Page 106 of Disobedient Pawn

“Aye, I agree. It was a stupid long shot we never shoulda tried.”

She sighed and ran her hand through her hair.

“But I’m going to make a couple of assumptions here, and tell me if I’m wrong. One, you’re supposed to listen to whatever Nash tells you, and two, by the look on your face, you hate all the shit that has happened.”

“Aye, and aye. All I wanted was to get yer attention. Ya make me feel so much like a pup that knows nothin’.”

She cocked her head and looked at me before her mouth turned up in a small smile.

“That description suits you.”

I rolled my eyes at her.

“Aye, it probably does. No need to rub it in, though.”

“I think I can get away with calling you whatever I want for at least a week after what you’ve done.”

She put her hands on her hips, challenging me, and I loved it.

“Aye, fair enough.”

“Okay, then you have work to do to rebuild my trust. But I don’t hate you, just what you did.”

She resumed pacing, and I sat there stunned, not even sure I heard her right.

“Are ya sure?”

“Do you want me to hate you? Do you want me to grab whatever ”

“Well, no….”

“Then leave it be. The fact that you told me and didn’t try to lie and say that you weren’t one of the guys tells me a lot. Most guys would’ve made themselves out to be the hero, not the villain.”

I laughed as I stood and leaned against her desk.

“I might have the face of an angel, but a hero I will never be.”

“So for now, let’s concentrate on what my father is up to ‘cause I don’t understand any of this.”

“Nash has a theory,” I said and knew that if Nash heard me talking about this, he’d knock all the teeth out of my head, but it was worth the risk. “He thinks yer in witness protection and an important piece that could help his father in a power play move.”

Ren stopped moving, her face draining of all color, and I rushed to her, convinced she would faint again.

“Are ya okay?”

I gripped her shoulders as Ren looked up at me, and I could feel the light tremble under my fingers.

“My mum was murdered.”

“What? When? I thought she was ill.”

She wiped at the tears sliding down her cheeks.

“Five days before I came here. She had been sick with cancer for a long time, but I genuinely thought she was on the mend. It was my birthday, and we sat in her room eating all my favorite takeout food. She’d managed to sing me happy birthday. She also gave me this.” Ren dug under her shirt and held up a chain with a small pendant, a blue stone with an R. “It was around ten, my mum was resting, and I was reading when these masked men broke into our house.”

“I’m so sorry.”

Her shaking worsened, and her breathing was so quick that she was nearing another attack. Scooping her into my arms, I sat on the bed and held her to my chest.