Patrick started howling and swearing.
Thomas withdrew his hand, stepped back. His eyes were on Noelle. “He won’t tell us anything. Leave him here. The boss can work him over later.”
She was sure the interrogations the EOD conducted were probably very different from standard FBI techniques.
Her gaze slid to the cell. Patrick Porter could answer all of the questions that she had about her past. He could tell Noelle why he’d picked her. Why he’d picked them all.
But...
It won’t happen.
The man enjoyed his power too much, and if they were going to break through to him, they had to take the power away. The best way to do that was to act as if he didn’t matter.
“We’re done.” Noelle turned away from the killer. Talking to him made her skin crawl. She was sick of maintaining an icy image when, in truth, just being close to Patrick made her feel as if she were splintering apart on the inside.
“Done?” Patrick snarled. “We’re done when I say! Now get me a doctor! He broke my damn nose!”
“Your nose is the least of your worries.” Thomas sounded totally unconcerned. “Just wait until you get in your new home. That’s when the real fun will begin.”
Noelle grabbed for the door.
“Wait!” Patrick yelled after her. “You can’t just leave me in here! I thought you wanted to deal! You wanted—”
Noelle glanced back at him. Play the part. Play the part. “Right now, I just want you to rot. You see, I think I was wrong. You don’t have any information that I need to hear.”
His face went slack with shock. Ah, nice. A new emotion.
She turned away from him and marched out of the holding area and didn’t start shaking, not until the door closed behind Thomas. Not until they were away from the monster who’d changed her life.
Then her body trembled so hard she thought she’d collapse.
“Are you okay, Agent Evers?”
Her head jerked up at Aaron’s question. He was a few feet away, frowning at her.
She didn’t want him to see her break. All of the other EOD agents seemed to be so contained and strong. She couldn’t crumble in front of him.
Thomas stepped in front of her, blocking Aaron’s view. “She’s fine. We’re both exhausted, and we’re getting some sleep before the plane takes off in a few hours.” He jerked his thumb toward the closed door. “Keep a close eye on him. I don’t trust the guy not to make some kind of last-ditch escape effort. Guys like him would rather go out with a bang than be chained up.”
Then Thomas looked back at her. “She’s fine,” he said again, as he stared into Noelle’s eyes.
Then he was pulling her down the narrow hallway. He shoved open the door to the office they’d commandeered before, and he hurried her inside.
When the door shut behind them, when they were finally alone, Noelle let the tears come.
Chapter Ten
It was a good thing bars had separated him from Patrick Porter because Thomas had sure wanted to do more than just break the man’s nose.
That SOB had planned Noelle’s murder. He’d been the one who intended to hunt her like an animal, then leave her remains in the woods of Alabama.
He’d been laughing, so smug and confidant.
And Noelle was crying.
Thomas stared at her a moment, and he felt absolutely lost. Her tears... They hurt him and seemed to strike out right at his heart. And she was hunching her shoulders and trying to cover her face so he wouldn’t see. As if she needed to hide from him.
There was no part of Noelle that ever needed to be hidden from his sight. To him, every single inch of her was perfect.
He caught her hands, pulled them down and held them tightly in his. Then Thomas bent toward her and pressed a kiss to her cheek. He could taste the salt of her tears. He hated her pain.
I want that man in the ground.
“What can I do?” Thomas knew the words sounded like little more than a growl, but his rage was too strong for anything else. “Tell me how to help you.”
She shook her head and tried to pull away.
He just held her tighter, and he kissed her other cheek. Crying had always made him uncomfortable. Truth be told, emotion made him uncomfortable, but with Noelle, everything was different. Her hurt seemed to be his. He felt it slicing through him like a knife.
“I’ve seen men like him before.” Her voice was soft. Husky with pain. “I’ve brought them in for the FBI. I’ve seen the broken victims left in their wake.” She swallowed and whispered, “Now I’m one of them.”
“No.” A sharp comeback. “There is nothing broken about you. You’re the strongest woman I’ve ever met.”
She blinked up at him. Her eyes were so gorgeous, even glistening with tears. Hell, maybe they were more gorgeous that way. Did she have any clue she was bringing him to his knees? “You got away,” he told her, fighting to keep his hold light on her. “You got away, and you were the one who finally brought down this jerk.”
“The EOD—”
“We couldn’t have done this without you, and you know it. It’s not about being a victim. It’s about being a survivor. Survivors are the brave ones. The powerful ones. That’s you, baby. Through and through.” He had to kiss her, so he did. Thomas lowered his head, and his lips brushed against hers. He’d meant for the kiss to be easy. Light.
At first, it was.
Her hands rose and curled around his shoulders. She pulled him closer and kissed him harder.
And the desire he felt for her raged hotter.
In an instant, the kiss wasn’t about comforting her. It wasn’t about taking away her pain. It was just about them. The consuming need they felt for each other.
He locked her against his body, holding her flush against him. She had to feel his desire, because there was certainly no hiding it.
Then she—
Pulled away.
Thomas sucked in a hard breath and clenched his hands into fists. Noelle didn’t look at him as she backed off, putting a careful distance between them.
“Noelle...”
She jerked at his voice.
He frowned at her, then he remembered all of the things Patrick had said. Things he’d feared the man would say. Because he and Patrick Porter... Their paths had crossed before. Only back then, the man had been using an alias.
So had Thomas.
“It’s not true,” he told her. He needed her to look at him. Hell, he needed her back in his arms.
“I don’t want to be here,” Noelle said, her voice still whisper soft. She stalked for the door. Before she could leave, his hand flew out, and he shoved the wooden door closed.