44

“Not a lot, but there was some sort of altercation. Her messenger bag was in the back seat, and the contents dumped out.”

I felt sick. I had watched her walk out the door to danger. My phone had rung, so she kissed me, and hurried outside, anxious to be on her way. I heard her call to Frank to stay in the car; she could open her own door. Except it hadn’t been Frank. By the time I followed, wanting to tell her she would be brilliant today, they were gone, and I had no idea what I had allowed to happen.

I had let her walk right into their trap.

I shook my head, trying to clear it. “Frank—is he okay?”

“He has a bad concussion. They found him in the stairwell—he was knocked out before he ever reached the car. He didn’t see who hit him.”

The air in the room became too hot, too close. I tugged on my tie, struggling to drag in oxygen.

“Why?” I choked out.

“You know why.”

“They got the land. They got what they wanted!” I swung around facing Aiden. “We did all of this as a precaution. Only a