28. Lucy

Cas was bangingaround in my kitchen like he belonged there, and I couldn't stop staring.

The couch in my office was the perfect place to watch him and I held the cup of coffee he'd made for me, wondering how we got here.

He'd integrated himself into my life flawlessly.

After fucking the absolute shit out of me, he'd kept his promise. Cas had cleaned me up and washed my hair with gentle hands, never once letting go of me. I couldn't stand on my own so he'd put me in his lap and his hands in my hair was almost as good as his dick in my pussy.

I couldn't believe how docile he'd made me. I'd even let him tuck me in bed after he put me in some sweats and a T-shirt. I'd had every intention of getting up after five minutes, but at some point I'd fallen asleep.

He didn't wake me up either.

No, he'd waited until breakfast was ready and the coffee was on before bringing it to me in bed. I was pretty sure he would have fed it to me too if I'd let him.

Now he was cleaning the kitchen, completely content to leave me to my own devices so I could do whatever I needed to do.

Even now his hair fell into his eyes as he scrubbed, making the muscles in his arms and chest flex. It was fucking ridiculous how attractive he was and Cas didn't even realize it. Sure, he probably knew he wasn't ugly, but every time he caught me staring at him he'd give me this massive grin like he's never experienced someone being absolutely obsessed with him before.

How the fuck did that happen? Did everyone else have defective eyeballs? He was objectively gorgeous even if he did look terrifying. I mean, he was tall and the way his shirts always clung to his muscles was extremely unfair.

At least this one was a T-shirt so he couldn't unbutton it and show off all that cleavage again. He needed a dress code if I was ever going to be able to work around him again. Because seriously, did those pants really have to be that tight?

"Stop procrastinating."

I stuck my tongue out at him and my stomach lurched when he gave me a look. It didn't seem like I'd be getting the fun kind of punishment if I kept pushing his buttons.

Fine. I would finish my coffee and then start looking because there wasn't much I could do until I got a look at the physical servers and their firewalls.

With Cas here, I could probably go look at the servers at the security company but the way he made sure to always have his body between me and the front door was a silent command.

Finish this game before I make you.

As much as I wanted to see what it would look like when he made me, I didn't think it was a good idea. I would definitely regret it and it wasn't like I didn't know I was procrastinating.

Because I was fucking terrified.

I'd used every excuse I could think of to put it off, just so I didn't have to deal with whatever was going to happen when I finally found it but then Cas had come up here and destroyed every single reason I had for delaying that moment.

Except for one.

I really did not like extreme change.

Every time the world beneath my feet shifted, it felt like I was drowning in chaos. All my previous routines were thrown into question and I had to test every single one of them all over again, keeping what I could and discarding others.

Finding what would work with the new world I'd been shoved into was never easy and it always stressed me the fuck out.

But this thing with Liam was even worse. It wasn't just the panic of what my life would look like when I became bonded to two alphas, one of them being a legacy, but it was also the fear of the unknown.

What the fuck kind of connection did Liam think we had outside this case? I had no idea if it was something I could handle and the second I found his clue, I wouldn't have a choice anymore.

The ground would crumble beneath me and I'd be forced to try to build a new foundation from the rubble.

I've done it before, so I could do it again, but what worried me was the time it would take to get my shit together again.

How much would it affect me and this case?

It didn't matter though, did it? I had to know what it was. I had to know what Liam considered valuable enough to take as a memento…what he might consider precious.

Then I would know exactly where we stood.

Draining the rest of my coffee, I ignored the way it burned my tongue and carefully set the cup down on the coffee table.

At least Cas was here. I wouldn't have to pick up the pieces by myself.

I shoved up the sleeves of my shirt to the elbow and quietly picked my way through my apartment to my bedroom. It had to be in here. Nowhere else made sense.

Yanking open my door, I stared at my room and tried to look at it as if I've never seen it before.

The twinkling lights were on like they always were and they made the large space feel smaller – cozier.

I stepped inside and quietly locked the door behind me. I had no idea why I did it, but it seemed like a good idea.

My armoire didn't have anything missing, and neither did my nightstand. I'd given my vanity a cursory look, but hadn't dug through my closet, or the trunk at the foot of my canopy bed.

There was nothing in the trunk other than blankets, pillows, and various plushies, but I decided to start there just to rule it out.

Lifting the top of the trunk made the smell of sandalwood rise up and it reminded me of Liam. I sighed and yanked out all the pillows and plushies. I really did miss him. So much more than I thought I would too.

It wasn't the same as when I'd ached for them during my heat, but something that was almost worse. I wanted them in the same building as me, if not the same room. I wanted to be able to go get a hug at any time and know I could touch them without having to worry about what it meant.

I ached to have them in my life, but I didn't just want them to court me. I wanted them to bond me.

Dumping the blankets on the floor, I stared at the bottom of my trunk, seeing nothing just as I thought I would. Not that him taking one of my blankets or plushies would tell me anything, but still.

I should just call it what it was.

