I walked to the couch and sat down. Xander set aside his bowl of cereal and joined me, putting his arm around me. I leaned into his embrace, not realizing how much I needed a hug until this moment.
“I don’t know,” I said, almost miserably. “I think it’s Christopher Dark. He’s been trying to get Declan to talk with him too…”
I looked up at my father, who had his hands on his hips and was waiting expectantly for me to continue.
Well, Declan wasn’t here to tell the truth himself, but it wasn’t fair to keep it from my father anymore. Not when he was stuck in this mess.
“I already told you that Declan got the serum several years ago and that he’s been experiencing side-effects.”
He nodded and sat on his recliner but leaned forward and placed his forearms on his knees. “I think it’s time you told me what these side effects are, and just how you’re involved.”
With Xander’s arm still around me, I told my father everything. I told him about our plan to get information, what we’d done to infiltrate Dark Enterprises. I told him about the research we’d done on people there, including Declan. And I told him how I’d caught Declan with my camera. How he was fast and strong. How he could heal himself and how he never got sick. I told him everything, including the fact that I was getting in pretty deep with Declan myself.
We were in a relationship—or at least we were before this morning.
I rubbed my hand over my heart at the idea of things being over between us. It was bad enough that they were even strained, let alone to the point they’d reached.
“So Christopher Dark is aware that something has changed with Declan,” my dad surmised.
“I’m assuming so. He probably figured out Declan was doing research and started to think that maybe Declan wasn’t telling him the whole truth about his abilities. Then you got involved, and things got messy.”
“So why are they following you?” Xander asked.
My dad grumbled and shifted in his seat. “The same reason they were following me. Because I knew something I wasn’t supposed to know.”
My gaze snapped to his. “What? They were following you?”
My father nodded. “I didn’t want to tell you over the phone this weekend, but I remember that day. I remember leaving to go meet Dark and tell him what I’d found. And I remember seeing someone following me. I was headed up the highway and that car was behind me almost the whole time. It kept getting closer and closer and I was trying to get away from it. I swear, it was trying to drive me off the road. And, well…you know the rest.”
“Oh my God,” I murmured. “But—but you didn’t even know anything.”
“And you do,” my dad said, his voice low and worried. “Which means you’re in even more danger.”
“What do I do?” I asked them both.
“Stay away from Dark,” my father said firmly. “If they think you don’t have anything to do with him anymore, maybe they’ll leave you alone.”
My mouth opened soundlessly. Stay away from Declan? I put my face in my hands. Who knew—maybe after today he wouldn’t want anything more to do with me anyway.
“Are you going to be able to do that?” Xander asked.
I bit my lip to keep it from shaking. And then I swallowed. “It might easier than you think.”
Chapter 33
That afternoon I went back to my apartment with Xander. I needed my own bed, my own clothes, my own space. I needed the comfort of something familiar and something I’d grown to love.
I could tell my dad needed that too. He wasn’t used to having so many people around. Two men still stayed outside of his house as we left, though, telling me that’s where they were instructed to be for the foreseeable future.
I appreciated it. I knew it was because of Declan, and even though we weren’t communicating right now, I appreciated what he was doing.
Parker also took me and Xander home and told us that he would be nearby if we need anything. Before I got out of the car, he passed me a card with his number on it.
I was sure Declan had probably instructed him to do that too since I wasn’t taking his calls. I hadn’t even turned on my phone since the car ride this morning.
“Hey,” Xander said we walked through the door. “You look beat.”
I sighed. “I am. I need…a break.”
“I get it. So, go change into your comfy clothes and think about what you want for dinner. When you come out, I’ll have a glass of wine waiting for you and we can binge-watch something and distract ourselves.”
“Thank you, Xander.” I hugged him.
It was exactly what I needed. I had to figure out what the next steps were. It was pretty clear the direction my father wanted me to go. Stay away from Declan. But how was I supposed to do that when we worked together? When he already had my heart?
When I got to my bedroom, I gave in and pulled my phone out of my pocket. I turned it back on and found my sweats and a thick pair of socks while it powered up.
There weren’t any additional texts from Declan, but there was one more voice message. My finger hovered over the button for a long moment, but then I finally pressed it and put my phone to my ear.
His voice came across, sounding tired and strained. “I’m sorry about the way things went this morning,” he said. “I’m still learning how to balance the person I used to be with the person I am now and keeping open lines of communication. The most important thing right now
