Shadows of You (Lost & Found #4)(44)

As the kettle heated on the stove, I turned to Lawson. “What’s the plan?”

Lawson leaned back in his chair. “Roan didn’t think the word I had with Steven and Tyson was strong enough, so we stopped by their cabin on the way here.”

My gaze flicked to Roan as he gently pulled mugs from my cabinet. He paused as he took in the illustrations on the outside. Bright pink hearts on one. A rainbow between two clouds on the other. And a Pegasus on the last.

He just shook his head and returned to his task. But something about those large, callused hands dwarfing the mugs Cady had painstakingly picked out made my heart squeeze.

I forced my focus back to Lawson. “How’d the second conversation go?”

His expression was carefully blank, and that blankness put me on edge. “They’ve been informed they are no longer allowed on the property of The Brew or your home. If they go against that official warning, they’ll be arrested.”

“Can’t imagine they took that well,” I mumbled.

Roan slid the Pegasus mug in front of me. “They don’t have to like it. They just have to obey it.”

I studied Roan’s rainbow mug as he sat. “Is that hot chocolate?”

A hint of red hit Roan’s cheeks as he shrugged. “I like hot chocolate. Just not on top of ice cream.”

Lawson dunked his tea bag in and out of his water. “I’ll have officers keeping an eye out for them.”

I stiffened. “I don’t want anyone else to know.”

Lawson’s expression gentled. “No one here would believe the nonsense some of those conspiracy theorists spout.”

I pressed my palms against the sides of the mug, trying to let the heat ward off the dark memories that wanted to break through. “You don’t know what it was like,” I whispered. “People were awful. Some just stared with pity, but others were cruel. Someone dumped an entire iced coffee over my head. Another person who came into my office for a meeting started screaming at me that I was a liar and a whore.” And everyone had known where to find me, thanks to Oren Randal.

I stared down at the swirling liquid as those memories pressed—memories of how things had gotten so much worse.

A hand landed lightly above my knee and squeezed. My gaze flew to Roan’s, but he didn’t move.

“We’re not going to let that happen to you here,” he vowed.

“You can’t stop it. No one can. Not if everyone knows the truth.”

Lawson blew out a breath. “Okay. I’ll tell my people those two were hassling you at The Brew and I want to keep an eye out. That’s the truth, just not all of it.”

I swallowed hard and nodded. “Thank you.”

Roan gave my thigh one more squeeze and then released me. I missed his heat the second it was gone. I wanted to beg him to bring it back. Needed the steady pressure that seemed to somehow ground me amidst my swirling thoughts.

“We need to figure out how they found you,” Lawson said.

I nodded, my gaze dropping to my darkening tea.

“Has anyone else found you here?” Lawson asked.

My blood ran cold, my muscles winding tight. “I got a letter.”

The air around me went electric.

“What kind of letter?” Roan growled.

“Not the warm and fuzzy kind,” I said.

“Was it signed?” Lawson asked.

I shook my head. “No. But I know who sent it.”

“Who?” Roan demanded.

“John. The man who killed my sister.”





21





ROAN





Rage pulsed through me, punctuated by an icy, stabbing fear. Neither was an emotion I welcomed. Hell, I didn’t welcome feelings of any sort. Nothing extreme. I lived for the slow and steady, the calm.

Right now, I was anything but those things.

“Why the hell didn’t you say anything?” I snarled.

Aspen reared back, and I knew I should’ve taken more time to reel in my emotions.

“Dial it back a notch,” Lawson warned.

“This is something we needed to know,” I gritted out.

Lawson released his hold on his mug. “When did you receive the letter?”

“A couple of days ago at my PO box.”

My jaw clenched. “Which means he knows where you are.”

Aspen’s hands trembled as she set her tea down. “He’s in prison. It’s not like he can show up here. If he planned to expose me, he would’ve done it already. He wouldn’t have given me a warning.”

She let out a shaky breath. “John has always gotten a thrill out of letting me know his reach is long. He sent me flowers at my work. Chocolates I’m allergic to at home. He wants me scared, however he can manage it.”

“How do you know the letter was from him?” Lawson asked.

I was envious of my brother in that moment. How easy it was for him to keep his cool. To remain measured, thoughtful, and calm.

“I know his handwriting,” Aspen explained. “Christmas cards, paperwork, crossword puzzles.”

Because the devil had been someone living inside her family, not some stranger attacking from the outside.

“Do you still have the letter?” Lawson asked.