Page 89 of Midnight of Ashes
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.
