Page 24 of Scarred Temptation

Even as I’d walked from my vehicle toward my office building, the air had tasted like copper.

I hadn’t been exposed to whatever had conspired after hearing the gunshots, but my imagination since had been working overtime.

My visions included three dead bodies with bullet holes in their brains. Honestly? That didn’t bother me as much as it should. I’d watched the news, curious to see if anyone had reported the incident from the school or from anywhere else. There’d been scores of people out on the street shopping, coming and going from work.

Yes, the traffic noises had likely hidden some sounds, including possibly the gunshots, but so far there’d been no breaking news. People could have believed the noise was backfire from a muffler, although in this day and age the concept seemed crazy and out of touch.

But wouldn’t there be some sort of investigation, a timely reporter hungering for his or her fifteen minutes of fame grabbing the snippet that had come off the wire and running with it?

There had not been a peep from any local news broadcast.

Not one.

Not a tagline anywhere on social media either.

As if the incident had never occurred. Or the people involved had swept it under the rug.

Which meant the people still inside the school had either turned a blind eye, paid handsomely for their silence, or had ignored everything occurring outside the hallowed walls and doors of the aging facility.

The awfulness of the experience had left me stunned as well as angry. Furious with the assholes who’d dared try to destroy the innocence of a little girl but enraged with her uncle whose job it was to keep her safe.

I’d also remained uneasy since returning to my house, checking the locks on my doors and windows to ensure I hadn’t been followed. The night had been sleepless, enough so I’d finally given up and paced the floor while peeking out the window from behind the blinds.

I should have called the police. Doing so was what normal people would have done after being involved with a child’s almost kidnapping and being chased by three ugly men intending on violence.

The inner voice inside my scattered mind had nagged me for hours, pushing me to do the right thing. Only I wasn’t certain what the right thing meant. Absolutely the assholes who’d chased us should pay for their crime. That wasn’t the question at all. It was more about Mina’s reaction and that of her uncle who’d come to retrieve her.

In trying to explain my hesitation to myself, I’d finally realized Uncle Roman wasn’t simply a typical relative who showered a little girl with attention or ice cream, stuffed animals or trips to the movies or the park.

While he certainly might do those things, his main function was to keep her alive when her mother and father weren’t able to do so. Or when she wasn’t in a protected environment like school. Another troubling thought was that whoever the bad guys had been, they’d known where Mina would be and her schedule. That meant a calculated and highly coordinated plan of attack that had needed to run smoothly.

They’d likely planned for everything with a single exception.

Me.

A scorned woman with fire in her belly and rage in her heart. Using mace had been the only choice, but if I’d had nun-chucks or death stars, you bet I would have used them. As I headed into the office building, the fact I was still shaking twenty hours later was a testament to the level of adrenaline rushing through my system.

And the fear that had resonated long after and would for some time to come.

Men who wore designer suits and drove eighty-thousand-dollar vehicles didn’t just disappear. They acted on their need for vengeance. I’d been in the wrong place at the wrong time. At least that’s what a part of me wanted to believe.

But the other part, the one still aching and worrying about that sweet little girl wondered just what would have occurred had I not been there.

The answer was ugly as sin, which only boosted the anger tearing through my system.

I pushed my way into the elevator, wishing I’d taken the day off, but today was a big day. Not only had the big boss finally made his selection for the coveted promotion of director of commercial development, but my boss had mentioned, in an email, a new recently approved project he was eager to discuss.

And I’d managed to be fashionably late. Only by ten minutes, but in my world, everything moved quickly until it didn’t.

Once a project was approved, the clients schmoozed and the team were on board with tasks, everything quieted down and work could be done at a more acceptable pace. Including doing some work from home.

Gone were the days of huge drafting tables, although I could admit I did still prefer sketching out the project in the beginning. My boss called it doodling, but I was determined never to lose the skill. I’d even taken special classes in college along with all the computer-related activities required to obtain my degree.

I sounded like I was selling my services to myself or touting the reason I should be promoted over other very qualified candidates.

Honestly, I wasn’t entirely certain I wanted the job, other than that it would be a significant increase in salary. By the time I walked in through the set of double glass doors, I instantly knew my name hadn’t been pulled out of a hat. How did I know? Because Bob Jenkins, otherwise known as the philandering pig, already had a couple of assistants helping move haphazardly packed boxes into the gleaming office that had stood empty for weeks.

For all the people I’d thought possible to get the nod, Bob wasn’t even a kissing cousin of the list. I was stunned, appalled, and in a worse mood than when I’d awakened less than two hours before.