This was still me trying to procrastinate.

Anything Liam would have considered valuable wouldn't be in this trunk or my closet. My vanity didn't have much he might want either unless he'd found one of my sketchbooks.

I didn't bother putting anything back and went straight to my vanity, yanking open the drawers from top to bottom. Everything in my jewelry box was still there and so were all my sketchbooks.

Even my drawer full of hard drives was untouched.

Nothing from my vanity was missing.

I turned to my dresser and felt my heart rate start to pick up. Not that I really had anything in there a normal person would consider worth taking, but Liam wasn't even the slightest bit normal.

Opening the top drawer first, I did my best to see if there was any missing underwear, but I didn't pay close enough attention to them to really notice if one suddenly disappeared.

The only thing that told me he hadn't rummaged through here was that the smell of oranges wasn't clinging to the fabric. Not even a hint of them wafted up to tickle my nose. All I could smell was my laundry detergent.

The top four dresser drawers were left untouched. My pajamas, underwear, bras, and pants were all exactly the way they'd been when I'd put them away.

Which only left the bottom two drawers and my closet.

Kneeling on the fluffy black rug, I wiped my hands on my sweats and tried not to freak the fuck out about how clammy they already were.

My heart started pounding hard and fast, thumping against my chest like a wild animal as I reached for the bottom left drawer, hoping he'd taken something stupid like an enamel pin or a sticker.

I stared down at the various jewelry trays I'd used to store all my different treasures over the years. They were still stacked the way I had originally set them up, but instead of jewelry nestled in that purple velvet, there were rocks and leaves, dried flowers, enamel pins, little ribbons from various marathons I'd done with Frankie, and pictures.

Lifting the top layer, I studied each square and the small stickers to indicate the year and the memory.

My graduation tassel was tucked in one square along with a picture of Frankie standing with me, wearing my graduation gown with the Valedictorian stole. Inside that square was the small box with the necklace Francisco had sent me as a graduation present.

I opened the box and found the antique diamond necklace still in there, looking as perfect as it had the day he'd sent it to me. I've never worn it, but maybe it was finally time.

Setting that on top of my dresser, I wiped my sweaty hands off again and pulled out the next layer of trays to see the ones on the bottom.

Aluminum can tabs from when Frankie and I were in high school when I'd had a Dr. Spice addiction and drank one every single day, along with a picture of us during the one year we'd attended the same school.

When she went off to college by herself, I'd decided to graduate early and follow after her like I always did.

Before that, we were homeschooled. Francisco had wanted us to have privacy while everything died down after my father was sent to prison. I didn't have much from that time other than the silly notes Frankie had written me.

Shells filled most of the other squares. I'd gathered them at every beach we went to and then tied them all together with string. That was only the first tray though.

The rest of them were from before my father had been arrested for murder.

My hands shook as I reached for the one with my mother's jewelry.

The gold wedding band was smaller than I remembered.

I pushed that to the side and studied the tiny gold, hoop earrings he'd given her for one of their anniversaries. My mother hadn't liked to wear jewelry, but the few pieces she did wear were ones my father gave her.

My father was the one who liked jewelry. He had so many sparkly pieces that they took up almost two full trays. Underneath the glittering diamonds and gold was my original birth certificate.

None of his jewelry looked like it had been disturbed, but I pushed it aside anyway to make sure my birth certificate was still there.

Did Liam see it?

And so what if he had? The jerk was still following me around, wasn't he?

I almost wished he already knew.

If Liam knew I was the daughter of a serial killer, one who also happened to be an omega…then that wasn't a secret I had to keep. I would never have to wonder if that would make him abandon me.

For something I had no control over.

Running my fingers over the purple velvet, I studied the random junk from the time before I'd lost the father I thought I knew. It was all worthless, but every single piece meant something to me.

I froze when I noticed some of it was gone.

Anyone other than me would think it was all trash, so why were only some pieces missing?

I picked up a purple bead and tilted it so the light hit the acrylic paint just right. It wasn't one of those cheap plastic ones kids used in arts and crafts either. It was a gold flower and the sun made the paint sparkle, giving the purple depth.

This bead was something I'd found digging in the sand with that boy all those years ago…and right next to it was an empty square where a shard of purple glass should be…

But there was nothing.

A piece of glass should have been dangerous, but the edges had been sanded down. The whole thing looked like something you'd find on the beach – sea glass the boy had called it, but it was too shiny to be sea glass.

Studying each square, I held my breath and tried not to panic when I realized that every single thing that boy had buried for me was missing.

Not a single item was left behind other than the ones that had already been there.

Just one person could take only what he'd buried for me without making a single mistake.

One person.

I've never told anyone else about this other than my mother, and even then, I hadn't given her the details of what I'd found.

The only person in the world who would know what he buried for me was that boy – the one I've never been able to forget. The boy I couldn't stop thinking about whenever it rained…the one who'd asked me to wait for him.

Every single treasure he buried for me while the both of us pretended they'd always been there…

They were all gone.