Chapter 46 Hallie
HALLIE
I knocked lightly on Lawson’s office door but didn’t wait for an answer before pushing it open.
I was tired of the doors between us, both physical and emotional.
Since Anson had arrived three days ago, Lawson had gone quiet.
He still held me at night, kissed me often, and even told me he loved me, but he wasn’t letting me in.
The moment I stepped into the office, Lawson flipped closed the file he’d been poring over, sending Anson a glare to do the same.
Anson moved a lot slower, as if he weren’t as concerned about my delicate constitution.
His gaze lifted to me. Even surrounded by dark circles, the sharpness in his eyes told me he saw things others didn’t.
But the shadows that swirled in those depths told me that the things he saw haunted him, too.
“Thought you guys might need lunch.” I lowered a tray to one of the few empty spots on the folding table Lawson had set up in his office.
They’d been working in here since Anson had arrived.
Partially because of Anson’s aversion to police stations and a bit because Lawson didn’t want me alone.
The couple of times they’d left, Lawson had called Holt to stay with me.
I understood after the threatening note, but I also knew we couldn’t keep it up forever.
“Thanks,” Lawson said. “I could’ve come and gotten it.”
I bit the inside of my cheek.
“She’s gonna bite your head off one of these days,” Anson muttered under his breath.
Lawson reared back. “Excuse me?”
Anson gestured at me without looking. “This protection thing you’re so hell-bent on is going to backfire. She’s getting more and more pissed by the day.”
“Profilers,” I muttered as if the word were a curse. I’d been interviewed by half a dozen of them after my kidnapping, and each one thought they could get some information out of me that would help them find the man who’d taken me and the others. They never did.
Lawson’s brow furrowed as he stared at me. “I just don’t want you to have to look at this stuff. Or talk about it more than you have to.”
“It’s about me. Isn’t it?” I pushed.
They’d been careful about what they’d shared, but Anson had said something about all the victims having a similar profile. One like mine. Blond hair. Early twenties. Petite.
That muscle beneath Lawson’s eye began to flutter. “We don’t know—”
“Stop,” I clipped. “I’m not going to break. I haven’t so far.”
“She’s got a point,” Anson mumbled around a sip of black coffee. I swore it was the only thing the man ingested.
Lawson sighed, dropping his head to his hands and pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m sorry.”
The pure exhaustion in his voice had me softening. I rounded the table and took the seat next to him. I lifted a hand and began massaging the knots in his neck. “I miss the man who believes I can do anything. That I’m strong enough to handle whatever life throws at me.”
Lawson lifted his head. “I’ve never stopped believing that. But just because you can doesn’t mean you should have to.”
“Fair point. But I don’t like being shut out. Especially not when what you’re hiding is about me.”
He leaned in, pressing his forehead to mine. “Understandable.”
“If you’re going to start making out, I’m going back to the cabin,” Anson muttered.
“Shut up, asshole,” Lawson shot back.
There wasn’t any hint of a grin on Anson’s face, but something told me he wanted to smile. He was just too out of practice. That astute gaze swept to me, piercing. “You want to help?”
I sat up straighter. “Yes.”
“I don’t know—”
I cut off Lawson with a glare.
“Okay, she’s helping,” Lawson said instantly.
Anson scoffed. “We’re building a profile from the current murders, and then we’ll compare it to the profile for the murders five years ago.”
I clasped my fingers beneath the table. “Do Reed Hall or Len Keller match the profile?”
It was the question I hadn’t dared to ask yet but one that had been eating away at me.
Len Keller was still completely MIA. No one had laid eyes on him since he left the hospital.
And Reed was lying low. He’d made noise about suing Lawson for assault and the department for wrongful termination, but Lawson’s lawyer thought they were threats and nothing more.
Anson leaned back in his chair. “They fit the age range, early thirties to mid-fifties, though Keller is on the outskirts.”
“You don’t sound convinced,” I said.
“I’m not. Hall is too disorganized. Lazy. I don’t think Keller is mentally stable enough. But they could be covering. I’d need to interview them to be sure.”
I was quiet for a moment. “You almost sound like you respect whoever’s doing this.”
A muscle along Anson’s jaw ticked wildly. “Not respect. Understanding. Two very different things.”
A yip sounded, and Thor bounded into the office. I scooped him up and cuddled him to my chest. “How did you get out of your pen again?”
Lawson grinned. “We should’ve named him Houdini.”
“We should’ve. I just hope he didn’t leave us a present somewhere.”
He winced. “I’ll do a check.”
I glanced at the clock on the wall. “Shoot. I need to get going.”
