Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN

February 8 th

4:38 P.M.

If she thought she was exhausted in Mexico it was nothing to how Ella felt in this moment.

Completely wiped out.

Empty.

Like there was nothing left for her to give.

Just the thought of having to catch a cab or an Uber back to her house, cook herself some dinner—even ordering dinner—cleaning herself up, and falling into bed was more than she could handle.

Everything was too much.

She was overwhelmed to the absolute extreme.

“So I can go?” she asked Eagle and another man from some agency only he hadn't specified which one in particular. Even though the first words out of Eagle’s mouth when their plane landed at Prey’s private airfield, and she was transported back to the office where he was waiting for her were that she was not under arrest, she hadn't quite believed it.

Answering every question she was asked—the same ones over and over again until she was precariously close to screaming or bursting into tears—as honestly as possible, giving as much detail as she could remember, it had all felt pointless. Ella had been convinced that at the end they were going to change their minds, snap handcuffs on her and drag her away, locking her up in some tiny cell in some remote location and she’d never see the light of day again.

Eagle’s blue eyes met hers, open and honest, inviting her to search them and confirm her fears were for nothing. “Ella, you are not under arrest. Everything you said checked out. The vial of the Reactivator was in the locker at the airport, it’s already been tested. The bomb was found under your parents’ house. You have the wounds to prove you were threatened into doing what you did. I can't say I'm not disappointed I don’t have an emergency system in place that can be used in the event of a situation like this and you felt you had to go it alone, but that failing is mine, not yours.”

Tears welled in her eyes at her boss’ kind words, for his understanding, for his willingness to believe her, and for having everything corroborated so someone couldn’t twist things against her.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“For what it’s worth, Ella. I never believed you were guilty,” Eagle said. When she studied his gaze, she found it sincere and there was not a single thread of dishonesty in his tone either.

“Thank you,” she whispered again, knowing how lucky she would have been to have Eagle on her side if things hadn't turned out the way they had and she’d been arrested. He would have fought for her.

Unlike …

It hurt to think, but she’d seen the way Fox and the guys wouldn't meet her gaze directly. They hadn't believed in her, and it hurt more than she could express, more than she ever would have thought.

“Go home and rest, we’ll have people watching over you. Raul Castillo might be dead, but the mole is still out there,” Eagle said. The pride in his voice as he mentioned the dead weapons trafficker managed to drag a small smile out of her. If nothing else, her ordeal had wound up taking out a wanted dealer and that was definitely something.

Wearily, she pushed to her feet and opened the interview room door, kind of surprised to find it wasn’t locked.

More surprised to see who was lounging against the wall in the hall.

“Miguel? What are you doing here?” she asked. She would have thought after his debriefing he would have left, never giving her a second thought. Instead, he’d stayed, which somehow made things a little better.

Okay, maybe more than a little.

It helped to know she wasn’t completely alone. She had Eagle and she had Miguel. Only two people, but way better than zero.

“Checking to make sure you're okay,” he said, straightening and taking a step toward her. He stopped just shy of touching her and Ella found herself almost overwhelmed by the need to throw herself into his arms.

What she wouldn't give to soak up a little of his soothing calm right now. It was just that she no longer knew where she stood with him. They were back home, his job was over, and he had no obligation to stick around, and yet he had and that left her feeling so confused.

Maybe she would have outright asked, too tired to play any sort of games, and with no mental energy to figure this man out, but then she caught sight of more people coming down the hall and immediately stiffened.

Her team.

With their partners.

Panic fluttered to life inside her. She wasn’t ready to see them yet. Might never be ready. Perhaps she was being overly sensitive, after all, she knew what she was making things look like when she took the drug, but she felt what she felt. It was that they just believed she was a traitor so easily. She’d expected better from them, more, expected what she would have given in their place.

Noticing her panic, Miguel looked over his shoulder, and when he saw who was coming, he shifted slightly so he was between her and her team. His protectiveness eased a little of her fear and she could just kiss him for being so in tune with her feelings and actually caring enough to do something about it.

“Ella? We were hoping we could talk to you?” Lucy asked, sounding uncharacteristically uncertain.

There was no way she was ready for that. Whether she was being overly sensitive or not, right now, she could barely stand to look at these three women, let alone talk to them. Her emotions were way too raw, and she didn't want to fall apart, or have the energy for it at the moment.

Later.

When she’d had time to process everything that had happened.

“Please,” Scarlett added when she didn't answer. “We know you must be tired, so we won't take up much of your time.”

“We shouldn’t have doubted you,” Cassie blurted out, tears shining in her eyes.

“No, you shouldn’t have,” she agreed softly.

