through.”
Unshed tears glistened in her eyes. “Sometimes, I don’t want to be strong. I’m tired, Shep.”
My throat worked as I tried to swallow, the burn there so intense. “Then let me take the load for a while.”
Thea blinked up at me, trying to clear the tears away. “Okay.”
“Okay.”
She dropped her head to my chest and let my arms engulf her. It was too much. Getting Thea to let me help her was a battle on a good day. To have her give in so easily now…it ground into me. I missed that stubborn streak. The fire.
But I held on to Thea. As if I could somehow bleed reassurance, strength, and safety into her.
A familiar black truck pulled up amidst all the law enforcement vehicles. I knew what it took for Anson to come here with all of them present. It took him back to a time he hated remembering, but still, he’d come. A true friend. A brother.
Rhodes got out of the truck first, her dark brown hair flying around her as she charged toward the back deck. Even in the low evening light, I saw the concern and fear in my sister’s hazel eyes.
But I didn’t take it on as mine this time. Because it wasn’t. I didn’t instantly try to fix it either. Because I knew that worry was a gift for a friend she loved.
Thea straightened at Rhodes’ approach, and I took the mug from her hands, setting it on the small table next to the chaise. It was a good thing I did because the second Rhodes was within reach, she pulled Thea up and into a tight hug .
Rhodes held on to her for a long time without saying anything. Then a few curses left her lips. “I’m going to kill him. But I’m thinking I’ll torture him first. Gonna remove a few fingers. Or maybe I should start with his balls.”
“Jesus,” Anson muttered, making his way onto the deck. “Do I need to build you a murder shed, Reckless?”
Rhodes turned angry eyes toward him. “Whatever it takes to make that douchebag, dipshit, puke stain suffer.”
A laugh bubbled out of Thea, and it was the sweetest sound I’d ever heard. I waited for relief to come at hearing it, but it didn’t. I was still too keyed up.
“Puke stain?” Thea asked, pulling back from Rhodes’ hold.
She shrugged. “It fits. Not even his own stomach wants him.”
Thea shook her head, but a faint smile stayed on her lips. “Thanks for being such a good friend.”
“I’m okay, but when I turn ole Bren-Bren into a ballless wonder, I’m really going to deserve a gold star.”
Thea turned to Anson. “Are you watching your back when you sleep?”
He chuckled. “Definitely careful not to step a toe out of line.”
Rhodes rolled her eyes. “You spanked my ass in front of the entire crew this morning.”
Anson simply shrugged. “You were getting sassy. And you know what those shorts do to me.”
“Please, God, make it stop,” I muttered as I stood.
Thea laughed again, moving to me and wrapping an arm around my waist. “Earmuffs?”
“Even the world’s best noise-canceling headphones wouldn’t be good enough.”
“Sorry, Shep,” Rhodes singsonged.
“You are not.”
She just grinned back at me. But that smile died as she took in the greenhouse. “I didn’t know it was this bad.”
Thea stiffened next to me, and I wanted to curse. But I bit it back and forced calm to my tone. “We’re going to rebuild it. Even better than before.”
Rhodes turned back to us, worry in her eyes. “I’ll help. And you know Duncan will give you an extra discount for plants.”
Thea shook her head. “He doesn’t have to do?—”
“He’ll want to.” Rhodes met Thea’s eyes. “It’s what family does.”
Thea’s hand fisted in my tee as those words hit. “Thank you,” she whispered.
Heavy footsteps sounded on the back deck, and we all turned to see Trace headed our way. His expression was careful, but I could see the tension humming beneath it. “We’re almost done, and then I’ll get everyone out of your hair.”
“Find anything promising?” Anson asked.
“Too soon to tell. Plenty of prints, but I’m guessing most of them are Thea’s and Shep’s. Hoping we’ll get lucky and find another set.” Trace’s gaze moved to me and Thea. “Put a call in to Brendan’s lawyers asking for an interview. Getting the runaround there.”
“Of course,” Rhodes spat. “I’ll give him the runaround with my garden shears.”
Trace’s eyes widened. “I did not hear that.” Rhodes just scowled at him. He turned to me. “Got a call on my way over here from the county inspector.”
Confusion swept through me, but Trace kept right on going. “Some anonymous calls came in suggesting you cut corners on recent projects. They have to reinspect.”
“Shep,” Thea whispered, anxiety clear in her voice.
My back molars ground together. “Nothing to stress about. I do good work. There’s nothing for him to find.”
A muscle fluttered along Trace’s jaw. “I’m sorry, Shep. You know none of this will stick.” He brought his focus back to Thea. “I’m going to take a trip up to where he’s filming tomorrow and ask some questions.”
Thea’s body went solid against mine. I felt the fear radiating through her. And it had that murderous rage flaring to life inside me again. I pressed a kiss to Thea’s temple, breathing in her calming scent. “It’ll be okay,” I promised her.
Thea’s throat worked as she swallowed. “It’ll make him even more furious—you making this public,” she told Trace.
“That might not be a bad thing,” Anson said.
We all turned to him.
He went on. “If Trace can evoke a rage response, Brendan might do something reckless. He may not hide his tracks as well as he normally does. I’ll have Dex at the ready. Trace, can you keep a tail on him?”
Trace jerked his head in a nod. “I can try. I heard he has a security detail that makes following close tough, though.”
“He won’t bring security if he’s up to anything shady,” Anson pointed out.
“True,” Trace agreed and then turned to Thea. “Are you okay with this?”
She let out a shuddering breath. “Whatever it takes. I want this to be over.”
My gut roiled, acid churning. Because none of them were saying the one thing we were all thinking. What if Brendan slipped through all those precautions? What if he got to Thea?