Page 32 of Shattered Veil
“Wesley?” Balor says, his cyber brain clicking on.
I assume he’s a hacker like my dad. Balor will go home and hack away until he finds Wes. I tremble at the idea of him finding out my ex is a cop. I don’t want Balor to do anything that will put hismafiafamily’s secrets at risk.
“Let it go. It’s done.” My eyes plead to Balor. “I’ll work for you. Just tell me when to report and where your office is.” Working in a command center sounds daunting.
Balor smiles and sits back because he’s won. “You’ll find out.”
The check comes and even though my father tries to pay for it, telling Balor it’s the least he can do after the incredible salary and a signing bonus I knew nothing about, Balor takes care of the bill.
Seeming happy, Dad stands up and excuses himself to tip the waitress, something he always does when dining with a colleague who pays.
As soon as my father is out of earshot, Balor slides closer to me.
“What did he to do you?” His eyes roam my body. “I didn’t see any scars. Thank fuck, I might have lost it. Especially when I thought you were...”
Because Johns and pimps beat up hookers.
“Black eyes. Busted lips. Cuts.” I refrain from showing him all the places, but each body part Wes hurt tingles in pain when I mention them.
“Blackeyes. Both or more than once?”
“Both... And more than once.” My throat goes tight.
“Cuts.” He fingers my shoulder. “The tattoo under your left collarbone?”
I’m not broken, just mending and ready to live...
“And my wrist.” I raise my hand to show him the butterfly again. “The heart on my hip. The spiderweb on my thigh. All my tattoos cover the scars from his abuse.”
“He let you tattoo over his scars?”
I shake my head. “I got them all in Sydney. It was a way to heal. To blend the pain of the needle and watch evidence of my weakness vanish.”
“You weren’t weak. Men who abuse women are.” Balor looks ready to murder someone.
“I felt so trapped. And scared. I know...who you are. Dad told me about your family.”
His eyebrow raises. “Did he now?”
“You can trust me,” I whisper. “My father isn’t exactly on the up and up.”
Balor leans in. “Last name of your ex. Now.”
I exhale. “No.”
He growls. “Not many people tell me no. I have a first name. I can find him. And—”
“It will come back to me. He’ll...”
“No one is getting near you again. You’re living in a secure building.” How he knows that can only mean he vetted Dad. “You’ll be working for me. And one whiff of that scumbag coming close to you, you’re getting a bodyguard.”
Overwhelmed, I hold my chest. “I don’t want to live like that.”
“Better than being dead.”
“I never thought he’d kill me.”
“Most DV abusers don’t intend to kill. It’s all about controlling their victims.” His fists tighten. “All too often when the victim fights back that’s when they end up dead.”