45. Hayden
I twisted my fingers together in intricate knots as trees flew past the SUV’s windows.
“Let’s go over the game plan,” Cillian said from behind the wheel. His voice would’ve sounded calm to just about everyone else. But I could hear the tension wrapping around his vocal cords.
“We should get our lawyer on this,” Easton groused from the seat behind me.
Maddox shook his head. “If we throw our overpriced shark on this, the cops are instantly going to look harder at Hayden.”
My knuckles blanched white, all the blood leaving them.
Cáel covered my hand with his. “It’s going to be okay.”
I nodded, but there was nothing in me that believed him.
Cillian’s gaze flicked to the rearview mirror. As he took me in, a muscle in his cheek popped. “Mad is right. For now, we play innocent. If they want to talk to Hayden again, then we get the lawyer involved.”
There were several sounds of assent throughout the vehicle.
“Good,” Cillian clipped. “Knox will play the doting boyfriend.”
Knox shot me a smug grin. “That’s going to be a real hardship.”
Cáel sent a growl in his direction.
I squeezed his hands with my fingers. “Play. That doesn’t change what you are to me, too.”
He let out a little huff.
“I’ll be taking the role of overprotective big brother,” Cillian went on. “And Mad, the liaison to the university.”
“What about me and Cáel?” Easton asked.
“You guys are going to keep your distance. It would look weird as hell if all five of us showed up.” Cillian’s gaze flicked to Cáel through the rearview mirror. “And your dragon is too close to the surface after the ordeal with Brent.”
The snarl that left Cáel’s lips was more menacing than I’d heard before. I twisted in my seat, pressing a hand to his cheek. “Look at me,” I pleaded.
Cáel didn’t move for a moment.
I swiped my thumb back and forth across his cheek. “Cáel,” I whispered. “Come back to me.”
Slowly, his focus moved from Cillian down to me. His eyes were almost completely silver.
“We’re being strategic. That’s all. I’ll be perfectly safe. And then I’ll be back with you in an hour, tops.”
Cáel’s jaw worked back and forth. “I don’t like it.”
I let out a breath. “Me neither. But we’re going to get it over with so we can all move on.”
Cáel leaned down, pressing his forehead to mine. “You tell me if they hurt you.”
It wasn’t a request.
“I’ll tell you.” But I knew the cops wouldn’t hurt me physically. Emotionally was a whole other ball game.
Cillian made the turn onto campus, and my stomach pitched.
“They’re at the science building. They’re searching Brent’s office,” Maddox said.
Everything in me locked. “What if they find something from us?”
Maddox twisted in his seat. “We had enforcers clean it. There may be prints from you because you’re his advisee, but we wiped clean the door and any other surfaces we might’ve touched. And we cleaned any blood evidence.”
They had it all covered. A little too covered. It told me they’d done this before.
Cillian pulled into a parking spot behind the science building and turned to look at me. “Are you ready?”
My fingers were back together, tying themselves into those complex knots again. “I’m a really bad liar.”
“You’re not lying. You’re telling the truth. You had a meeting with Brent. Knox picked you up from that meeting. When you left Brent, he was completely fine. Keep to the truth,” Cillian said calmly.
I bit the inside of my cheek. I hoped his plan worked.
Cáel kissed my temple. “Be safe, Little One.”
I bobbed my head. “I will.”
Easton reached forward and squeezed my shoulder. “You’ve got this. Nice and easy.”
“Thank you,” I whispered. I was so nervous about the cops that I couldn’t begin to think about Easton’s affection.
Knox peeled my hands apart and linked his with one of mine. “Let’s go, girlfriend.”
He tugged me out of the SUV, then wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “An hour from now, this will all be over.”
God, I hoped he was right.
Cillian and Maddox flanked us as we headed toward the science building. We were quiet as we walked.
Maddox held the door for us, and we moved inside. Classes were in session, so there weren’t many students around, but the ones who were whispered as we passed. Great. Just great.
We all followed Maddox toward a conference room. The door was open, muted voices pouring out. As we stepped inside, two people looked up. Their expressions were hard to read. They had that same blank mask so many of the guys had perfected.
The woman stood first. She looked to be in her mid-forties with dark brown hair and a frame hidden by a suit that was just a size or so too big. “Mr. Kavanaugh, thank you for bringing in Hayden.”
Maddox nodded. “Of course. Detective Brower, these are my brothers, Cillian and Knox. And this is Hayden.”
The woman’s gaze swept over all of us, assessing.
The man stood then. “We asked to speak to Hayden. Alone.”
Cillian moved forward, extending his hand. “Cillian McCarthy. Since Hayden and Knox are living with me currently, I like to look out for them. Typically, I wouldn’t let either of them speak to the police without a lawyer present, but since there’s a missing person involved, I know how vital every moment is.”
“Wouldn’t let them?” the man challenged.
Brower shook her head. “Come on, Alwyn. It won’t hurt anything to have them stay.” She gestured to the conference table. “Please, have a seat.”
Knox pulled out a chair for me, then took the one next to it. Cillian sat on my other side, and Maddox flanked Knox.
“So, Hayden, you are one of Professor Brent’s advisees?” Brower asked.
I nodded. “Yes.”
My voice sounded rusty even to my own ears.
“How do you like him?”
I stiffened, telling myself to breathe but stick to the truth. “He’s not my favorite.”
She arched a brow. “And why’s that?”
I licked my lips. “More of a feeling, I guess. He can make me uncomfortable sometimes.”
Knox took my hand, squeezing.
Brower was instantly on alert. “Has he ever touched you inappropriately?”
I was quiet for a moment, trying to choose my words carefully. “A hand on my thigh once.”
She scribbled some notes down. “Did you report him?”
I shook my head. “I was just going to transfer advisors at the end of the term.”
Alwyn huffed. “Sure, you were.”
Brower sent him a scathing look. “How did Brent seem in your meeting yesterday?”
I squeezed Knox’s hand so hard it would be a miracle if I didn’t break any bones. “A little on edge, maybe? Upset.”
Brower wrote more notes. “Did he tell you what he was doing after your meeting?”
“No, ma’am. But Knox showed up before he could end our meeting.”
Her gaze flicked to Knox. “So, you saw Brent, as well?”
He nodded, looking perfectly cool and collected. “Hayden was late, so I knocked on the professor’s door. I wanted to make sure I hadn’t missed her.”
“And how did Brent seem to you?” Brower asked.
Knox shrugged. “I don’t really know the guy that well, but Hayden’s right. He was on edge. Maybe annoyed that I’d shown up.”
“And you two didn’t see anyone else waiting to meet with him?” she pushed.
“Nope,” Knox said easily. “Campus was pretty dead by then.”
Brower took down a few more notes.
Alwyn pinned us with a stare. “Well, you two are the last people to see Professor Brent. So, you’ll understand when we tell you not to leave town. You’re both people of interest in his disappearance. And if you lied to us today, we will find out.”