Lawson stiffened. “Where?”
“Thor has his appointment for his shots,” I reminded Lawson.
He nodded and got to his feet. “I’ll drive you.”
“You don’t have to. I’ll just go straight there and back.”
Lawson’s expression hardened. “Nowhere alone. Please, Hallie. I need to know you’re safe.”
My heart ached at the fear in Lawson’s voice.
“He’s right,” Anson said, standing. “Running errands alone isn’t worth getting dead over.”
Lawson glared at him, but Anson just ignored him.
“We can go over files in the car while Hallie’s dealing with the pup.”
Lawson grumbled something under his breath, but Anson was already heading for the door.
I turned and burrowed into Lawson’s chest. “I’m sorry I was grumpy.”
He wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. “I’m sorry I was an overbearing bastard.”
“Bastard might be a bit extreme. But thanks for letting me in.”
Lawson’s lips ghosted my temple. “I could never keep you out. You’re burned into me, Hallie. Into my goddamned bones. And I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
“Love you, Blue.”
“Love you, too.”
He shifted, guiding me toward the door. “Let’s get this puppy some shots.”
The drive into town was quiet. I couldn’t help watching Anson as he scanned the file in his lap. The way his eyes moved rapidly over the typed words. Every moment he spent poring over the information seemed to turn him darker. Yet he stayed. For Lawson.
Lawson pulled into a parking spot right next to the front door. “Are you sure you don’t want me to come inside with you?”
“We’ll be fine. Right, Thor?”
Thor yipped and slapped a paw on my cheek.
I laughed. “That’s his version of yes. We won’t be but a few minutes.”
As I slid out of the SUV, I glanced up. Thick snowflakes fell from the sky.
What a difference from just a few days ago.
A shudder ran through me as I hurried into the vet’s office.
The first snow always put me on edge. Too many memories.
And while I knew Cedar Ridge had gotten some earlier in the year, we hadn’t had any in Chicago.
A door shut, and I turned to see Lawson moving forward. Before I could say anything, he wrapped Thor and me in his arms and kissed me long and deep. That fluttering low in my belly started up, the telltale sign of heat building.
“What was that for?” I asked, my breathing still not quite back to normal.
“Love you. Want to make sure you know that. I never doubt how strong you are. I’m sorry if my trying to protect you made you feel that way.”
I melted against him, brushing my lips against his. “I love you. Thanks for believing in me.”
Lawson pressed his forehead to mine. “Always.”
Thor let out a bark and nipped Lawson’s chin.
Lawson chuckled and pulled back. “I think he’s trying to defend his territory.”
I grinned. “My little protector.”
“Just text if you need me inside,” Lawson called as he climbed back into the SUV.
I nodded and turned to the vet’s office but stopped short when I saw Katelyn glaring at me. She held a cat carrier in one hand and stood stock-still. It was clear she’d seen the display with Lawson and wasn’t happy about it.
I took a deep breath and started for the door. “Katelyn,” I greeted.
Her glare only intensified. “It’ll never last.”
My lips twitched. “Keep telling yourself that.”
I gave her a wide berth as I pulled open the door. A blast of warm air hit me as I stepped inside, and Thor’s little nose started twitching at all the scents.
Susan smiled widely at me from behind the reception desk. “How’s sweet Red doing? I’m sorry, I mean Thor.”
I grinned. “Just up to mischief, mayhem, and adorableness.”
“As all puppies should be. Come on, I’ve got a room ready for you.”
She led me down the hall to an open exam room. “Dr. Miller will be right in.”
I nodded and bounced Thor as he sniffed the familiar scents of his first home.
A soft knock sounded on the door opposite where I’d come in. It slid open, and Damien appeared. “Hallie, good to see you.” He bent to the pup’s level. “And you, too, Thor.”
“Thanks for fitting us in during school hours.”
“No problem at all. I hear things are pretty busy at the Hartley house. Important company.”
I winced. Much to Lawson’s and Anson’s chagrin, word had spread like wildfire that an ex-profiler was in town to help with the murder cases. “Lawson’s friend is here to help out with the case.”
Damien made a humming noise as he prepped a syringe. “That’s good to hear. I know everyone has been on edge.”
I nodded, not sure what else to say.
Damien pushed the needle into a vial and measured out the medicine. Then he started to hum. A sweat broke out along my spine as the tune for Johnny Cash’s Ring of Fire filled the room.
My vision went hazy as memories battered at the walls of my mind.
Damien looked up from his work. “I always knew you were special, Halston.”
And then he lunged.