“You took the Reactivator on camera,” Tate said, and she winced at the hard tone of his voice. It was clear while maybe her friends felt bad about doubting her their men didn't. Even if she could move past their lack of faith in her, how could she ever work with them again when their partners obviously didn't like her? There was no way she was petty enough to make them choose between the loves of their lives and her, so it left them at an impasse.

“Because if I didn't make it look believable my family, including my five-month-old nephew, would have been blown up. I arranged for emails to be sent to let you know where it was in the event I didn't make it home,” she explained wearily, wondering if there would ever be a time when she didn't have to defend herself.

“You didn't call,” Scarlett said, sounding hurt, but if their positions were reversed Scarlett would have protected her family however she had to as well.

“Couldn’t risk it knowing the mole could have tapped phones and be listening. Whether you agree with my decisions or not, I did the best I could to protect my family and the Reactivator at the same time, whatever the consequences to myself.”

“Your friends would have been there for you,” Luis lectured like she was some stupid kid. “Do you have any idea how upsetting it was for them?”

“Back the hell off, man,” Miguel growled, and she rested a palm on his forearm to calm him—although she appreciated him being the only one on her side—and stepped around him, no longer willing to hide behind him. She’d made her choices and done what she had to do, she didn't need to be ashamed of that.

“Actually, yeah I do,” she said calmly. “I remember when we were faced with “proof” that Scarlett was a traitor, and I never once believed it. Not for a single second. I was on the phone with the rest of you when Lucy’s plane went down, and I remember the terror I felt. Same fear as when I got the call that the lab had been blown up with Cassie inside. Never once did I doubt any of you, it never even entered my mind. I was just scared for my friends, the people I loved and considered family. If you can't understand why I would feel upset about not getting that same love and support, then I don’t think there’s anything to talk about. I'm going home.”

“I’ll drive you,” Miguel immediately offered.

Managing a smile for him, Ella shook her head. “Thank you, but I think I need a little time on my own to come to terms with the last few days and think about my future.”

“Ella, you aren't thinking of quitting Prey are you?” Cassie asked, sounding aghast.

Not willing to get into any discussions tonight, not before she’d had time to think, Ella ignored the question. Instead, she stood on tiptoe and touched a kiss to Miguel’s cheek. “Thank you for saving me. Over and over again. Thank you for giving me the benefit of the doubt even though you didn't know me. And thank you for being here for me tonight, it made me feel a little less alone.”

With that, she turned and walked away, feeling very much like she was leaving Prey and her team behind for good.

February 8 th

5:01 P.M.

“We messed up,” Lucy said as Ella disappeared around a corner.

“You think?” Miguel snarled, whirling around to face the three women who should have had Ella’s back no matter what. It didn't matter if they’d learned the mole was a woman. Didn't matter if Ella was seen on camera leaving the lab with the Reactivator. Didn't matter if she hopped on a plane to Mexico. She’d earned the benefit of the doubt by being a contributing member of Athena Team and a friend to all three of them.

Why was he the only one who’d had doubts?

He didn't even know Ella, yet he’d felt like something wasn’t adding up. If he could see that, why couldn’t the people who knew her the best?

All you needed to do was look at all the pieces and you’d see that, at the very least, they were worth looking into before jumping to conclusions.

Yet nobody who claimed to care about Ella had bothered to do that, and for some reason, it made him irrationally angry.

“Ease up, little brother,” Luis warned.

Usually, Miguel would defer to his brother. They might both be in their thirties, but Luis had been more of a parent to him than a brother for the first decade of his life, so he was more than just a big brother.

But not this time.

Ella needed somebody on her side, and it looked like he was the only one who wanted the job.

“This wasn’t easy on Scarlett, Lucy, and Cassie,” Zander said quietly. Of all six who had accosted Ella outside the room she’d been interrogated in, he’d been the one to throw off the least number of antagonistic vibes. That was the only reason Miguel could keep his voice relatively calm even though he was seething on the inside.

“Wasn’t easy on Ella either,” he reminded them. “She was the one who had her family threatened. She was the one who willingly walked into danger because it was the only way to protect those she loved. She was the one who still had the wherewithal despite her fear to make sure she also protected the drug. Flat out, no lies, no sugarcoating things, Ella deserved better than what she got from you.”

“The evidence—” Tate started, but Miguel wasn’t having excuses, wasn’t interested in them, the only thing he was interested in right now was Ella.

“Don’t make excuses,” he said, cutting off the other man.

“He’s right,” Lucy agreed. “We’re the ones who messed up, not Ella. What she said was true, she never doubted anything, and we let her down when we didn't at least fight for her. We know her, she’s a sweet person, hardworking and dedicated. There’s no way she would ever betray us and we should have known that.”

Slightly mollified by the fact that at least one of them was willing to acknowledge their mistakes, Miguel nodded. “You have no idea what she went through in Mexico. What she risked to try to end this for all of you.”

