Page 8 of Ghost Hunted

She looks nervous, but determined to do her job: keep anyone lacking a visitor badge from going further into Devil Tower.

I roll my eyes, then take out my own gun, angling it at Quill.

He stares at me with a bored expression on his face while Piper chews her lower lip nervously.

“Please, Logan…”

“Did you tell anyone else who you were, Piper? Did anyone overhear?”

“I don’t think… no, definitely not.” She shakes her head resolutely.

“Is my daughter lying, Quill?” I ask, my finger on the trigger. “Did anyone overhear? Those men, maybe?”

By now, the three men in suits are edging backward, looking more than a little nervous.

Quill shrugs.

“Well?”

“I didn’t let any man hear her voice,” he growls.

“Only the receptionist, I guess,” I say mockingly.

“She’s not a man.”

“You fucking idiot,” I spit out. “You let your girl tell her who she really was. Fucking hell. I thought you had enough brain cells to keep her safe, at least. I should shoot you right now.”

“I am keeping her safe. No one can hurt her as long as she’s with me.”

I don’t even bother with another mocking retort. “Alright. So only the receptionist heard.”

“I’m Mary,” interjects the woman timidly. “Should I have let them go up, Mr. Colt? I didn’t know…”

“You still don’t.” I turn my gun to her, and her eyes widen. “Say goodbye, Mary.”

Before she has time to react, I’ve pulled the trigger, and her head explodes against the desk.

“Fuck!” screams Piper.

I latch onto her arm, pulling her after me. “Language, sweetie. Now let’s go.”

The three men are now plastered against the wall, regarding me with sheer panic. But I don’t spare them another look, instead dragging Piper toward the elevator. I hear Quill right behind us, and I have to bite down on the urge to shoot him too. But I know Piper would never forgive me if I did.

I press the button for the executive penthouse floor and only release the breath I’ve been holding when we reach my office and I’ve locked the door behind me.

“You brainless fuck!” I turn to Quill, even though the person I really want to be yelling at is my daughter. But I’m not going to raise my voice at her. I’m just not.

He merely shrugs again and sits, uninvited, on the couch in a corner of the room, looking entirely unaffected. Meanwhile, Piper crosses her arms, trying to take on a brave expression that I know she’s far from feeling.

In fact, her chin is trembling, and seeing that makes my anger deflate all at once. I just can’t deal with the thought that my own daughter could be scared of me.

“It’s okay, baby.” I fold her in my arms, smirking as I take in Quill’s furious glare. He’s so possessive that even our father-daughter bond makes him jealous. Well, good. He deserves to stew. “Everything’s fine. We’ll figure it out together, okay? Just as soon as I’ve beaten the shit out of your boyfriend.”

“My husband,” she says in a strangled voice. “He’s my husband, and I don’t want you to hurt him.”

“Your dad’s not beating the shit out of anyone,” scoffs Quill. “If he tried anything like that, he’d be dead before he hit the floor.”

I face him, hoping he can see the contempt written all over my face. “Right. You think you can take on a Devil founder. That’s cute.”