Free Forever Hidden (Forever Bluegrass #2) by Kathleen Brooks Page B

behind him. “Did anyone ever hurt you?” he asked quietly. He would kill anyone who had hurt her.
    Sydney obviously saw that in his eyes for she stepped back quickly and shook her head. “No. My mom was always with me. She managed me until I was eighteen and attended every meeting and photo shoot I ever had. Even after I was eighteen and had my own agent. Plus my dad . . . well, it’s hard to explain Keeneston and my family.”
    “Your father was the sheriff. I’m sure he taught you self-defense. That’s good. If I have a daughter, I’m going to teach her how to protect herself.” A daughter with blond hair and hazel eyes popped into his mind. Deacon took a deep breath to slow down his runaway mind.
    “Well, yes and no. See, my family is a little . . . how do I say this? Different. My whole hometown is a little different. So, yes, my father taught me self-defense. And so did Aunt Annie, who was DEA. And then Aunt Paige taught me how to shoot. And well, you don’t need to know what Ahmed taught me.”
    “Ahmed?” Deacon asked.
    Sydney nodded. “I had a fashion show in Europe. There was some unrest nearby and my mom wanted to make sure I knew how to handle myself. Ahmed is the retired head of security for the royal family of Rahmi. The rumors I’ve heard from the aunts were that Ahmed was something of a legend. A superb soldier who never failed in a mission, no matter what the circumstances. And judging from what he’s taught me, I would say those rumors are definitely true.”
    “I knew I liked your mother.” Deacon grinned before returning to the tapes.
    “Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes. I’m going to read some more letters. Since it’s raining out, I don’t think I’ll be able to go digging in the backyard anymore tonight. Maybe I can find a clue,” Sydney told him as she grabbed the box of letters from Mrs. Wyatt and took the seat next to him on the couch.
    He tried to ignore the sweet smell of her shampoo as he kept his eyes on the screen. People came and went from the mall, and then he finally saw Vic. He watched as the man sauntered onto the sidewalk. He stood smoking a cigarette, and a minute later a car pulled up. He opened the passenger side and got in. As the car drove off, he froze the image on the license plate.
    “He’s not working alone,” Sydney whispered in shock from beside him.
    “No, he’s not.”

CHAPTER EIGHT
     
    Sydney jumped up from the couch as the buzzer on the oven went off. She couldn’t shake the image of two men taking Bailey from her house and delivering her to Durante.
    She shivered as she pulled the baked pasta from the oven. She had finished a couple of her great-grandmother’s letters when she had looked over at the screen and had seen Vic walk outside as if no one could touch him. Well, Deacon would find him. She had seen the determination in his eyes. By the way he silently clenched his jaw as he watched Vic get into that car, she knew he would do whatever it took.
    “Dinner’s ready, Deacon. Or if you’re working, I can keep it warm in the oven.”
    Deacon shook out his shoulders and stood up. “No, that’s all right. I’m starving, and this will be a nice break for me. It’s hard to keep your distance from a case. But if you let yourself get sucked into the darkness, it’ll stick in your mind long after the case is over. And the last thing you want to do is allow evil to turn you evil.”
    Sydney scooped the pasta onto plates as Deacon filled glasses with wine. They opted for comfort and took their dinner to the couch. Deacon closed the laptop and cleared off the table.
    “Did you find anything in Mrs. Wyatt’s letters?” Deacon asked.
    “I’m learning a lot about the family. It’s so strange that she never really talked about them before. I know all about the Wyatts, but the women in her family really were quite extraordinary. I read the letter about the women’s suffrage movement. That was really fascinating.” Sydney wished her