Carl tugged at the waistband of his slacks before pushing his fingers through his thinning hair and glancing back at the door. “Okay then, let’s go see what we have. Don’t touch anything, don’t get in the way.”

They moved to the apartment as the officers moved back, storing the prints they had taken from the security pad and the door. As they neared, Carl nodded to one of the men, and he pushed the door open slowly.

Kia stepped inside behind them. Her heart expanded in her chest, nearly blocking her ability to breath. Complete horror filled every cell of her body as she stared at the entry, living room, and open kitchen.

It was destroyed. The flat-screen television on the wall had been smashed, her couch slashed until it was less than ribbons of stuffing and upholstery. Red paint streaked the walls and floor; at least, it smelled like paint, but it looked like blood. And the words DIE BITCH were spelled out on the wall of windows that led to her balcony.

She was vaguely aware of Chase cursing at her side. All she could feel was the complete and utter horror racing through her.

DIE BITCH. In big letters, like blood, covering the windows. Everything was trashed. There was nothing salvageable.

“Kia, let me get you out of here.” Chase’s arm tightened around her as she tried to move through the rest of the house.

She shook her head and moved slowly through the rooms.

Her bedroom door was open, and she could already see the destruction there. Once she entered the room, she saw it was worse.

Her clothes were destroyed. The walk-in closet was filled with ripped and shredded cloth. Shoes were cut apart, boots sliced and purses ripped. Lingerie spilled from dresser drawers along with gowns and silken robes and more casual clothing. All ripped and torn, destroyed.

Her jewelry box was open. Gold chains were broken. On the dresser it appeared as though the rings themselves had been beaten with a hammer. Gems were in fragments, the bands curled.

Everything she had owned was gone. And this time, on the wall over her bed, the word whore was emblazoned in red.

She moved into the bathroom. The smell of perfumes and makeup still strong. Destroyed. It was all destroyed. Five years of her life shredded and ground to dust.

She was barely aware of the tears that fell from her eyes as she glimpsed the little teddy bear that had been tossed in the tub, shredded. She had brought it from home. She’d had it since she was a baby. The first gift her father had bought her.

She shook her head as she stared at that pathetic little bear. “Who would want to do this to me?” she whispered, her lips numb, shock seeping into her as she stared up at Chase. “Who would want to? Drew couldn’t, he wouldn’t do this.”

Chase grimaced. His eyes were like ice, his expression savage. “I don’t know, baby, but I’ll find out.” He pulled her against him, holding her close to the warmth of his body. “I promise I’ll find out.”

She could barely feel his warmth now. She felt frozen, inside and out, felt as though something vital had been stripped out of her.

“I’m getting you out of here.” He pulled her from the bathroom, keeping her against him, moving her quickly through the apartment. “I’ll get someone in here once the police are finished, and we’ll get it cleaned up.”

She shook her head.

“Don’t argue with me.” He turned to her, gripping her arms, his stare fierce, his expression so determined now that she knew better than to argue. “You can’t stay here, Kia. And I’ll be damned if you’ll stay anywhere else but with me. Do you understand me?”

She stared up at him helplessly. She didn’t want to be anywhere else. Right now, she knew anywhere else would be terrifying.

She nodded slowly. She couldn’t argue with him; she didn’t want to argue with him. She wanted to go home with him, hide in his arms, and pretend this hadn’t happened until she could get a handle on the fear that sparked inside her.

“Let’s go. Cam’s downstairs with Ian and Khalid checking the security tapes. With any luck, we’ll get the bastard.”

There was no luck that day.

Kia sat on a small upholstered bench in the hallway, several other residents of the apartment building looking on curiously as uniformed officers moved from the elevator to the apartment and back, packing samples taken from it. Carl Allen stood with Chase, Cameron, Ian, and Khalid in front of her.

The security tapes were missing, Cameron reported. A full three hours’ worth of auto-saved discs were missing from the security office where the equipment was held.

“Check Drew Stanton’s whereabouts first,” Chase was telling the detective. “He’s her ex-husband and he’s one of Rutherford’s security experts. He maintains and installs all their security software for their offices and their warehouses.”

There was no point in arguing further with Chase. A small part of Kia admitted she was afraid that perhaps Drew had been angry enough to do this. She hadn’t seen it, though. Drew had a pattern to his anger, and he hadn’t shown an escalation into rage.

Detective Allen had his own electronics investigator in there now, she heard him report. And still, she couldn’t figure out why this has happened.

“Kia? Little one?” Khalid knelt in front of her as Chase and Cameron talked, only a few feet away from her. “You should let Chase take you back to the apartment. Get drunk. Get mad.”

He touched her hands where they lay folded in her lap.

“My limo is just outside,” he told her. “Fully stocked. You can drink until you get there.”

She stared into his black eyes and sniffed at the tears that began to run down her face again.

His expression creased painfully. Reaching into his suit jacket he pulled free a handkerchief and wiped her eyes gently.

“Ah, little one, I would make this all better if I could.” His eyes were filled with anger.

Kia shook her head before taking the handkerchief he pressed into her fingers.

“I’m okay.” She cleared her throat, aware of Chase watching her now, concern heavy in his face. “I’ll be okay.”

It was just an apartment. They were just things. She was okay, her parents were okay, and Chase was okay. Things could be replaced. But they were her things. Five years of memories and what little comfort she had been able to draw from them during the two years she had forced herself to withdraw from her earlier life.

“Carl, I need to get her out of here,” Chase said to the detective standing at his side. “She’s had it.”

Carl nodded. “We’re almost done here. I’ll let you know when you can get a cleaning crew in, but I want to wait and see what the lab comes up with, make sure they don’t need anything else before I release it.”

“If you need her, you know where she’ll be.” Chase nodded.

She would be in his home, in his bed. She would be safe. He was going to make damned certain of it.

As he turned back to her, Khalid rose from in front of her, shoving his hands in his slacks as he watched her straighten shakily from the bench.

She hated this. Hated feeling helpless and endangered. She had never felt endangered in her entire life. Not like this. And the feeling was threatening the last shreds of her control.

“Let’s get you home,” he said, his voice tight. “Cameron, Jaci, and Khalid will be with you for a while. I have a few things I have to take care of.”

Kia paused, knowing instinctively what those few things were, and she wasn’t having it.

“Chase.” She finally shook her head again as she fought to make sense of everything. “Drew wasn’t involved with this. If you go after him yourself, I’ll walk out of that apartment of yours so fast it will make your head spin. Do you understand me?”

His eyes narrowed on her. “I’ll take care of this, Kia.”

“Do you understand me?” She stared back at him. “If you want me to trust you, then you have to trust me as well. You’ll get proof. You won’t handle this like some Western gunslinger intent on revenge. Are we clear?”