Page 75 of Avenging Angel

“Exactly. Like Jaxon, my captor has been hiding in plain sight!”

My volume wakes Angel, and he rolls back over to reach for me in the spot where I’d been sleeping. When he finds it empty, his eyes open wide, searching until they find mine. “You’re here,” he whispers.

“And you’re here,” I say just as softly. “From what I’ve been told, I almost lost you too. Don’t ever do anything like that again, okay?”

“I can honestly say after that experience, I’ll never do a polar plunge,” he jokes. “Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt.”

Faith snorts. “The T-shirt you’re wearing says FBI on the back. Not ‘Idiot.’”

Angel shrugs. “Same. Same.”

I burst out laughing. “Don’t let Owen hear you say that. I’m pretty sure that it’s his T-shirt you’re wearing. And for my brother to choose that one and let you wear it means that he respects you. Consider it high praise for your valiant deeds. You are deemed worthy.”

“You’re practically a Southern Knight like me! By the way, Mom, Dad, and our brothers already consider themselves honorary members,” Faith tells him. “Daisy was just telling me about her dream. She knows who took Genevieve!”

“You do?” Angel asks.

I dip my chin once, then turn toward Faith. “Do you mind if I talk to Angel alone first? I promise I’ll share everything, but I need you to do me a favor before I do.”

“Of course,” Faith says.

“I need you to ensure Owen isn’t around to hear it.”

Faith heads toward the door. “That shouldn’t be too difficult. He’s down at the campground processing the scene. Jordan is helping to collect evidence at the FBI’s request. It may not seem like a silver lining, but the FBI now has full jurisdictional oversight. Soon, there will be federal agents swarming the area. Might I ask why you want to keep your brother out of the loop?”

My heart both hurts and warms at the thought of what my brother will do.

“When Owen finds out who it is, he’ll shoot first and not bother to ask questions.”

Chapter thirty

Angel

Daisy crawls back into bed, lying on top of the covers and turning so that we’re facing each other. I reach for her waist to draw her close, keeping the bedding as a boundary between us and grateful that she doesn’t pull away. Even though I can see that she’s alive and well, holding her brings as much comfort to me as it does to her. Hours ago, I’d thought I’d lost her…again.

I move my hand to Daisy’s face, gently running the tips of my fingers across the scrape that has already begun to heal. It will be a few weeks before her skin is no longer marred, but even now, she is the most beautiful of God’s creations I’ve ever seen.

She possesses an inner strength that surpasses any woman I have encountered, including my mother and sister. Daisy doesn’t need a hero, but the protective nature inside me wants to be that for her, if only to remind her that she’s not alone in this fight. “Tell me who did this to you, and I’ll make sure he never does it again.”

With a soft laugh, Daisy smiles at me. “I believe you would, Angel, and that’s very sweet of you to say. But when it comes down to it, and once you learn the truth, you’ll understand why it needs to be me who ends this.”

I listen intently as Daisy shares the memory she had while unconscious; a memory that morphed into a dream.

“I didn’t want it to be him,” she says when she’s through.

My blood boils with rage when his name is whispered on her lips, yet I still have to ask the question. “Are you sure it’s not your subconscious playing tricks on you? You were tranquilized with the same, or close to the same, fast-acting paralyzing agent the Southern Knights use to incapacitate their targets. In essence, you were drugged.”

“You don’t believe me.” By the way she says it, I know she hears more than skepticism in my question.

“That’s definitely not it,” I tell her. “But I doubt I’ll be the only one to ask. So, before you tell everyone, I just want you to be confident that it was a vision; not just a dream.”

Daisy fiddles with the sleeve of my T-shirt, picking pieces of imaginary lint. “Uri was with me at the end, which is enough for me.”

“Then it’s enough for me, too.” I kiss her forehead and roll out of bed, noting the FBI shirt I’m wearing and then the FBI sweatpants Owen dressed me in. Even though my sister warned me about my attire, hearing it and seeing it are two very different things.

Daisy chuckles when she notices the grimace on my face. “It really is the highest compliment my brother can pay you, Angel. Owen is basically welcoming you to the FBI with open arms if you want the position.”

“Maybe I’ll be a Southern Knight,” I tease, but Daisy doesn’t laugh.