Scarlett paled. “Did Raul … use the drug on her?”

“No. He tried to use it on me, but Rocco’s team showed up before he could. Raul was going to keep Ella for himself,” he informed them. While he didn't necessarily feel good about sharing this with them, it wasn’t like everything that had happened to her wasn’t already in her statement.

Cassie gasped. “He … he was going to keep her? Like a … a … pet?”

“Like as his own personal sex slave,” Miguel replied, seeing no reason to mince words. If these women who should have had faith in their friend wanted to tear her down, they should know exactly what she had been facing in her attempts to protect everyone and everything except herself.

Another gasp fell from Cassie’s lips, and Luis wrapped an arm around her pulling her close and touching a kiss to her temple. “But she’s okay, princess. He didn't get to keep her, and she killed him.”

As his brother said the words, Miguel could see the full meaning of what he’d just spoken sunk in because Luis went pale. For the first time, it looked like his brother was seeing this whole mess from someone other than the woman he was falling in love with’s point of view.

From Ella’s point of view.

It was all well and good to say she should have told someone about the threat to her family, but there was a credible threat to security and if she tipped the mole off to the fact that she had no intention of following through with the orders she’d been given her family would be killed.

There was no choice.

She’d done what she had to do, and he had no intention of standing by and allowing her to be torn to shreds over it.

If she didn't want him with her right now, and he would gladly have driven her home, been a friend, given her a shoulder to cry on if she needed it or someone she could rage at about the unfairness of it all, then he would at least stay there and defend her. It just sucked that she needed defending to people who should have known better.

“We messed up,” Luis said, echoing Lucy’s earlier words.

“You did and you hurt her a lot,” Miguel agreed, focusing on the three women. Tate and Luis had known Ella only a month, so their not believing in her was more rational. Zander had known her for a few years since he wasn’t just Lucy’s boyfriend but Scarlett’s twin brother, but he knew the man hadn't known any of his sister’s teammates very well, so again it wasn’t him not believing in her that had upset Ella.

Scarlett, Lucy, and Cassie were the ones who should have known better. They were the ones who had broken Ella’s heart.

While he hadn't known Ella long, he was protective of her, he liked her, they’d bonded, and if he wasn’t afraid of what might happen to him in the future if he could no longer control his inner demons then he might even have been tempted to throw away his usual one and done policy and ask her out on a real date.

Just because he couldn’t do that didn't mean he couldn’t give her this. Make sure her friends knew how badly they’d messed up. It wasn’t much, but at least Ella would know she wasn’t alone in this.

“Do you think we can fix it?” Scarlett asked him, and he knew then that they really got how badly their unwillingness to extend Ella the benefit of the doubt until they knew more had damaged their relationship with her. They were the ones who knew her, they should know whether or not they had a shot at repairing things, yet they were looking to him.

Miguel couldn’t deny that gave him a little caveman kind of rush because it almost made it seem like Ella was his. He knew she wasn’t and knew she never could be. Yet there was something between them, and it had only grown in the hours they’d spent together in Mexico, and in the hours it had taken to get back home when Ella had been unwilling to allow him out of her sight, needing his presence to reassure herself she was safe.

Not that he’d been complaining.

He’d needed her close to reassure himself that she was safe.

But the facts right now were that Ella was hurting, she felt alone, the people who should have had her back hadn't and he honestly had no idea if they’d be able to mend fences enough to get their friendships back to what they’d been before.

“I don’t know,” he answered.

“Can you talk to her for us?” Cassie asked. “She seems to trust you and you're the one who saved her. I think she’d listen to you. If you just tell her how sorry we are and how much we’d like to tell her that in person then she might listen.”

Honestly, if it wasn’t what Ella one hundred percent wanted, then he wouldn't do it. She was his priority. She was the one who had been wronged, and if she wasn’t ready to talk to her friends then he wouldn't try to pressure her. Ella deserved to have someone putting her first and that’s what he intended to do.

“I’m sorry I can't agree to that,” he replied. “I don’t mean to be harsh, but you guys made your bed and now you have to lie in it. I hope for all your sakes, that you can work things out, Ella loves her job, and she loves you guys, and I don’t want her to lose that. But right now, she’s traumatized and she’s hurting, and she needs someone in her corner.”

“That someone is you?” Luis asked, his gaze a whole lot more probing than Miguel would have liked because he knew he could never hide anything from his big brother.

Aiming for nonchalance, Miguel shrugged. “For now. Yeah. Ella needs a friend and has me. When she’s ready I’ll encourage her to reach out, but I'm not making any promises. Ella lost her control when her family was threatened, I won't take it from her again.”

With that, he turned and headed for the lifts, refusing to allow himself to consider the whispering thought at the back of his mind, that he wanted to be more than Ella’s friend.

There was no way he could risk hurting her by being more.